Chapter 11
Irritation grew in Paisley as she listened to her siblings bicker in the front seats of the car. Tiana drove while Nasir fiddled with the music, causing them to argue because they didn’t want to listen to the same thing.
“Can y’all stop fussing?” Paisley snapped. “I don’t understand why I couldn’t drive myself anyway.”
Tiana glanced at her in the rearview mirror while Nasir turned his body to look at her. “Because where we’re going is a surprise.”
Paisley huffed. “I don’t get how we’re having a sibling day, but I’m the only one getting surprised by where we’re going.”
Nasir turned back in his seat, ignoring Paisley and talking directly to Tiana.
“She’s been grumpy ever since she’s been back from that solo vacation, ain’t she?”
“Mhm,” Tiana hummed. “Grumpy as hell. Maybe it’s the job search.”
“I mean, who would want to hire a big ol’ grumpy ass like that?”
“You guys know I can hear you, right?” Paisley asked, crossing her arms over her chest and pouting.
Once again, her siblings glanced back at her, continuing to talk about her as if she wasn’t there. She sat back in her seat and let them. They were right after all. She had been crabby since she got home from her vacation.
The shock she received when she saw the amount for the check Kydrick had given her was something to be studied. Twenty thousand dollars was wild. She knew he had a nice chunk of change from everything his parents left him, but she never expected him to give her twenty thousand of it.
It took her weeks to deposit the check, and she only did because she convinced herself that a month-long vacation was exactly what she needed. One month turned into three—three glorious months of traveling around the world. She went everywhere from Jamaica and Mexico to Egypt and Australia. The world was at her fingertips, and for the first time ever, she felt like she was actually living.
She enjoyed her time abroad so much and would do it over again in a heartbeat, but when she came back, reality slapped her in the face. Being back home made her realize that she still yearned for Kydrick. It was like she couldn’t shake him. She could travel and do all the things to distract herself, but at the end of the night when her head hit the pillow, Kydrick filled her thoughts.
Stubbornness wouldn’t allow her to call him, though. She couldn’t backtrack. She wanted to respect the time he needed to get himself together, and she knew if they started hanging out again, she would put too much pressure on him for them to be a couple. For once, she needed him to apply the pressure, so she stayed away. Though it was her choice, it put her in a habitual bad mood. Even though she had an attitude most of the time, she genuinely enjoyed learning new things she loved to do.
She picked up crocheting, and she even filled her time with diamond art. Small things like that she never had time for before, but she did now. She went on hikes and bike rides with her dad and brother and cooked meals with her mom and sister. She allowed herself to just be .
Over the past month, she had been looking for a paralegal job to get her through school. She had a good chunk of money left from what Kydrick gave her after all the traveling, and she still had a decent savings. The nonprofit brought in a little bit of money. Though not much, when she realized she wanted to go back to school for what she was originally meant to do, she knew she needed to find some more stable income, especially since she wanted to keep the nonprofit afloat.
Her bachelor’s in jewelry design would take her four years, and she didn’t want to be left with a ton of student loans after, so she needed a job. The only experience she had was law, but she didn’t want to practice anymore. She also didn’t want to do anything that would take too much of her time or make her schedule unpredictable. The issue was she was overqualified for the jobs she wanted. Frustration filled her every day because of her predicament, but she knew God was only testing her patience at this phase of her life, and she would do her best to pass the test.
“We’re here,” Tiana announced after they’d been in the car for about twenty minutes.
Paisley noticed they were at Baywood Community College. Her brows pulled together as she unbuckled her seat belt.
“Why are we here?”
“Just gone on, big headed girl,” Nasir grumbled as he got out of the car. He made sure to open his sisters’ car doors before they all walked inside the college.
There were a lot of people scattered about as they walked through the halls and came upon the auditorium. Paisley saw a sign that read graduation , but someone’s head blocked the rest of it, so she couldn’t get the full scope of what was going on.
“Seriously, guys, what are we here for?—”
“There you guys are. I almost had to fight a lady for trying to sit here with her ugly ass family,” their mama fussed, causing Paisley’s eyes to grow wide.
Alyssa and Leon sat in a row close to the aisle, and next to them were three empty seats.
“What—”
“Girl, come on and sit down. It’s about to start,” Tiana urged, tugging on Paisley’s arm.
They sat down, and Paisley looked around, trying to see if she could gather a clue about why she was there, but a deep voice in the microphone on the stage pulled her attention.
“Good afternoon, everyone. Thank you for joining us for this intimate graduation ceremony. Our class is a bit small this time around, but those normally make for the best EMTs.”
The crowd cheered, and Paisley’s brows rose.
“EMT—”
“Shhh!” Nasir shushed her, elbowing her in the arm while Tiana tapped her on the thigh to also tell her to hush.
How she got stuck in between them was beyond her, but she didn’t even waste energy being irritated by that. The realization that they were there for an EMT graduation caused her heart rate to speed up. She only knew one person who wanted to be an EMT at one point, and her eyes wandered all over the auditorium in anticipation.
“We won’t keep you all long. I just want to acknowledge how proud I am of this term’s recruits. They are bright and put in a lot of work. I would like to first honor the top student in this term’s class, Kydrick Sutherland.”
Paisley’s heart stilled and tears flooded her eyes as she watched Kydrick walk onto the stage. Without even realizing it, Paisley sat at the edge of her seat, yearning to be as close to him as possible as she watched him stand beside his instructor. As if his energy could sense her, he immediately locked eyes with her. She swore she saw him wink, and she blushed.
Damn, I missed him . And she was proud of him. She had no idea he had even been in school. A tear fell from her eye as she watched him with pride. Whatever resentment she felt toward him melted away because this moment made it all worth it. This moment finally allowed that final, pesky piece of the puzzle to click into play. This right here was why they needed time apart. Begrudgingly, but with a grin, she admitted to herself that Kydrick had been right all along. She couldn’t be more amazed by him than she was at that moment.
“Some of you may recognize him, and while I won’t get into his story because it isn’t mine to tell, what I can get into is his character. I feel a great sense of honor letting this man out into the work field because I know he will be a great asset and he will save many, many lives. I feel good knowing that the city will have someone as caring and intelligent as Kydrick as a first responder.”
Cheers erupted around them, and Paisley found herself standing and cheering with everyone else as Kydrick nodded coolly with a slight smile on his face. Their eyes connected again, and the next half an hour was a blur because she wasn’t sure she and Kydrick had stopped looking at each other from that point on.
Something lingered within his gaze that caused her to shudder more than once. He looked primal. He looked different, somehow. He looked ready . Ready for everything he’d promised her six months ago.
Heat spread through her body as she wondered if this could be it, but she forced herself not to get her hopes up. She couldn’t allow herself to be disappointed by Kydrick yet again. Plus, she figured when he had left her house all those months ago that he would take much more time before he came back to her. She stayed awake most nights wondering what that would look like or if they would have grown too far apart by then.
When the ceremony ended, Paisley was the first to stand to her feet. Anxiety overtook her, and she wasn’t sure if she wanted to run to find Kydrick or if she wanted to bolt from the community college altogether. She was still very unclear on if her family brought her here or if Kydrick had specifically invited her here. She didn’t want to fall back into old habits with him if he still wasn’t ready for it. Stress gnawed at her as she chewed on her bottom lip. It was her mother’s touch that pulled her out of her thoughts.
“Chile, you worry too much.”
Paisley’s brows pulled in. “For good reason.”
“And what reason is that?”
“Mama, there’s a lot you don’t know about Kydrick and me?—”
“Girl, hush.” Alyssa swatted Paisley on the arm as people moved all around them out of the auditorium. “You really think I don’t know what’s going on between you two?”
“How could you?—”
Nasir nudged Paisley, cutting her off. “We all know. Now, can you move so we can go congratulate the graduate?”
Paisley’s eyes bulged. She purposefully didn’t talk to anyone about what transpired between her and Kydrick. Subconsciously, she knew it was because she wanted to protect Kydrick. As much as her family loved him, they loved Paisley more, and if they knew she was hurting behind him, she worried they might turn their backs on him. Kydrick needed them just as much as she did, and she would never jeopardize that.
Paisley silenced her questions since her brother kept nudging her along. She followed her parents out of the auditorium where everyone gathered waiting for the graduates.
As soon as they were in their own little corner, Paisley whirled around on her family and asked, “How do you guys know about me and Kydrick?”
Tiana scoffed and waved her hand in the air dismissively. “Even if Kydrick didn’t sit us down and talk to us about it, we would have known because of your stank attitude and the way you guys were never together anymore.”
Paisley stood there completely stunned. Here she was trying to be discreet, and her family apparently knew everything.
“He sat down and talked to you?”
Nassir nodded. “Months ago. He’s a real man, P. He knows how much we mean to you, and he knows how much he means to us. He wasn’t about to make no kind of move that affected you without telling us himself.”
Leon, her father, grabbed Paisley’s shoulders and squeezed. “Your brother is right.”
“Wha—why didn’t you guys say anything?”
“We figured you would come to us when you were ready,” Alyssa commented. “Instead, you took an extended vacation and came back in a terrible mood. We were all so relieved when Kydrick called and invited us to his graduation. I hope you two will talk things out now so I can get my daughter back.”
“He specifically invited me?” Paisley asked for clarification, her head spinning in so many directions.
“Duh,” Tiana responded, rolling her eyes and picking at her nails as if she was bored.
Paisley had so much more that she wanted to ask. She’d spent months actively trying not to think about Kydrick, and now, all she wanted to do was ask about him, but now, she could talk to him. Her breath caught when she caught sight of him making his way through the crowd. He was clearly the oldest out of the graduates, but he was also the finest. Damn, was that man fine. He wore a black button down with black slacks. His hair was freshly cut, his locs freshly twisted, and there were diamond studs in his ears that caused the seat of Paisley’s panties to wet. There was something about a man tastefully wearing jewelry that was so fine to her.
His cologne hit her, and she almost melted into a puddle of tears and excitement. Her emotions were all over the place. She wanted to jump into his arms as pride swelled inside of her. She wanted to run from him because he had the power to break her. He had already come so close. She wanted to kiss him because she missed him so much. She wanted to slap him out of frustration for their situation.
Luckily for her, she didn’t need to stress over which action she would go with because Kydrick walked directly up to her and pulled her into his arms. They stayed locked in their embrace for several seconds. Paisley felt him breathing in the scent of her hair, and she allowed herself to memorize the rhythm of his heartbeat. When they pulled away, she looked up at him in uncertainty. He offered her a genuine smile before pinching her chin.
“You remember what I said?”
“About what?” she asked breathlessly.
“I told you when I came back to you, I would be all in, all pressure, remember?”
She tried swallowing around the lump in her throat as she nodded slowly.
“Kydrick, baby,” Alyssa said, tapping him on the shoulder and saving Paisley from having to respond verbally. Kydrick let Paisley go to hug her mother.
“Can we just get a few photos with you? Then we can leave you and my daughter to it.”
“I’m sorry, Ma. Thank you so much for coming,” he muttered into her ear but loud enough for Paisley to hear. “Of course, you can get some photos.”
“I’m so proud of you, son. I know your parents are too,” Leon said, clapping Kydrick on the back while Tiana got busy taking candid photos.
At the mention of his parents, Kydrick’s chin dropped to his chest. Paisley took a step forward and placed her hand on his back. Smoothly, he pulled her into his side, and Tiana lit up.
“Right there. The four of you say cheese.”
Paisley, her parents, and Kydrick took several photos together before just Kydrick and Paisley took some. Paisley’s head swirled, and everything moved in a blur as she smiled for photos while trying to take everything in.
After everyone was sufficiently photographed, Paisley aimlessly followed her family out of the school hand in hand with Kydrick.
Her family said their goodbyes in a blur. Paisley hugged her mom last, and Alyssa whispered in her ear.
“He put in the work to get himself together. Now, it’s time for you to stop overthinking, and let that man love you.”
Before she could react, Alyssa kissed her daughter’s cheek and walked away, leaving Paisley and Kydrick alone. She’d never really felt nervous around him before, but at that moment, nerves danced inside her like they were in a battle.
“Come on,” Kydrick said, pulling her through the throng of people filing out of the school. A few people stopped him and congratulated him, causing that pride she’d felt from earlier to intensify, but eventually, they made it to the parking lot.
It didn’t take her long to spot his Jeep, and when they got to the passenger side door, Kydrick opened it for her and helped her slide in. When she was secure, he leaned into the car and kissed her, taking her by surprise. She tensed at first, but she quickly relaxed into the kiss, feeling tears puddle in her eyes.
When he pulled away, he placed his hand on her cheek, and she leaned into him as a couple of tears fell. She closed her eyes and allowed herself to feel her emotions.
Kydrick wiped her tears with his thumb and asked, “You cool to spend the night with me?”
Paisley’s eyes popped open. “I don’t have any clothes or?—”
“Stop overthinking,” he asserted. “I just need a yes or a no.”
She’d heard that too many times that night not to take heed. Overthinking was one of her superpowers and weaknesses all at once. At that moment, it was a weakness because it prevented her from living in the moment out of fear for what was to come.
No longer wanting fear to rule her, she exhaled a deep breath and whispered, “Yes.”
Kydrick’s smile, showcasing those deep dimples she’d always loved, made it worth it. He leaned in and kissed her forehead and then her cheek, unable to get enough of her before closing her door, giving Paisley a small moment to herself so she could prepare for the inevitable conversation that was to come.