~~~Chapter 29~~~
Sitting with my arms folded, at the foot of our bed, I was pissed. My whole family was over at Riah’s house, celebrating Sin J’s win. However, after me and Malice left the arena, we headed home, because Malice was on complete bullshit.
“You really used to fucking with these peons, cause aint no way was you supposed to let that nigga get that fucking close!”
“He was behind me, and was catching me off guard!” I argued.
Malice leaned down, getting directly in my face. “I don’t give a fuck! You should’ve been slapping him, before I had the chance!”
I gulped, before softening my tone. “It was a lot going on. I didn’t have time to process everything.”
With his lips angrily curled, he poked my forehead with his index finger. “You lucky that I aint fucking you up.”
Feeling extremely emotional, a few tears rolled down my cheeks, as I sniffed. “I apologize if you feel like I disrespected you. That was never my intention.”
He remained directly in my face. “And it’ll never happen again, right?”
I nodded.
“And you cut off all contact with that nigga, like we discussed, right?”
“Yes.”
He stared at me.
“What?” I asked gently.
“If I find out that you lying to me…you’on wanna know, Jaylah. I’m telling you.”
I sighed. “Khamere, you and me both know that I aint on shit. You’re literally with me everywhere I go. I don’t even think about that man.”
“You better not.” He leaned in and kissed my lips.
“My bad for being so rough with you. I just need you to understand, Jaylah. I’ll give you the world.
Literally anything you ask for is yours.
And all I want is your love and unwavering loyalty.
It’s us and nobody else. I don’t care what the situation is, you ride with me . ”
“And I do, and I will,” I responded with no hesitation.
He hesitated. “You saying that now…but this shit might be put to the test in ways that you never imagined.”
I licked my lips. “And that’s fine too.”
He smirked. “Okay, I hear you. Now, let’s talk about what your sister was saying.”
I snickered a bit, as his intense ass was still directly in my face. “Do you gotta be so close?”
“Yeah. Until I get the answers I need. What was she talking about?”
I sighed. “She asked if I was pregnant.”
“Well, are you?”
“Really?”
“Yeah, really. Answer the question.”
I shrugged. “I don’t know. I haven’t taken a test.”
He gave me a side eye. “But you haven’t had a period in a minute.”
I nodded. “I know.”
He frowned. “So, why didn’t you say something?”
“Because.”
“Because what?” He pressed.
“Because I was in denial. Then I didn’t know how you’d feel about it. We never talked about more kids. This is still pretty fresh. Khari is just gonna be one next week. So, I didn’t want you to feel like I was intentionally trying to pressure you into more.”
“More?” He scowled. “The fuck does that even mean? We everything but legally married, at this point. What about any of this is telling you that I aint all in?”
I shrugged. “I don’t know. Maybe it was just all in my head. I can’t really explain it. Maybe it was the optics. I made you leave Paisley, and then I’m almost immediately pregnant again. It could look like I’m trying to pile on a lot to secure my spot.”
He chuckled. “You acting like Ion be in the room, when we fucking. Like you held me down and made me nut in you. I asked about birth control early on, if you remember, Jaylah. You flat out told me, and I immediately showed you what I was on. Honestly, I was expecting for it to happen sooner.”
I rolled my eyes to the ceiling. “It probably would’ve, if I wasn’t taking Plan B’s at first.”
“Oh, yeah? There you got with that sneaky shit.”
“Boy, bye. I wasn’t about to let you put another baby in me, when all your shit was still at that house with Paisley. The fuck do you think this is?”
“Okay.” He nodded. “That’s fair.” He rubbed my stomach. “We gone take a test tomorrow.”
I exhaled. “Alright.”
“Cool,” he uttered, before kissing my lips. He then pushed me back, and laid between my legs. “Now, give me some pussy, and let me see if she really loves me too.”
***
It was Khari’s first birthday, and Malice had told me that I didn’t have to lift a finger.
He’d hired a party planner, and had done the absolute most for her shindig.
We basically had a full-out carnival in our backyard.
There was a Ferris wheel, merry-go-round, baby train, clowns, princesses, moonwalks, waterslides, you name it.
Naturally, he’d invited his family and friends, along with mine. So, there were over three hundred attendees, for a damn one-year-old party. No lie, it was a bit overstimulating, and I was glad that there was an official host, so I’d done no more than get myself dressed, and walked downstairs.
Now, I was sitting back with my sisters, and cousins, as they mingled, while I struggled to keep my eyes open. A midday nap was calling my name, as it felt like since I’d taken that positive pregnancy test, I was always tired.
Right then, I didn’t know how far along I was, and if I had to guess, then it was probably two or three months.
That was probably why Jhyrah was able to spot the physical difference.
I hadn’t had a period in a long minute. I was scheduled to see a doctor the following week, and we’d find out the particulars then.
In the meantime, I hadn’t confirmed it with my family, while they kept teasing and probing about it.
The one thing that I hated about pregnancy was the damn overactive bladder. It seemed like I was peeing every thirty minutes. So, it wasn’t long before I was scurrying off into the house to use the bathroom.
I breathed the biggest sigh of relief, after I’d locked myself into the bathroom, nearest to the kitchen, and let loose. Seconds later, my phone was ringing in my hand.
“Hello?”
“Baby, where you at?” Malice questioned with a lot of ruckus in the background.
“In the bathroom, peeing.”
He chuckled. “Again?”
“I know, right? I’m so tired of this shit.”
“You’ll be alright.”
I sighed. “I know.”
“Yeah. We gone sing happy birthday in like thirty minutes.”
“Okay, good. Cause I need a nap in the worst type of way.”
“Then that’s what you’ll have too. I don’t care who’s still here and how long the party lasts. If you tired, then go lay down. Fuck the rest.”
“Right.” I lightly smiled, while appreciating that he wanted me living the softest life possible. He’d been so attentive, and I couldn’t help but think about what I’d been deprived of when I was carrying Khari. “If nothing else, you’re gonna make sure that I have my way.”
“Every time.” He co-signed.
“I know.”
“Okay. Now, hurry up. I’ma be waiting by the cake.”
“Kay,” I agreed, before ending the call.
Still sitting on the toilet, I smiled to myself, reflecting on how much I loved that man, right then.
We’d been making love, constantly. Ever since we’d said those three words, he couldn’t stop telling me how much he loved me.
So, I couldn’t help but think about what I’d do when it was time for my nap.
I’d probably make him come up with me, and fuck me till I fall asleep.
And only then could he rejoin the party.
Thinking about nutting all over Khamere’s face, I seemingly felt a burst of energy. So, I was ready to get back out there.
Then just after wiping myself, I received a FaceTime from an unprogrammed number. After staring at my phone for a second, I decided to answer it.
“Hello?” I frowned, while filled with apprehension.
“Aye.” Zae’s face came into view, and I immediately sucked my teeth. “Wait!” He shouted, knowing that I was about to hang up. “Let me holler at you right quick, Jaylah. Please. It’s important.”
I huffed out, and rolled my eyes. “What’s up, Zae?”
He took a deep breath. “I just gotta know. Do you know who you fucking with?”
I frowned. “What?”
“That nigga. Do you know who he is?”
“Yes. He’s Khari’s daddy.” And the nigga who beat the brakes off your ass.
He shook his head. “You don’t know how much that shit burns my soul.”
I jerked my head back. “Nigga, I wouldn’t give a fuck—”
“Wait, just listen,” he insisted. “It’s not for the reasons that you think. That nigga…your baby’s daddy is the reason I don’t have my best friend.”
My lashes fluttered. “What the hell are you talking about?”
“Claro, Jaylah. That nigga killed Claro.”
“What?” My heart dropped down to my stomach. “How, how do you know? You saw him?”
“Nah. I didn’t see the shooters’ faces, but even if he didn’t pull the trigger. He sent them.”
“What makes you think that—”
“It wasn’t even our beef,” he interjected.
“It was about Rondo, a nigga we grew up with. Ya baby daddy rolled through our hood, trying to check Rondo on the block. Everybody knows that we aint letting shit slide with no outsiders in the middle of our hood. That nigga would’ve done better catching Rondo in traffic.
But he chose to do that while the whole hood was watching.
So, we checked that shit. Then ya baby’s daddy proceeds to tell us that we gotta pay our partner’s debt, or it’s smoke with us too.
At the time, we brushed it off, cause we didn’t even know the nigga and he didn’t know us.
When we asked Rondo what was up with him, he just kept saying ‘fuck that northside nigga. I aint paying him shit.’ So, we assumed that the nigga was a cur.
A mark. You know? Then we had one more run-in with them niggas at a gas station.
They asked if we had their bread. Naturally, I cussed them the fuck out.
Then two days later, niggas come spraying up the block. ”
“But, but that could’ve been anybody,” I offered.
“Nah, man. Rondo didn’t make it, but his sister told us how them niggas had just ran up in their mama’s house the day before.
And they made it clear that it was them.
Rondo’s bitch ass just never bothered filling us in.
I think he understood the severity of situation from the beginning, and was hiding behind us, because he knew that we’d defend him in our presence. ”
Sitting there, I didn’t know what to say, until I thought about it. “So, if you knew who was responsible for killing Claro and shooting you, then why hadn’t you handled it?”
“Because we didn’t know them niggas. Had never had no interactions outside of that situation with Rondo.
Then Rondo always downplayed shit, never really going into full details.
They didn’t have familiar faces. So, once everything went down, I didn’t even know where to start.
Only Rondo knew them niggas and he was gone.
His sister only knew enough to say that it was the niggas he owed money to, from the northside.
So, I kept telling myself that I’d eventually run into them niggas outside somewhere.
But it never happened. No social media posts.
Nothing. Then at the fight, I still didn’t realize that it was him.
It wasn’t until I saw a video of us. That’s when it dawned on me.
That’s the same nigga. Don’t he got a black-on-black Range Rover? ”
My heart pounded in my chest, as I said nothing.
“You aint even gotta answer that, cause the look on your face is saying enough. But it’s cool. That’s ya BD, and you probably don’t know how to feel. My thing is that…did that nigga fuck with you, knowing that he’d shot me?”
Again, my lashes fluttered, without responding.
“Yeah, I know. You don’t know,” he sighed. “But know this. As a man, I gotta handle my business, and Ion want you caught in the cross. So, please, Jaylah. Put some distance between you and that nigga. Cause he’s a walking man dead. On my mama.”
I sat frozen, as he ended the call. My breasts heaved up and down, as my bottom lip trembled. “What the fuck?”
Needless to say, I left that bathroom, shaken.
Then I had to pretend that everything was fine, while we sang happy birthday to my baby.
I couldn’t help but stare at Malice, as he was grinning from ear to ear, while holding Khari.
Our baby girl was elated, clapping her hands, and gleefully jumping up and down.
It was evident to see that they both loved each other dearly.
This was my family now…and I couldn’t fathom that he was the reason that Claro’s kids would never see his face again.