Chapter 7
“Let’s turn up, bitches!”
My girls and I were out having a good ass time. I had no business in a twenty-one and over club, but my good looks and this fake ID got me into a lot of places I shouldn’t have been in.
“Tonight is about to be a fucking movie!” My homegirls Summyah and Kiara cheered.
We were in our own section courtesy of the nigga Summyah was fucking with.
His name was Tutta, and from what I heard, he was getting to the money.
He wasn’t on East and Logic’s level, but he was making a name for himself.
My girls kept them a nigga with money, so we always got five-star treatment wherever we went.
“I know that’s fuckin’ right. Y’all hoes are doing too much talking for me, though.
It’s shot o’clock bitches!” My other friend Valor came over with a tray of shot glasses.
She was the friend who made sure everyone had a drink in their hands.
Kiara was nineteen, while Summyah and Valor were both twenty.
None of us were old enough to be in the club, but we didn’t give a fuck.
“Cheers, bitches. We’re fine as fuck, got fat asses, and even fatter pockets!” Summyah toasted with her shot in the air. We all held our drinks up before taking the shots to the head. After three shots, I was feeling good and ready to turn up.
When the DJ started playing “Freak Hoe” by Future, I bent over and started bouncing my ass.
One thing I thanked my daughter for was the body she gave me.
I used to be a stick figure, but pregnancy added an extra twenty pounds to my figure, and it went to all the right places.
My hips spread, and my booty had doubled in size.
“Yes, Lyric! Bounce that ass, friend!” Summyah gassed me up while dancing beside me.
Valor and Kiara hyped me up as well. The DJ was on a roll playing back-to-back hits, and my girls and I were living in the moment.
By the fourth shot, I decided to take a break and grabbed some water.
Our table was filled with bottles, chasers, and a hookah. We were living it up and enjoying life.
Since I was sweating, I wanted to check and make sure my makeup still looked good and my hair wasn’t messed up.
I usually carried a little fan when we went out, but the silver handbag I wanted to carry tonight could only fit my phone, lip gloss, my mace, and East’s black card.
I never had to spend money when I went out, but East insisted I never go without it because anything could happen.
As soon as I powered my phone on, notifications began to pour in. I rolled my eyes at a few of them because these niggas were ridiculous.
Montaye Harris: Did you get the money I sent you? When you gon’ let me take you out?
ArdoDaGawd: Damn, I want to eat yo’ pussy. Why you playin’ wit me, ma?
Unknown: You play too many games. I’m tryna see you.
Noodle’s Daddy: Where tf you at?
My heart dropped when I saw the message from East. He was supposed to be out of town on business, so I figured he would be busy most of the weekend.
Granny Nessa offered to watch my baby for me, and I took her up on her offer without a second thought.
Motherhood was exhausting and downright depressing at times, and I needed time to go out and act my age.
The message had been sent an hour ago, so I debated whether I should respond or not.
Since East had expanded, he was constantly on the road, having meetings for both his legal and illegal businesses.
He tried his best to keep me in the dark, but I was a master at snooping and eavesdropping.
For instance, I knew East was in the process of opening a restaurant downtown.
I overheard him on the phone talking to Logic about the grand opening.
I won’t lie and say I wasn’t offended that he hadn’t mentioned it to me, but I guess I shouldn’t have been surprised.
When it came to my relationship with East, it was nothing but confusion.
He moved me into his place when I was pregnant with Symphonee.
I assumed it was because of his loyalty to my brother, but then there were moments when I questioned if there was more.
He doted on me through my entire pregnancy, making sure I never wanted for anything.
When my belly got bigger, he would rub cocoa butter on my stomach and my swollen feet.
East was there through every step of my pregnancy, including the delivery room.
It was the reason everyone assumed he was the father of my baby, and he never corrected anyone.
He spent a bag on Symphonee and me whenever he could, and he was overprotective as hell.
I thought it was only because of Noodle, but he was possessive whenever I went anywhere.
He would check my location and pull up on me whenever he wanted to make sure I was safe.
Whenever I confronted him about it, he swore I was trippin’, but everyone else saw it too.
I had the biggest crush on East since I was a young girl, but now that I was older, it was more than a simple crush.
I wanted East to be my man, but for some reason, he refused to make things official.
After we had sex, a while back, I thought for sure we would become a thing, but instead, he put more distance between us.
We had sex a few more times over the past six months, and he would come home and eat my pussy whenever he wanted, but in the morning, he would treat me the way he always did... like a best friend.
The more time I spent living in the house with him, the more confused I became, because there was no definitive answer on what we were doing.
It was the main reason I wanted my own place, because I was tired of the mixed signals.
He was still fucking with other bitches, and even though the shit never hit our doorstep, I wasn’t blind.
Bitches glared and whispered whenever I walked into a room.
Even some of the girls on campus would roll their eyes at me as if I had taken their nigga.
A few girls had tried to be slick and post pictures of him, but he would shut it down with the quickness.
I hated being in limbo because I couldn’t even get upset with him since he technically wasn’t my man.
The thought alone pissed me off because he was free to do him, but if he even thought I was trying to be with someone else, he cockblocked.
He swore he was only trying to look out for me, but it was bullshit.
East wanted the benefits of access to me without making things official, and it wasn’t fair.
After I verified I still looked cute as fuck, I snapped a couple of pictures and uploaded the ones I took earlier to my IG page.
I had over 300,000 followers, which was crazy for someone living in a small town.
My girls said I should consider becoming a model, but I was honestly not sure if that was what I wanted.
What I did know was that whenever I posted a picture, niggas went crazy in my comments and inbox.
Strangers were begging to pay my bills and fly me out.
A couple of NBA and NFL players reached out to me, and that was when I considered taking them up on their offer.
The only thing that stopped me in the past was my feelings for East. He already thought I was immature, and I knew he would never take me seriously if I started going out with random men.
Now, I didn’t care anymore. It was obvious I would never be enough for him, so I decided to live my best life.
There was a particular football player I had my eyes on, and when I saw his notification, I decided to respond.
He had been asking me to come to Tampa to celebrate his birthday with him next weekend, but I had been giving him the runaround.
The liquor in my system gave me the courage to step my game up.
Me: Does the offer still stand to come kick it with you for your birthday?
Damacio Sims: Hell yeah. I can have your flight booked right now.
I smiled as I bit my bottom lip.
Me: Okay. My girls have to come, too. I don’t feel comfortable being in a city I’ve never been to by myself. We can pay for our own Airbnb, and I can just link with you when I get there.
Damacio Sims: Naw, I got you. If you want to book an Airbnb, let me know how much it costs, and I’ll send you the bread along with the money for your flights.
My stomach twisted with nerves because I had never done anything like this before, but I wasn’t about to punk out. It was time for me to live and make my own choices.
Me: Okay. I’m a little tipsy, but I’ll take care of everything first thing in the morning. I can’t wait to meet you. Hopefully, you’ll have time for little ol’ me while I’m there.
Damacio Sims: You just don’t know. You’re gonna have all my attention. Send me your bank account info. I’m sending you some bread, so you can get clothes and whatever else you need for the trip too. Then I’ll add to it once you let me know what you need for everything else.
I couldn’t contain the smile on my face as I sent him my Zelle information. I was used to being spoiled, but the motives behind it were different. I didn’t have to guess whether he was interested in me or not because he made it clear.
My notifications went off, and I saw the deposit of $15,000. I blinked twice to make sure the liquor didn’t have me tripping, but once I focused, the numbers didn’t change.
Me: I think you might have added too many zeros. It says 15k instead of 1,500. Do you want me to send it back?
Fifteen hundred dollars was plenty of money to grab a few outfits from Shein and a couple of statement pieces from my favorite boutique in Jonah Hills. I already owned an excessive amount of shoes and clothes, thanks to East, so I honestly didn’t need a lot.
Damacio Sims: Stop playin’ wit me, shorty. Ain’t no mistakes on my end. You fuckin’ with a rich nigga. I don’t do shit cheap.
His arrogance was a turn-on for me, so I didn’t bother to argue with him. Instead, I thanked him and left our chat.
“Bitch, get off that phone. We ain’t come here to be cupcakin’ with niggas. The club closes at three, and I want to be good and drunk when we leave out of this bitch.” Summyah interrupted me with another shot in her hand.
“Exactly! My baby daddy is crashing out in my messages, talking about I’m a ho and setting a bad example for our daughter.
I’m about to show him just what kind of ho I can be.
I’m gonna find one of his homeboys and put my coochie right on his forehead.
Tuh.” Kiara snickered with a shot glass raised.
“You ain’t wrong, friend! Let’s get it.” I downed my shot, then got ready to turn my phone back off when I saw another message come through.
Noodle’s Daddy: You read my message and still haven’t answered my question. This is that childish shit I’m talking about. You gon’ get enough of playin’ wit me.
Me: Noodle is with your granny. I wasn’t expecting you to hit me up since you’re out of town on business. Hell, it’s been three days, and you haven’t bothered to call or anything. I don’t understand where this energy is coming from.
Noodle’s Daddy: I know where my daughter is, trust me. I’m simply tryna check on her bobble head ass momma, but you got it.
Me: Yeah, whatever. You weren’t thinking about checking on me when you were in the club throwing money on half-naked bitches. Neither myself nor your daughter was a thought of yours, so don’t act all concerned now.
I’ll admit a part of me was jealous of the fact that he was out living his best life.
When I checked Logic’s story and saw them popping bottles and making it rain on bitches at a popular strip club in Atlanta, it made me sick to my stomach.
No, East wasn’t mine to claim, but it didn’t mean I enjoyed seeing him entertain other women.
The idea of him being surrounded by thirsty ass bitches bothered me more than I cared to admit.
Noodle’s Daddy: You got me fucked up, but I’m drunk, and I don’t want to say some shit I can’t take back.
Text me when you make it home, and no, I’m not asking.
I have a meeting in the morning, and I’ll wring yo’ fuckin neck if I have to hop on a flight because you want to test my gangsta.
Live your life, Lola B, but respect my fuckin’ mind.
Me: I hear you. I appreciate you for looking out, bro.
I knew I had pissed him off when the bubbles popped up immediately after I hit send. Getting under his skin came second nature to me, and I used it to my advantage whenever I could.
Noodle’s Daddy: Stop playin’ with me. I ain’t yo’ fuckin’ bro. You love to play games.
Me: I learned from the best. Goodnight, Roommate.
I turned my phone off before he could respond again. The night was still young, and I refused to spend it thinking about a nigga who didn’t want me, especially when there were plenty of them who did.