Chapter 3 Present Day
Present Day
Thankfully, Fateema had set her alarm in case she’d fallen asleep. When it sounded, her eyes popped open, and she realized she’d fallen asleep on the couch with the TV and lights on. However, it took her a moment to remember how she ended up with her body intertwined with Lynx’s.
“Oh damn!” she thought she’d whispered.
“Turn that shit off,” Lynx griped.
“Let me up. I have to go.”
“Where do you have to go at this hour?” He still hadn’t opened his eyes or moved.
“I have to pick Cornell up from the airport. Let me up.”
“You can’t leave me… not right now.”
Between the dope dick and being suddenly awakened from a sex-induced sleep, she’d forgotten how distraught Lynx was when he showed up at her door.
“Oh God, Lynx. What happened? Why are you here?”
“It’s Pops… he’s… he’s gone.”
Fateema was confused. “What do you mean? Gone where?”
“He’s dead.”
She assumed she’d misheard him because there was no way Mr. Keno was dead.
He’d been like a second father to her since she was in 6th grade.
Although she didn’t see him as often as she’d like, they spoke regularly, and he hadn’t mentioned being sick.
It was a struggle pushing Lynx’s heavy body away from hers, but he got the hint and sat up.
“Dead? Was he in an accident? What are you saying? Tell me what happened!”
He rubbed his hand down his face and released a sigh.
“I got a phone call from an unknown number. The woman on the phone didn’t say who she was but told me he was dying and didn’t have much longer.
After giving me the name of the hospital, she ended the call and wouldn’t pick up when I tried calling her back. ”
“Why didn’t you call me?” Her words were strained as she spoke through tears.
“Because I wanted to find out what was going on first. I called the hospital, and all they told me was he was a patient there, nothing else. I got on the next flight out and went straight to the hospital. He died before I got there.”
“Oh my God! What did the doctors say?”
“He had prostate cancer, and it had already started to spread when they caught it.”
Losing his father to cancer was very triggering for him because he’d lost his mother to the same disease when he was eleven.
“You didn’t know?” He shook his head. “But I saw him last month and—”
“He came to DC last month and looked fine.”
“This can’t be right. Maybe the woman called the wrong person. Did you see him?”
Lynx bent his head solemnly and could no longer control his emotions. “He’s gone, Bunny. Pops is dead.”
Picking up Cornell from the airport was the furthest thing on Fateema’s mind. Lynx was her priority, and nothing else mattered except being there for him. She was his safe space, as he was hers since they were eleven years old.
She pulled Lynx into her arms, and he rested his head on her bosom. They cried together like they’d done many times in the past and would very likely do in the future.
Neither knew how much time had passed, but Fateema’s phone pulled them from their mournful haze. It wasn’t until then that she thought about Cornell. She slowly reached for her phone, answered it, and put it on speaker.
“Hello.”
“Hey, did you forget you had to pick me up?”
“I’m sorry, Cornell. I had an emergency. Can you get an Uber?”
“An Uber? It’s gonna cost me—”
“I can’t talk right now. I’m sorry about the inconvenience. I’ll update you soon.”
She could’ve handled that better, but her focus was on making sure Lynx was good, not Cornell. Lynx’s head was still on her chest, and he tilted it back to look up at her.
“Thank you, Bunny.”
“With you is the only place I want to be right now. Pops was like a second father to me, and I’m devastated. I can’t believe he’s gone. This is unreal.”
“I can’t wrap my head around it because it was so unexpected.”
“Why wouldn’t he tell you? It doesn’t make any sense.”
“I wish I knew. I need to find out who the woman was who called me.”
“Do you think it was a nurse?”
“Possibly, but she probably would’ve introduced herself as such.”
“True.”
“Do you think you can help me make the arrangements? I don’t even know where to start.”
“Me either, but we can figure it out together. I’d never let you do this alone.”
They remained in the same position for a while longer, deep in their thoughts and barely exchanging words. She tapped his shoulder when she couldn’t hold her bladder any longer.
“I need to use the bathroom.”
He sat up, giving her space to stand, and she quickly rushed into her bedroom. Her phone was on the arm of the couch, and it lit up, catching his attention. Without a second thought, he picked up and entered her code.
Cornell: Is coming to your place out of the question now?
Cornell: Hello?
Cornell: I guess so.
Cornell: I hope whatever happened was important enough for you to leave me stranded at the airport.
Cornell: I’m sorry. I didn’t mean that. I’m sure it was important.
Cornell: Call me tomorrow.
Cornell waited a few minutes between some of the messages, hoping Fateema would respond. The last message made Lynx chuckle because it sounded desperate.
“What are you doing with my phone?” Fateema questioned when she returned.
“Reading the messages from your little boyfriend. He seems kinda clingy.”
She smacked her lips and snatched her phone from Lynx’s grasp before sitting down. Her phone was still in the text thread, so she read through the messages.
“What are you talking about?”
“All those back-to-back messages. Is he always like that?”
She ignored his question. “Whatever, Lynx. I’m going to bed. You can make yourself at home on the couch.”
She stood, and he pulled her back down to his lap. “Bunny, since when do I have to sleep on the couch?”
“Since I’m dating Cornell.”
“Dating don’t mean shit. Is he your man?”
“No, but if I want him to be, I can’t be laid up with you.”
“Bunny, be for real. If that nigga wanted to lock you down, he would’ve done it by now. It’s been what… three months?”
“About that long.”
“That nigga don’t want you like that.”
Fateema was annoyed by Lynx’s assumption and shoved him before getting up from his lap.
“Neither do you, so I guess y’all have that in common.”
She went to her bedroom, slammed the door behind her, then headed to her bathroom to shower again. Lynx knew exactly what to say to piss her off, and she was too emotional to deal with his shit.
A few minutes after she’d stepped into the shower, she felt a cool draft on her back and rolled her eyes. He pressed his chest against her back and wrapped his arms around her.
“Why do you always say shit like that?” he asked with his lips brushing her shoulder.
“Because it’s true.”
He forced her to turn around and look at him. “It’s not fucking true, Bunny. I love you more than I love myself.”
“Then why can’t we—”
“We’ve talked about this so many times, and I can’t do it again tonight. I just want to get lost in you and push everything else from my mind.”
He devoured her mouth with his before she could respond, and his hands cupped her ass as he lifted her.
She wrapped her legs around his waist, and when he pressed himself inside her, she cried out in ecstasy.
Nothing felt more right to them than when they became one.
This was home, and there was no place like it.