Chapter 5 #3
She bat her little eyes, but hid behind her mother.
In the few months that Chevy and I had been cool, I hadn’t met the kids yet.
We had gotten closer as women, but we had yet to hang out on that level.
I was still a little leery about having a female friend.
Me and my own sister were known to clash from time to time.
It wasn’t always like that with me and Harmonie, she just had a tendency to make everything about her.
“Bad ass hell.” Chevy rolled her eyes and huffed as she let go of the little girl’s hand.
“Don’t let the cute face fool you. I just had to turn around and go back to her damn daycare because she decided she wanted to start an all-out brawl about a toy that wasn’t even hers to begin with.
” Chevy looked down at the little girl, chastising her to death with just her eyes.
A blank stare covered her adorable face like she didn’t know what she was speaking of.
“Aw, well, she can hang with us today then.” I perked up.
“Laiyah, say hello to Harbor,” Chevy instructed.
“Hi,” the cutest little voice said.
“She’s so damn cute.” I smiled at her and grabbed a menu from this deli spot around the corner.
“Mmm, well she acts like her father.” Chevy muttered, shaking her head.
I fell over laughing and studied Laiyah while she checked around curiously for something to get into no doubt.
“Oh damn, you poor thing!”
“Landyn is my baby and my sweetheart. This chile here from somewhere else.” She continued to rant.
“Hmm, maybe she is from somewhere else.” Kitana’s high-pitched ass voice jarred us from our conversation. “I notice you said her father and not Knowledge.”
“What is she doing here?” Anger submerged Chevy within seconds.
“Cleaning out your office.” I kidded perkily.
“Laiy, baby go to the back and play.” Chevy didn’t take her eyes off Kitana as her daughter went racing past.
Kitana carried one box in her hand, loaded with her things. Chevy went to take off her gold hoop earrings as she came stepping toward her. This was about to take a turn. I watched her nostrils flare.
“Bitch!” Chevy had Kitana by the hair before that hoe even knew what was happening.
Her fist connected repeatedly to her face until blood spewed from her mouth and nose.
“Talk all that shit you was saying on the phone now!” Chevy delivered another blow that sent her crumbling to the ground.
Looming over her like a dark shadow of death, she dared that bitch to bring herself to her feet.
Kitana grabbed her face and stared in shock at her bloody hand.
Chevy brought her leg up and proceeded to stomp the fuck out of her, just as Knowledge brought his ass through the door.
Rushing toward the scene, he scooped Chevy around the waist, pulling her off Kitana, who was now on the floor in a fetal position.
She was trying to shield her face from further bruising.
“Chevy, the fuck!” Ledge dragged her far enough so that she wasn’t within reach of the girl anymore.
He tossed her behind him and spun to face her.
“Get your bitch and put her out like the trash she is! And let her know if she comes around here again, she’s gon’ qualify for more than a dog walk!” Chevy spat, shoving him off.
Ledge kept his balance in front of her and bit down on his inner jaw.
“Chev— “
“No, fuck you and fuck that bitch! We are done, Ledge. If it ain’t about the kids, then I don’t want shit to do with your lying, cheating ass!” Chevy declared. “Laiy, let’s go!” She shouted to the back for her child.
Kitana was on the floor, scrambling to get to her feet, but she seemed broken.
Laiyah came dashing from the back to her mother.
She ran behind the counter so she wasn’t witness to Kitana on the ground.
I watched her scurry by, trying to grip something to hold on to when Frequency appeared at the door.
Chevy stormed out right past him, dragging poor little Laiyah behind her and nearly running him over in the process.
“Uncle Free!” Laiyah lit up and Chevy jerked her along angrily.
“Let’s go, Laiyah!” She grit her teeth, eyeing Frequency like he had wronged her too and stormed off.
“Chevy, I’ll call you!” I called after her.
Ledge dropped his head, looking completely exasperated while Kitana pressed her back against the reception desk.
“The fuck is going on here?” Frequency asked. “Ledge, the fuck you do?”
“Fuck you, a’ight. I’m handling it.” Ledge spoke up.
“Looks like it’s handling you.” Frequency noted, angering him. “Don’t bring that shit around here.”
“Oh, what you don’t want me tainting your girl?” He demanded, managing a deep scowl.
“I don’t want you fucking up business.” Frequency countered, narrowing both brows at him while his hands went into his pocket. “I told you from jump it was a bad idea having them both around here. Now look at this shit.” He waved at Kitana. “Get this bitch out of here.”
Contempt accompanied Ledge’s lips. I imagine he wanted to snatch Kitana up.
She was discombobulated, and barely able to stand.
Ledge didn’t look like he cared what happened to her one way or another.
He just knew he had to get her the fuck out of here.
Frequency moved his head back and forth, watching them exit.
“You good?” He asked, pausing on the other side of the counter.
I sucked in a deep breath and lowered my eyes to the computer screen.
“I am not the one that just blew out of here.” I answered, feeling his suspicion all over me as he surveyed me in front of him.
“A’ight, so what happened at the doctor? Why are you here instead of calling me and telling me what’s up?” He interrogated, resting an elbow on the counter.
I watched him put his chin in his hand and study me while I did everything but look him in the eye.
“I am fine. She said it was a mild cold and to rest and drink fluids.” I conveyed.
“Then why are you here instead of at home?” he queried next, head slanted to the side, examining me.
“I’m not handicapped.” I gave him the screw face. “I want to work.”
He squinted like he only half believed what I was telling him and my heart went crazy.
How was it he already knew me so well? Frequency slid behind the counter and placed an arm on either side of me so that I couldn’t just pull away from him where I stood at the computer.
His cologne made me nauseous suddenly and my mouth salivated like I was going to throw up.
I tried to hold it in, but he saw my face lose color as I covered my mouth.
“Yo, you ’bout to throw up?” He asked, inching away from me.
I nodded and ran past him to the bathroom, barely making it over the toilet.
Holding on to the side, I felt the sweat form on my forehead and sucked in deep breaths while trying to pull myself together.
When I was done, I used the mouthwash that we kept tucked away to rinse my mouth out.
Staring at my reflection in the mirror, I felt defeated.
There was no way I could hide this shit from him.
He was going to be going to every doctor’s appointment with me until he could figure out what was wrong himself, that I was sure of.
Grabbing a paper towel, I wiped my mouth and let myself out of the bathroom and into my office.
Frequency waited behind my desk. Tapping a pencil against his index finger, he examined me when I emerged.
“Harbor, the fuck is going on? And lie to me if you want to, ’cause I ain’t buying that mild cold bullshit? You want me to call your doctor my damn self?” he demanded.
“She can’t tell you anything anyway. It violates HIPPA.” I countered, arms folding over my chest while staring back at him.
“You think she gon’ care about any of that with a gun in her face?” He asked.
“Frequency!”
He didn’t speak, but his expression told me he was dead ass. I shook my head. This nigga was crazy. I really should have known that before now. He wasn’t psychotic crazy, it was very subtle.
“Talk. Now. Or I’ll have you find her home address so we can chat about this.” He tossed the pencil on the desk and fell back in my chair.
Peering over at me, he crossed his arms over his abs and linked his fingers together on each hand while waiting for me to respond.
“Pregnant. She told me I was pregnant.” I admitted softly.
His head slanted slightly but he didn’t say anything as he looked me over.
Standing near the small sofa in the room near the door, I lowered myself down into it and brought my spinning head to my hand.
Frequency stood and brought himself over to me.
Kneeling in front of me, he placed a gentle hand on my knee.
“You couldn’t tell me that?’ He pressed.
“I was still trying to process it myself,” I muttered.
“We literally just pushed through everything else with us. Ivy is on board. At least I think she is. You know that girl is an unpredictable mess.” I kidded and he laughed cutely while dropping his head slightly.
“I didn’t want to mess up the vibe with this. ”
“A fucking baby, yo? You serious?” He asked, shocked.