Chapter 6 Dreu
Dreu
Islept for about three hours and woke up with Jatavia in my arms. This shit felt unreal, I kept waking up pulling her even closer to me. Jatavia slept hard, with her leg thrown over me like her body remembered mine even if her mind tried not to over the years.
Her room smelled like shea butter and sweet candles.
A little bit of light crept through her dark curtains cutting gold lines across her deep brown skin.
I stared at the ceiling for a minute; my mind spun with thoughts that didn’t even feel like mine.
I had plans forming in my head without my own permission like getting her back to Cali…
out of this apartment and where she belongs… with me. But how?
I looked around her bedroom; the walls were close enough to touch both sides if I stretched.
The pile of dirty clothes that sat in the corner of her room was now replaced with neatly folded clothes on top of a crate that I placed them on yesterday while she was at work.
A thrift store mirror was propped against the wall.
Then there was a stack of books next to her bed, mostly romance and poetry with cracked spines from her re-reading her favorite books.
The sound of her snoring told me that Jatavia was overworked and drained.
I just wanted her to allow me to upgrade her life, fully.
I wanted to upgrade her fast and not have her on some struggling shit when I had mad love and feelings for her.
It just didn’t sit right with me at all.
I already knew it was going to take time to gain her trust again, but in the meantime, she needed to be willing to accept my help.
She deserved windows bigger than her problems and a view that didn’t end at a parking lot. This small ass bed should have been bigger with a softer body forming mattress.
Last night we talked about everything like time never got in between us. I felt like myself, it felt even better feeling so comfortable around her. Jatavia cooked even though I told her I could buy us food. It was just how wholesome this woman was.
She shifted against me, then went still again, deep in sleep. I couldn’t help but smile because it all felt natural. All of the feelings that came with liking Jatavia back in the day scared me, like it scared me now…but in a good way.
I reached over her and grabbed my phone off the nightstand, planning, and already scheming a way to get her ass to Cali with me. I had over a hundred missed calls from Rina and Iceman. Bleu called once, I already knew his call came with a text message.
Bleu- I already know your dumb ass didn’t listen to any of the advice Truly gave you. Iceman called me twice wanting to know your whereabouts. You got until noon to check in.
A silly smirk stretched my face as I looked at the time on my phone and noticed that it was ten am.
I knew it was reckless doing a disappearing act on everybody for a couple of days but I was determined to find Jatavia.
I quickly texted Bleu back and told him I was good then placed my phone back on the nightstand.
“I can’t believe this…” A deep voice whispered from Jatavia’s bedroom door.
Without thinking twice, I reached for my gun on the nightstand.
It was her soon to be ex nigga standing at her door.
His face was red, but he didn’t look angry.
The nigga looked starstruck. I kept my eyes locked on him as he continued to stare at me like he seen a ghost and celebrity at the same time.
“Big D? Is that really you?” He blinked his eyes hard as hell.
I sighed and loosened my grip on my gun but still kept that shit off safety in case he had a change of heart.
This fool didn’t even look devastated that another man was half naked in bed with his woman.
I sat my gun back down and gently moved Jatavia’s leg off of my body.
He stepped further into the room, eyes shining with excitement as he continued to talk lowly.
“Bro, I can’t believe this shit. It’s really you in the flesh! I got all your music from the very beginning bro. I even got your SoundCloud stuff before you got signed.”
I got out the bed with disgust rising inside of me.
I took him in; he looked like he only took care of himself when he had somewhere important to go.
His curly hair was a mess all over his head like he just got out the bed.
The night of the festival, he had that shit slicked back into a ponytail.
He had on basketball shorts with a dingy ass white tee.
“I got a hat in the living room; you think you can sign it and take a picture with me?” He asked a little bit louder.
I quickly looked over at Jatavia to make sure she was still sleep.
Since I got out the bed, she was now sprawled out on her stomach snoring lightly.
I turned to Devin and put my finger to my lips then pointed to the door.
He nodded his head in compliance quickly and turned to walk out of her room door to wait for me.
It hit me suddenly that this nigga didn’t give a fuck one bit about me being in Jatavia’s bed. I didn’t bother to put back on my clothes either. I walked out of her bedroom in just my boxers. I shut her door behind me then walked down the short hallway to meet his dumb ass in the living room.
“Bro, I didn’t know you and Tav knew each other,” he whisper-yelled. “This shit is fucking insane! She never said anything! If I—”
“Don’t call her, Tav.” I snapped.
He froze, still smiling, but confused. He didn’t get what I just told him because he continued.
“Aye Bleu Langston is your brother too! Oh my God! This is some legendary shit. You think he’d do a sale on his new clothing line? So, people like me could afford it?”
I just stared at him blankly. I walked over to the couch and took a seat, picking up the blunt that I didn’t finish from last night.
I took my time to light it and hit it as he waited patiently for me to answer his question.
Once I inhaled and captured most of the smoke, I released it, blowing it in his direction.
“Louis Vuitton don’t do sales, so why should Maison Langston’s? It’s black owned, the prices are just that.” I spat spreading my legs wide.
“Fasho, I dig that! Man, y’all doing y’all thang.” He cheered on.
I held up a hand and took another hit of my blunt. He shut up instantly like I pressed a mute button on him.
“You know I’m here for one reason only. You letting your fan girling act overshadow that shit.” I smirked, blowing smoke in his direction.
“Besides my status, you need to have some dignity about yourself as a fuckin’ man. Jatavia worth fighting for, I’m about to put in major work to get her back…while you in my fuckin’ face begging for sales and autographs.” I chuckled dryly.
His mouth opened but I quickly cut him off before he could utter a word.
“You might not care who lay in that bed next to her, but I do.” I tilted my head to the side.
He sighed roughly then ran one hand down his face.
“I mean, I noticed I don’t make her happy.
I don’t know how to care the way she needs.
Jatavia is a good ass woman; she’s been my friend before we got together.
Even being together, she’s been there for me.
Through all my bullshit she has stuck it out…
” His words trailed off, he swallowed down hard and looked away from me.
“Around the holidays, she turns into somebody else. I don’t know what it be about.” He murmured lowly.
I felt my jaw tighten, if Jatavia stuck shit out with this pussy…why couldn’t she give me another chance? This nigga here had her stressed out and overworking herself to keep up with bills that it was clear he didn’t have a hand in.
“Plus,” he continued, the dull look that covered his face was now replaced with an excited smile. “Jatavia ain’t the type to chase. So, if she got somebody like you chasing her, that’s a win. I wouldn’t dare try to compete with that.” His eyes lit up after he spoke.
This nigga unhinged, I thought. He probably couldn’t wait to go brag to his homies how Big D took his bitch.
He clapped his hands together suddenly.
“Anyway! Bro. Since you here…can I get a picture?” He fished his phone out of his pocket then held it with both hands.
“And um…if you could sign my shirt too?”
I stared at him. I guess I couldn’t get over how he was so comfortable enough to basically say he didn’t want his woman then still proceeded to ask for an autograph and a photo with the man he caught in bed with his woman.
This nigga was a nonfactor. A placeholder, he was barely a footnote in her life.
Jatavia wasted nothing but time and efforts with this man.
“Come on man, if not the picture, then—”
“Man,” I drawled standing up.
“Go get a fucking marker then get yo ass the fuck on.” I spat.
I exhaled the rest of the smoke through my nose and watched him scramble away to the kitchen. Once he got his autograph and continued to go on and on about how much he loved my music, he left with a promise to never contact Jatavia again. Which in my mind, was weak as fuck.
If I was in his dingy ass shoes, no man alive would be able to bitch me into taking Jatavia away from me. That was neither here nor there. I easily got his lame ass out of the picture. Now, I had to have patience to really get my Pancakes back.
When I walked back into the room, Jatavia sat at the edge of her small bed.
Her hands were clasped in her lap with her hair messy from the good sleep she had.
She had on a cotton nightgown with clouds all over it.
Even with bags under her eyes her raw beauty was potent as hell.
Jatavia was the type of woman that didn’t have to wear some sexy shit to have a man like me captivated.