Chapter 14
Keynauri’s Release
“Nauri!” My hands shook as I ran to my brother. I almost fell over, but I didn’t care. I leaped into his arms as soon as I got close enough. His arms wrapped around me, and I completely lost it. It had been seven years since my brother was taken from me, but it felt like an eternity.
My face was buried in his neck as I released all of the tears I had been holding all morning. I was a mess, but he allowed me to fall apart in his arms. He carried me over to the car but never let me go.
“It’s good to have you back on this side, bro!” I heard East greet him from behind me, followed by Logic. Keynauri continued to hold me in his arms while he talked to them. Eventually, I calmed down, but I wasn’t ready to let him go.
“Get your big ass down. The man might be buff now, but he’s still weak as fuck,” Logic teased us.
“Nigga, fuck you. You’re just mad because your muscles haven’t grown since the eighth grade. Petite bitch,” Keynauri shot back.
“Fuck you! That’s why your ass is about to burst out of those fuckin’ clothes.”
I giggled as the two of them went back and forth. It was something I missed more than I realized.
Eventually, I got down and allowed Keynauri the opportunity to properly greet his best friends.
I rolled my eyes when he and East hugged, but I was being petty.
We weren’t exactly on speaking terms, and I almost thought about telling him I would drive myself to the prison, but I wasn’t that damn petty.
Symphonee fell asleep on the ride over, so she didn’t get to officially meet her uncle until we made it to his house.
Keynauri carried her on his shoulders the entire time while he toured his new home.
I made sure to hire the best to hook the place up.
Keynauri was a national superstar and had accomplished incredible things while being locked up.
His team was gearing up to introduce him, and it was gonna be crazy.
He asked us to help him find a place, but he had no idea what the house looked like. He told me he wanted something with a lot of bedrooms, and it took months to find valuable options. Luckily for us, our realtor was the truth.
“This is nice as hell, Sis. You really did your thing in here. Keyami’s gonna be excited when she gets to see her room.”
I customized my niece’s room just for her, and I was excited to see what she thought of it. Her momma had basically kept her away from me out of spite, but now that her father was home, I planned to spend as much time with her as I could.
“She’s gonna love it. I still have a few things to fix in her room, but the interior designer did a great job with the vision I gave her. I need to finish fixing up my room since I’ll probably be over here more than I am at home.”
My phone vibrated in my purse, and when I opened my messages, I giggled.
Lil’ Ugly BD: No, the fuck you won’t. You can be mad all you want, but your ass is coming home tonight and every other night. Play Checkers, but don’t play with me.
I snickered at his temporary contact name.
Any time he pissed me off, I changed it.
I hadn’t realized they could hear us from where they were.
East didn’t play about me sleeping away from home.
He made it clear that we needed to come home to each other even when we were mad.
For the most part, I had no issues following the rules, but I was pissed off with him.
He told me he had a business meeting last night, but when he crept into the house at three in the morning, all I saw was red.
East rarely went out without me, but when he climbed into bed, it was obvious he had been out drinking.
He tried to explain why he was so late, but I didn’t want to hear shit he had to say.
There was no excuse that made any sense to me unless someone had died, and even then, he could have warned me.
We rejoined everyone else and made plans for the night. The men wanted to take Keynauri out to celebrate his first night as a free man, but I wasn’t ready to share my brother with anyone else. It was bad enough that I would be sharing him with the world soon enough.
“Maybe you should stay home tonight. Didn’t you go out last week?” East pointed out.
“What does that have to do with anything? I always go out on the weekends.” I could feel myself growing irritated because he was about to piss me off.
“Well, Logic and I planned to take Nauri to a strip club and a few other places. I figured you would want to sit this out.”
My lips pursed as I prepared myself to cuss his ass out. Fortunately, my brother intervened before I could get the chance.
“It’s my first day back home. My little sister is welcome to go wherever I am.
Shit, she’s legal now. We’re about to turn up and get fucked up.
I gotta report to the studio in a couple days and finalize my album, and I’m tryna enjoy my little piece of downtime before the real work starts.
” Keynauri threw his arm around me, and I stuck my tongue out at East. He couldn’t react the way he wanted to since Keynauri wasn’t aware of our relationship.
“Alright, bro. I’m about to head out. There are a few things I need to take care of before kicking it tonight,” East announced. I eyed him with an attitude, pissed that I couldn’t question him.
“Okay. I’m gonna see where Tiana is so I can pull up on my baby girl. Why don’t we all meet up here, and we can ride together?” Keynauri suggested.
“Sounds like a plan. I’ll see you tonight.
” They dapped hands and said their goodbyes to one another.
I paid a caterer to cook for Keynauri, so we headed to the kitchen when the fellas left out.
I fixed our plates, and the three of us ate.
Once again, Symphonee had traded me in for another man as she sat in her uncle’s lap, talked his ear off, and ate from his plate.
“I can’t believe she’s this big. It feels weird being able to sit with y’all and hug you in person. I almost thought I would never get the chance.”
“I can’t even explain how good it feels to have you home. It feels like a dream, and I don’t want to wake up. I pray you never have to go back to that god-awful place ever again.” I wiped the tears from my eyes, but it was no use. I had been holding in these tears for far too long.
“You don’t ever have to worry, because I’m not leaving y’all again.
While I hated being separated from my family, the time away really put things in perspective for me.
I don’t want to waste a single second of my life being complacent.
It’s time for me to hit the ground running and give my career everything I’ve got.
I want to make enough money where I can take care of y’all for the rest of our lives,” Keynauri stated.
“I’m really proud of you, brudder, but you don’t need to take care of me anymore. I’m doing well on my own, and I don’t want you to feel any added pressure on my behalf. Noodle and I are well taken care of. The only thing we need from you is love and the occasional gift.” I snickered.
“You can get anything from me. Whatever I have is yours, and I’ll always be there to take care of you. Even when you get married, I’ll still be there. You’ll always be my responsibility. I love you, Boogie.”
“I love you, too, Nauri.”
“Aye, don’t you drink anything else tonight.
Your ass is wildin’, and I’m about to have to shoot all of these little niggas in here for looking at you,” Keynauri warned.
We had been club-hopping all night and finally made it to one of the places I frequented.
My girls were in the building, and we were showing our asses, literally.
The DJ was on fire, playing nothing but back-to-back bangers, and we were having the time of our lives. There were a bunch of men in the section I didn’t recognize, and most of them were good-looking. I wasn’t single, but it couldn’t hurt to take a peek.
“Sorry, Bro. I forgot you aren’t used to seeing me in my element. Your baby sister isn’t a baby anymore. Now take this shot and turn up with me. You’re about to take the world by storm, and I’m so fucking proud of you. Welcome home, brudder!” I lifted my shot then tossed it back.
Megan Thee Stallion blared through the speakers as Summyah pulled me over to where she, Kiara, and Valor were.
“Throw that ass, bitch!” She hyped me up as I bent over and made my ass bounce.
Kiara joined in, making it a friendly competition.
A couple of men in the section pulled out their phones, which only made me go harder.
Once Valor noticed the attention we were getting, she jumped up to join us.
I leaned forward, pressing my palms on the floor.
Summyah popped me on the ass before turning and twerking herself.
I was feeling adventurous, so I climbed up on the table and continued to wobble my ass to the beat.
At some point, I saw money flying around me, but I paid it no mind as I let go of all my inhibitions.
I squatted down, holding my knees as I made my ass cheeks bounce simultaneously.
My friends continued to cheer me on, so I turned it up a notch.
I got ready to drop into a split when I felt myself being snatched from the table.
Once I got on my feet, I turned to give the person a piece of my mind, only to realize it was my man.
“Why did you do that?”
East stroked his beard, and I almost forgot I was supposed to be mad at him.
“You must have me confused with someone else. I’m chillin’ because I know you’re excited about your brother being home, but respect my fuckin’ mind, Lola B. You already know how I give it up, and I don’t give a fuck who’s around. I’ma shut shit down every time,” he warned.
“You don’t think it will look suspicious for you to be checkin’ me in the middle of a club? My brother isn’t stupid, and he’ll put two and two together.”