10. Sha’nelle Harper
Greystone City
Today, I was about to meet Couture’s mama and his nephew for the first time, and I ain’t gon’ lie, I had been thinkin’ about it ever since he told me he wanted to take me over there.
It wasn’t that I was nervous about meetin’ them.
I could meet people and be myself without all that extra shit, but this felt different ‘cause Couture had already been to Trill-Land with me to meet my cousins. He had been around my family, met my mama, and got a chance to see where I came from. Now he was bringin’ me into his world, and I knew that meant somethin’ to him.
Couture was a good man, and I ain’t have to lie to myself about that just ‘cause my situation with Renza was complicated. He treated me good, he respected me and he had been intentional with me from the beginnin’.
Meetin’ his mama made everything between us feel a lil’ more serious, and that was the part that had me in my head.
I knew I couldn’t keep lettin’ this man pull me deeper into his life if I wasn’t gon’ get my shit together.
“You good, baby?” Couture asked from the driver’s seat, glancin’ over at me before puttin’ his attention back on the road.
“Yeah, I’m good,” I told him, reachin’ over to rub my hand across the back of his neck. “Why you keep askin’ me that?”
“‘Cause you quiet as hell, and you usually don’t shut up this long.”
I turned my head and looked at him. “Oh, okay. See, now you gettin’ too damn comfortable.”
Couture laughed and grabbed my hand before I could pull it away from him. He kissed the back of it, then rested it against his thigh while he drove.
“I’m just fuckin’ with you baby.”
The closer we got to his mama’s house, the more I thought about everything Couture had told me about his family.
His older sister Janira had been twenty-five when her boyfriend killed her.
The first time Couture laid that shit on me, I remembered just sittin’ there lookin’ at him ‘cause there really wasn’t shit to say to somethin’ like that.
Janira had been nine months pregnant with her son Justice when it happened, and by the grace of God, that baby survived even though his mama didn’t.
Justice was eleven now and had cerebral palsy. Couture had already explained to me that his nephew couldn’t walk and couldn’t speak, but he understood way more than people sometimes assumed he did. He had his own ways of respondin’ to people, and if he liked you, you would know it.
Couture’s mama, Emoree, had been raisin’ Justice ever since.
Knowin’ all that made me understand Couture a lil’ better too. He ain’t talk about his sister all the time, and he never used what happened to her as some sad story to make people feel sorry for him. But every time he did mention Janira or Justice, I could hear how much love he had for them.
When we finally pulled up, I looked through the window at the house. It was a small one-story house, but it was beautiful and kept up real nice. There was flowers around the front and everything looked cared for without it lookin’ like somebody was scared to actually live there.
Couture parked in front of the house, then looked over at me before reachin’ across the console and rubbin’ his hand over my thigh.
“You ready, baby?” he asked.
“Yeah, I’m ready,” I told him with a smile as I reached for my purse.
“A’ight, come on then.”
I grabbed my purse and climbed out with him, takin’ one last look at the house before Couture came around the car and reached for my hand.
I slid my fingers through his and walked beside him toward the front door, feelin’ good about finally meetin’ the woman who raised the man I had grown to care so much about.
He came around to my side and placed his hand against the lower part of my back as we walked toward the house.
Couture knocked a couple times, and it wasn’t long before the door opened.
The woman on the other side was beautiful.
She had smooth dark skin and a pretty face that still looked young, with high cheekbones and dark eyes that immediately reminded me of Couture.
Her hair was pulled away from her face and fell past her shoulders, and even though she was dressed comfortable in her own house, she was still put together.
She had on a lil’ jewelry and just enough makeup to bring out her features without doin’ too much.
The longer I looked at her, the more I could see Couture all through her face, especially around the eyes and in the shape of their smiles.
Her face lit up when she saw him, and Couture smiled before steppin’ forward and pullin’ her into a hug.
“Hey, Ma,” he greeted her, kissin’ her cheek while she wrapped her arms around him.
“Hey, baby. I’m glad y’all finally made it,” Ms. Emoree replied, holdin’ on to him for another second before they pulled apart.
Couture reached back for my hand and brought me closer to him. “Ma, this Sha’Nelle,” he introduced me, keepin’ his hand wrapped around mine. “Sha’Nelle, this my mama.”
I smiled as I stepped closer to her. “Hi, Ms. Emoree. It’s so nice to finally meet you.”
“It’s nice to meet you too, baby,” she greeted me before pullin’ me into a hug. “I’ve heard a lot about you.”
“Hopefully all good things,” I replied with a soft laugh as I hugged her back.
“All good things,” she assured me, and when we pulled apart, the warmth in her smile made it easy for me to relax.
I glanced over at Couture, and he was already lookin’ at me with this lil’ smile on his face before his hand settled against my lower back again.
“Come on in,” Ms. Emoree told us, steppin’ aside.
“Thank you,” I replied before walkin’ inside with Couture right behind me.
I stepped inside behind Couture, and almost immediately I could smell food. Ms. Emoree had clearly been in the middle of gettin’ lunch together ‘cause there was groceries and bowls spread across the kitchen table, and that was where I saw Justice.
He was sittin’ in his wheelchair near the table, and as soon as Couture walked further into the room, his whole face changed. The biggest smile spread across his face.
“Aye, boy,” Couture greeted him, walkin’ straight over.
Justice started movin’ with excitement, and a happy sound came from him while his eyes stayed right on Couture.
Some of his movements wasn’t completely smooth, and his hands rested a certain way ‘cause of the way his muscles affected him, but there wasn’t nothin’ sad about the boy sittin’ in front of me.
He was cheesin’ so hard at his uncle that I couldn’t help smilin’ too.
Couture bent down and hugged him before kissin’ the side of his head.
“You miss me?”
Justice grinned even harder and made another sound.
“Yeah, I know you did.”
I watched the two of them for a second, and somethin’ about it warmed me right up.
Couture looked over his shoulder at me. “Come here, baby.”
I walked closer, and Justice’s eyes immediately came to me.
“Hey, handsome,” I said, bendin’ down enough to get closer to his eye level. “So you Justice?”
His smile got wider, and I laughed.
“Ooh, look at you. I know you know you cute.”
Justice let out another excited sound, and Ms. Emoree laughed from behind me.
“He likes pretty women,” she told me.
“Oh, I can tell,” I replied, grinnin’ at him. “He done started flirtin’ already.”
Justice kept smilin’ at me, and I reached out real careful, lettin’ him see my hand before I touched his. His fingers moved against mine, and I rubbed over the back of his hand while talkin’ to him.
“You got your uncle beat, too. Don’t tell him I said that.”
“I’m standin’ right here,” Couture said.
Ms. Emoree laughed again, and when I looked over at Couture, he was shakin’ his head at me with a smile on his face.
It ain’t take long for me to get comfortable.
While Couture stayed with Justice, I followed Ms. Emoree back toward the kitchen and asked if she needed help with anything. She had vegetables that still needed to be washed and cut, so I put my purse down and washed my hands before joinin’ her.
“You don’t have to do that,” she told me as I reached for the vegetables.
“I don’t mind helpin’ you,” I replied with a smile.
“Well, I appreciate it.”
We started workin’ beside each other, and the conversation came naturally without her makin’ me feel like I had walked into some damn interview.
I took the vegetables Ms. Emoree had already washed and started helpin’ her finish gettin’ everything ready. It felt natural bein’ in the kitchen with her.
I took the vegetables Ms. Emoree had already set out and started helpin’ her get everything ready.
“I’m glad I finally got a chance to meet you,” Ms. Emoree told me as she cleaned what was in front of her. “I’ve been hearin’ about you for a while now.”
I smiled ‘cause I figured Couture had already told his mama enough about me for her to know what was goin’ on between us.
“I’m glad I finally got to meet you too. I’ve been lookin’ forward to comin’ over here.”
“Well, I’m happy you came,” she replied. “And I hope you know you’re welcome here.”
“Thank you. I really appreciate that,” I told her, and I meant it ‘cause she had been sweet to me from the second I walked through her door.
From there, the conversation just flowed.
We talked while we finished gettin’ the food together, and Ms. Emoree asked me about the things I liked to do, my family and what I had goin’ on for myself.
It wasn’t no interrogation and she wasn’t diggin’ into my relationship with her son ‘cause clearly Couture had already filled his mama in on that. She was just gettin’ to know me for herself, and I gladly answered whatever she asked ‘cause I wanted to get to know her too.
The more we talked, the more I liked her. She had a real calm way about her. We could laugh about somethin’ one minute and move right into another conversation without it feelin’ forced, which made me forget all about the lil’ pressure I had put on myself before comin’ over here.