Chapter 7 #2
“You’re right, Dad. I got carried away this morning. I’ll try to get better.”
He smiled. “That’s all I wanted to hear. Now I’ll leave you to your day. Me and the little guy are gonna go by the store. Are you coming by tonight?”
“Yeah. I’ll probably be late but I’ll be there.” I leaned down and kissed my baby on his forehead. “Be good for your pop-pop. I love you, Ssiah.”
His smile lit up my whole world. “Wuv you too, Mommy.” Seconds later he planted a kiss on my cheek.
After my father and Ssiah left it was just me and Surah in the store. It took her exactly one minute, before she started her shit.
“You walked in the door just as giddy. Got something to tell me?” she asked.
“No. I just had a good morning.”
“And that wouldn’t be curtesy of a certain nigga named after a direction would it.” She asked with a smile on her face.
I smirked. “Maybe.”
“Bitch bye. Have you and him had that conversation yet?”
“No, but I keep asking myself if it’s even worth it. I mean I li—”
“Yes, you like him and it’s damn obvious that you like him. At this point you either have to shit or get off the pot. Tell that man how you feel.”
She was right, so I had no rebuttal. I just didn’t want to say something and find out that I’m the only person feeling this way. I don’t think I could take that. Matter of fact I couldn’t take that.
“Put your big girl panties on and go tell that nigga how you feel.” Now she was batting her eyes with this big ass smile on her face.
I returned the smile. Love looks good on you.”
“Girl bye. I don’t even like that nigga half of the time.” She waved me off and went back to working. Who knew all I had to do was compliment her for her to leave me alone. I wasn’t going to tell her, but I did plan to at some point tell North how I felt.
Luna
I smiled politely at the older woman who had just complimented today’s lemon loaf.
She said it was the best piece she’d had in a while.
It took everything in me not to laugh, because it all tasted the same.
I’d literally purchased it in bulk from this little bakery up North.
I liked them because they tasted kind of like the ones from Starbucks.
Then after I left her table, I went to Cole’s table.
He literally sat at the same table right in front of the window, near the door.
He always had this smug smirk on his face while he stared out the window and occasionally drank from his coffee.
I thought the shit was creepy, considering the fact that I’d be ready to draw if somebody stared at me for too long.
“More coffee?” I asked as always.
“Sure. Keep it black though.” He didn’t bother looking my way. His eyes were trained on something outside.
I didn’t stick around to ask either. Instead I made his coffee and had Lora, my employee take it to him. Something about Cole creeped me out beyond measures, but as far as I could see he was just some weird nigga who spent most of his time behind a screen. He was the type to have no people skills.
My thoughts were interrupted when I heard the bell indicating that the door had opened. I blinked a few times, then focused on whomever was coming through the door. It was Omyia, and she had the biggest smile on her face.
“The usual while you fill me in on what has you smiling so much.”
She nodded then she slid into the stool at the counter “Nothing to explain. Life is good.”
“Okay, Future. What makes it so goo—”
“I just had a good morning. That’s all. I can’t just have a good morning?”
I laughed. “Excuse me. That’s the I got some this morning attitude.”
“And If it is? When were you going to tell me about you and my brother?”
I threw my head back in shock. “How did you know about that?”
“I didn't, you just told me. He came into the shop with a melted ass shake the other day, so I knew,” she said with a smirk.
“And what if he did only get a drink.”
“But he didn’t. He got some of you, right?” she smirked.
“I will not be discussing that with you.”
“Well.” She just looked at me for a while, before shaking her head with
“Fine. I have a lot going on and I feel like your brother is a distraction. Plus, he has a lot go—”
“Nope. Like you’d tell me. Stop making excuses. You apparently like him, and I have n—”
“But he isn’t ready for what I bring.”
Ommy laughed. She was about to respond, but Cole’s voice interrupted our conversation.
“Um, Luna, can I have a warm cup?”
I looked up from Ommy and directly toward Cole. I had literally just sent him a cup of coffee and I know for sure it was hot.
“Coming right up.” I faked a smile then looked back at Ommy.
She laughed, then grabbed her milkshake from the counter. She tried to hand me a twenty, but I refused it as always. Omyia was my girl and the first person to make me feel at home when I first settled here. There was no way I’d charge her.
As always, she shook her head. “We need to do dinner one of these nights.”
“We do, but the fact that you’re never in the city lately messes that up.” I gave her the side eye because she knew what I meant.
“Don’t do me like that. I’m gonna call you and we can set that up.”
“Bet and can you do me a favor and tell me when you get Flannel. You know I love that scent.”
“I do and I got you.”
Within seconds she was gone, and I was left in my semi empty space.
Maybe I was being too hard on Knoxx and allowing what I went through in my past to affect how I felt about him.
I wasn’t saying I was in love with him or anything, but I did like him.
It had just been a while since I liked anyone.
Then the last time I liked or even felt remotely about somebody they turned out to be a fraud.
It’s safe to say I had my guards up. As well as the fact that I lived with what I had to do.
I lived with the fact that I had to kill the man that I loved for the greater good.
That would forever haunt me no matter where I ran to.
Maybe I needed to leave things where they were with Knoxx, because the last thing I needed was to introduce him to my baggage.
When I walked in my house the last person I expected to see was seated on my sofa like he had not a care in the world.
I wanted to curse him out and tell him that he had no right to be here, but before I could he put his finger to his lips then he nodded his head toward the couch in front of him.
I rounded it and spotted my baby girl asleep hugging her favorite teddy bear.
“I have missed so much of her life.”
I mugged him. “By your own merit. You expected me to come crawling back when you treated me like I was nothing to you.”
“I had to. You wouldn’t listen to me. You’ve always been bullheaded. Just like me. You had to learn things the hard way.”
I laughed. “The hard way. Well I was forced to learn a lot.”
He nodded his head in agreement. “You were and as much as I’d like to apologize I won’t. What you’ve been through has made you capable of surviving anything. The skills you have learned are necessary.”
I laughed at this attempt to win me over with compliments. “What do you want, Belarus?”
“You should consider coming home. I could have had you brought home but look at me. I am trying to turn over a new leaf and be better.” He looked so convincing but again I knew my father.
“Belarus.”
“I don’t know if you know this or not, but there is a war brewing in the streets. It wasn’t hard for me to find yo—”
“And that means?”
“If I knew where you were this whole time, so did others. Just because you distance yourself from the family doesn’t mean you’re not a part of it. They’ll still try to use you to get to me.”
“Dista—”
“Don’t argue. Just give an old man a little piece of mind and tell me you’ll think about it.”
I nodded. “I’ll think about it.”
“Good.” He glanced down at my baby before his eyes went back to me. “Your mother would love to meet her.”
I nodded but didn’t offer a response. My mother wasn’t even a thought to me. Out of everybody who turned their backs on me, hers hurt the most. That was because I was closer to my mother than anything in this world. She hurt me deep when she chose him over me.
“I will be seeing you soo—”
“Where is my babysitter?”
“She wasn’t sitting anything but her face. My grandchild should have much better protection than such.”
I laughed. “Goodnight Belarus.”
I was about to walk him to the door when my front door opened and one of his guards awaited.
Before he went to the door he leaned down and kissed my daughter’s forehead before he kissed mine as well.
I hated how no matter what he was right.
Family was family and no matter how far I was from them I still loved them.
I might’ve been angry with every single one of them, but that didn’t make me love them any less.
I didn’t have that in my heart. I don’t think I could ever be the way I used to be with them, but I couldn’t hate them… No matter how much I wanted to.
Knoxx
Rea had been avoiding me like I was the plague lately.
She had to know that her auntie spilled the beans.
She had been missing in action completely.
It was cool because I planned to catch her ass when she least expected it.
I paid the receptionist to let me know when she came in.
Lucky for me she went to work today. No matter how bad I wanted to run up in there and snatch her the fuck up, I didn’t.
I checked myself in the door, because I knew that if I got her fired and she was indeed carrying my baby I’d be monetarily responsible for her stupid ass.
The receptionist messaged me about five minutes ago and told me that Rae’s break was about to start.
That’s why I parked right in front of her job.