Chapter 8
Why do I have to wear this stupid suit?” DJ asked.
“Because we on some boss shit tonight, kid. When you take a pretty girl out, you show up looking like something,” Demi said. “You quit complaining and pay attention, and you might soak up some game from your old man.”
“Mannn,” DJ groaned.
Demi chuckled as he pulled up to his home. “Quit complaining, kid. I’m an hour late messing around with you and that suit. You better rock it and rock it with a smile when Bird come out of this house.”
DJ sucked his teeth, but no more complaints left his mouth. “Hey, Dad, why do you call your girlfriend Bird?”
“You about to see tonight, my boy,” Demi said. He parked the car and climbed out. “You got the flowers?” He asked.
“Yeah,” DJ muttered unenthusiastically.
Demi hustled up the walkway. He was anxious to get to his girl.
This night was hers. She had worked hard to get here, and he couldn’t wait to celebrate her.
She thought they were going to a family dinner at a five-star restaurant.
She had no idea that one hundred of the music industry’s most influential tastemakers and her closest friends were waiting for her to arrive.
He walked into the house, and the smell of weed hit him.
Erykah Badu was playing at volumes of extreme.
Charlie was singing like Demi hadn’t never bought her nothing.
“What’s that smell?” DJ asked.
“It’s herbs, boy. Don’t tell ya mama,” Demi said. “Go wait in the car. We on our way out.”
“Man, that ain’t no herbs,” DJ mumbled.
“Boy, go getcha ass in the car,” Demi snickered.
He followed the smell of the smoke and found Charlie sitting on the balcony in their room, with her blunt lifted to the stars as she crooned.
“One dayyyy he gon’ sayyyy you crowdin’ my spaceee.”
Demi ran a hand down his head and leaned against the bedroom door frame.
He wouldn’t interrupt her. He enjoyed what she was giving too much to say a peep. Whoever was waiting would keep waiting until she got to the end of this song. Her shock interrupted his bliss when she turned around to discover him. Her scream defied octaves.
“Demi!”
He had scared her.
“You fucking got me, Bird,” Demi said, shaking his head. “I’m in fucking trouble here.”
Her blush was a color of red he had never seen, the prettiest shade, his new favorite color because not even roses could match the shade of the balls of her cheeks when she was shy.
“You scared me!”
“You hypnotized me. You got my whole head. I’m the one who should be scared,” Demi replied. She fell into his arms. Lips on lips. His hands. Her hips. “If we ain’t have somewhere to be, baby, I’d take advantage.”
“Do it anyway,” Charlie whispered as she hopped into his arms.
“If only time would be so kind to a nigga, Bird,” he groaned. “DJ’s in the car and we already late.”
Charlie sighed. “Cool. When I play with it and handle it myself later, don’t say I didn’t offer it up.”
“Don’t play with me,” Demi answered, laughing.
It was shit like this. Her sex drive. Her spontaneity.
Her charm. Her live-in-the-moment type attitude that made him want to die twice over her.
She made him feel like he could recapture time, recover years of his life he had lost. Charlie’s youth was his renewal.
He was living life through her eyes, and it felt like a blessing.
God had blessed the devil at least once when Demi had found her.
He would forever appreciate it.
“Can I take you somewhere?” Demi asked.
“Anywhere, Demi Sky,” Charlie answered.
He snickered. “You high as fuck.”
“Where else are birds supposed to be?”
She. Fucking. Did. It. For. Him.
No other woman ever would. He had left a whole wife who had tried but never could.
His hand in hers, he led her out of the house and held open the passenger door for her before taking the driver’s seat and driving off into the night.
He hoped she enjoyed her night. He hoped this debut of her music landed well because he had witnessed how hard she had worked on it.
She deserved all the recognition, but he couldn’t lie and say he wasn’t a little jealous that he had to share her with the world because he knew it was inevitable for her to become a superstar.
“Why are we here? DJ can’t come in here,” Charlie said. “It’s 21 and up.”
“I just need y’all to step in for a minute.
I got to chop it up with Day real quick.
” Demi’s lie landed effortlessly because her trust in him was effortless.
She didn’t even think anything of it. “I’ma have y’all wait in the office.
I know the owner. Order a dessert or something to occupy time while I handle this business. ”
“This is dumb,” DJ complained as he climbed from the car.
Charlie looked at Demi, who gave DJ a stern glare. “You better put that attitude away, kiddo. You a chip off the old block, don’t make me take a chip off ya block. I ain’t ya mama. Relax, homie. A’ight? Don’t ruin the night.”
Charlie could see DJ’s discontent, but she opted to stay out of that father/son moment. There were many moments between them where she felt she didn’t belong. This was one of them. She felt like an intruder, like date night was really family night with a family that didn’t belong to her.
She walked ahead as Demi and DJ trailed her.
“Grab the door for her, li’l man,” Demi said.
DJ begrudgingly ran ahead and opened the door.
“Thank you, DJ,” Charlie said. She wished he wasn’t so miserable in her presence. The way he sulked around her made her feel like she was to blame for his unhappiness.
Demi gave a supportive squeeze of DJ’s shoulder as they both followed Charlie inside.
The second set of doors were closed and security stood watch in a black suit and an earpiece.
“Bossman’s here,” the man announced.
Demi nodded, and Charlie was clueless.
“Everything is yours, Charlie. The whole damn world if you want it,” Demi whispered in her ear.
She frowned and smiled at the same time, confused at his sudden salutation of his love for her. “What’s going on, Demi?”
Before he could respond, the security guard pushed open the door.
“SURPRISE!”
The crowd scared Charlie so bad she jumped out of her skin. She turned back to Demi instantly; her overwhelm forcing her to tears or happiness as she hid her face in his chest. The sound of her album playing in the background made her look up at him in awe.
“Is that me?” She asked, her wet cheeks beaming as a smile illuminated her face.
“That’s you,” Demi answered. “Let the people love you.”
She didn’t want to. She wanted to stay facing him. His embrace was a safe space. Nobody would appreciate her music like him. No one would appreciate her like him.
“I don’t need them. It’s you for me, Demitrius,” she said.
They were in their own world as he reached down, gripping her ass as he snatched her closer to kiss her.
The catcalls, whistles, and boisterous cheers of the people watching made her laugh before she finally turned to them.
“Yo, yo, yo.” Day’s baritone hushed the crowd and pulled Charlie’s attention to the stage.
“I know this is not what you expected, Charlie, but ya boy is proud of you. You been grinding in the studio, it’s time to step out from beneath them covers.
They made you viral, your music, the shit we sat in them sessions for hours writing, and recording will make you famous.
This party is for you. The Dynasty family is proud of you.
You deserve this, sis. Come up here and say a little sum’n for the people.
” Day was like a proud big brother. Besides Demi, she had spent the most time with him over the past year.
Studio sessions lasted days sometimes, and he was so musically inclined with her that it didn’t even feel like work.
He was a great producer and even colder rapper, and after all the time they had spent together, she would call him a friend.
Demi’s brother from another mother, it was only right that she trusted him with her art.
“Get up there, baby,” Demi whispered in her ear.
She blew out a nervous breath and then slowly made her way to the stage. She passed Stassi on the way and stopped to hug her. “I’m so nervous.”
“You’ve got this,” Stassi told her.
Day reached his hand down to help Charlie up the steps and then took a few steps away from the mic as she stepped up to it.
“I can’t even believe I’m standing here right now,” Charlie said. Her first single played softly in the background, and she put her hands over her mouth in disbelief. “Like, that’s me.”
Charlie charmed the crowd with her humility alone. They laughed with her, cheering her on as she snapped her fingers and began grooving to her track.
“Thank you to everyone who showed up tonight. You didn’t have to. I’m sure you have better things to do than to come out and support me, but here you are. I’m so nervous,” Charlie whispered. “I can’t believe you set me up like this.”
Those last words were for Demi, and her eyes sparkled as she looked at him.
“Sing to me, Bird.”
Every woman in the room swooned as they witnessed a love story right before their eyes.
Day signaled for the DJ to restart the track, and then he stepped up to Charlie to whisper in her ear.
“The people in this room can make or break your whole career with one review. Put your fucking soul in this shit, sis. This ya shot. Don’t miss.”
She nodded. In her feelings, nerves ate her alive as she stood there. She was trembling and wondered if everyone noticed, but as soon as she opened her mouth, it all went away. The room stilled when Charlie sang.
When her song faded, Charlie kept singing, belting the love song like her life depended on it. Acapella. Pure talent. The crowd ate her up.
“And that’s how you get it done,” Day stated, giving her a fist bump and biting his lip to contain his excitement. He took the mic. “We’ve got a media room set up for interviews. Y’all heard her. Get to know her first cuz the price going up after tonight. Tomorrow’s price won’t be tonight’s price.”