Chapter 2
The next day.
I stepped off the plane and onto the soil of my hometown, with a buzz of excitement and something else I couldn’t quite name.
Everything about Chicago—the smells, the food, the people—all seemed to hum through my veins, somehow making the run-of-the-mill airport layover I’d faced to finally get here feel worth it.
After twelve years of dedicating my life to the United States Navy, I was finally coming home to start a new chapter.
As I approached the baggage claim carousel for my flight, I scanned the sea of luggage for my oversized military duffel bag. After grabbing it, I glanced down at my phone to read a text from my sister, Olivia.
Liv:
Waiting outside for you by the passenger pick-up area.
Me:
Bet. Coming out now.
The sliding glass doors opened, and I stepped out to see Olivia, my baby sister, waving a bright blue Welcome Home Oak sign over her head.
I didn’t want the unnecessary attention, which was part of the reason I was dressed in plain street clothes instead of my uniform.
My footsteps echoed down the pavement toward her with a genuine smile on my face.
She looked so much different. So much like our mother it was almost scary.
“Oak.” She greeted me with a smile before pulling me into her gesturing arms.
My six-foot-three frame towered over her, proving she was still my baby sister, no matter how much she’d grown. Even though we were five years apart, we shared the same dark chocolate skin complexion and braces-straightened smiles.
“Step back and let me look at you so I can make sure you’re the real Oak and not some military clone,” she joked.
“Yo, chill, Liv. Can we go? A nigga hungry,” I said, rubbing my abs through my hoodie.
“That’s all you have to say?”
“I love you. I missed you. Now, can we please go grab some food? We have the rest of our lives to catch up. The U.S. Navy doesn’t own a nigga anymore,” I assured her.
“Seriously, though, Oak. Welcome home. It’s good to have you back. Mom and Dad are really excited for tonight.”
“Tonight? What’s happening tonight?”
“Your welcome home party at the house, of course.”
“I don’t want no big party and shit, Liv.”
She sucked her teeth. “It’s not, I promise. It’s just a family dinner.”
“With just family?”
Her narrow shoulders rose and fell underneath her scrub top. “Yeah. Us and Lex. That’s it.”
I shook my head, knowing she was bullshitting me, but I decided to drop it. From the time she could walk, Liv had always tried to become my shadow until the day she found her best friend, Lex. The next thing I knew, it was like having two annoying ass little sisters for the price of one.
“I swear I’ma go upside ya head if there’s anybody else there than who you said,” I warned.
“Yeah, yeah. Throw your shit in the trunk and get in the car,” she urged, rolling her eyes.
I ran my hand over my hair. “You got time to run me a few places? A nigga need a fresh haircut and some new clothes.”
“I got you. I’ll be your chauffeur for the rest of the day until your truck gets delivered.”
“Aight, bet.”
“You look good, though. I can’t believe my big brother is home after all these years,” she stated once we were both seated inside her navy blue sedan.
I bobbed my head up and down while staring out the window. Everything felt the same but looked different. “Thank you. It’s good to be home.”
“So, what’s next? You know Mama and Daddy aren’t going to let you out of their sight now that you’re back.”
“Why you think I’m staying at your crib until my house is finished being built?”
“Remind me again how long you have until it’s finished.”
“A little under ninety days until closing.”
“And in the meantime, you have a game plan for what you’re gonna be doing to make sure I get my rent money, right?”
I sucked my teeth, frustrated with the fact that she was acting more like my mother than my kid sister.
“Damn, Liv. Your ass is more worrisome than Mama. Chill, aight? I promise you I’m not leaving no time soon.
I’ve been away too long. It was time to come home.
Besides, I’ve got some savings, so I plan to take my time setting up my place once it’s ready.
Then I’ll work on lining up a job. Shit probably ain’t gon’ be sweet out here for a vet, but I promise you I’m good, aight? I’m straight.”
“Okay, Oak. I believe you.”
“I don’t need you to believe me. I need the mattress not to be on the floor in your guest room,” I joked.
She turned her lip up. “You get what you get, negro.”
“Whatever. How’s Mama? You talk to her today?”
Liv slowly rotated her neck in my direction. “Yeah. She’s good. Excited as hell to see her firstborn, of course.”
“I’m surprised she didn’t come with you to get me today.”
“She wanted to, but she’s throwing down in the kitchen for your party.”
I sucked my teeth. “I said no party, Liv.”
“Did I say party? I meant dinner.”
I sucked my teeth before a sigh escaped my lips. “Yeah. Whatever, bighead.”
We were minutes away from the barbershop I used to frequent, and I still hadn’t managed to get through to her that I didn’t want a damn party.
All I wanted to do was return to civilian life in peace.
But all my family knew how to do was celebrate; it didn’t matter whether the win was big or small.
And as the firstborn, I’d always been treated like a glass egg, especially after joining the Navy.
Mama never missed a chance to pray over me as much as she bragged about me or the things I was doing.
Meanwhile, Liv had become a whole nurse and didn’t receive half the praise I did.
But what Liv didn’t get from our mother, she got twice as much from our father.
She was the apple of his eye and could do no wrong.
After spending the next few hours getting a fresh cut by my hometown barber, Red, and some new clothes, Liv and I headed to our childhood home.
After all these years, my father still managed to keep a well-manicured lawn that seemed to stretch on forever.
The three-level brick-front, colonial-style home sat on an acre lot in a quiet cul-de-sac in a neighborhood west of the city.
The grand foyer welcomed us as we entered, showcasing the detailed hardwood floors across the main level.
“Where is everybody?” I quizzed.
“I don’t know. Check out back. I’ll check the kitchen.”
The large living room flowed into the formal dining room—perfect for entertaining, only no one was there. My father’s private office with French doors was empty, as were the kitchen, sunroom, and family room. I stepped outside onto the rear deck that overlooked the wooded backyard.
I looked down to see a sea of faces—some familiar, some not—looking up at me. “Surprise!” they all yelled in unison.
I turned around to see Liv standing behind me with a satisfied smile splitting her face as if she’d gotten away with something.
“Oh shit!” She squealed when I darted after her, serious about knocking her ass out.
I chased her back through the house, making it out to the backyard to greet my guests. The area bloomed with the scent of barbequed meats on the grill as I leaned into my mother’s embrace. “Hey, Mama.”
Her brown eyes crinkled when she smiled. “Oakland! Oh, how I’ve missed my baby!”
“I’m far from a baby, Mama. I’ma grown ass man,” I corrected her.
She gently cupped my beard that I’d finally been able to let grow in past one-fourth of an inch since exiting the Navy. “No matter how old you get, you’ll always be my baby. I’m so happy you’re back home!”
“I’m happy to be home.”
“Come say hi to all your guests,” she encouraged, linking her arm in mine and resting her head of salt-and-pepper curls next to my shoulder.
As pissed as I wanted to be, I couldn’t pretend like I hadn’t immediately spotted Lex in the crowd staring up at me among the sea of nameless faces.
I hadn’t seen her since she was eighteen—since I took her virginity and left for the military soon after.
Growing up, I tried the college route, but after spending two years out of state, I realized it wasn’t for me and dropped out.
After school didn’t pan out, I had to choose between getting swallowed up by the streets or joining the military, so I chose the latter to make my family proud.
But I couldn’t stop stealing glances at her amid all the smiling, picture taking, and handshaking I was doing.
It might have been years since I’d seen her in person, but saying she’d remained buried in the back of my mind couldn’t have been farther from the truth.
My heart somersaulted in my chest every time I glanced her way.
I found myself spacing out in mid-conversation, too busy cataloging everything about her existence.
So much had changed about her, yet everything I loved about her was still the same—from her bright, charming smile to her dreamy brown eyes that the universe seemed to reflect in.
I studied the soft ringlets of chestnut-brown hair framing her face, set apart from the sexy, messy bun piled atop her head, the long, wispy lashes fanning across her almond-shaped eyes, a dainty button nose at the center of her heart-shaped face, and full lips with a sheen of gloss.
From the vintage crop top that stopped just above her belly button to the leggings that hugged her curves in all the right places, I could tell she hadn’t dressed for a welcome home party, but still somehow managed to look like a million bucks to me.
After a few seconds, I finally managed to tear my gaze away before my staring created a tent in my pants that would’ve been hard as fuck to explain, given the number of family members that surrounded me.
Now that I no longer had the luxury of being a sea apart from Lex, I was going to have a hard time keeping my mind and my hands off her, not to mention keeping my heart in check.