Chapter 14
The Title
ENZO
We hopped back in Aura’s car, and I could see Koric walking up the steps slowly, stopping at the top and staring at the car as we drove away. They were all staring. And as the projects faded, becoming small the farther we drove away, the more my jaw tightened.
“That nigga could be a problem,” I said to Aura.
“One that I don’t mind fixing if need be.”
I sat back in the seat, replaying the conversation. “Yeah. Need to keep an eye on him in the meantime. I sense treachery.”
Aura didn’t hesitate. “I’m already on it. If he get to moving off, I have no problem turning the projects dark and cutting off his supply.”
I knew it wasn’t a threat but simple cause and effect.
As we pulled back into the Western Beef parking lot, my phone chimed in my pocket. Taking it out, there was a text notification from Thyri. The tension in my chest shifted into something calm.
Thyri: Hey, I know you’re probably busy. I was just reaching out to see how KJ did today and how your day’s going.
Me: Wassup, beautiful? My day was interesting. I got a good report back from the ladies on KJ. They said he handled every task they gave him, and he flirted his way through each one of them. LOL
Thyri: Oh, my God. He’s a mess. Care to share what was interesting about your day?
Me: Not right now. But we can talk about it in person. You still out shopping?
Thryi: Yep. Danae is dragging me to every store in Manhattan. She’s really leaving no stone unturned.
Me: LOL. I bet.
Thyri: Oh, I meant to ask earlier. What size pajamas do you wear?
I frowned at the question, confusion setting in.
Aura glanced over at me. “What?”
“Nothing. I’m tryna figure out why Thyri just asked me what size pajamas I wear.”
Thyri: Asking so I can pick up our matching pajamas for Kyiris’ party.
“Never mind,” I said to Aura. “I forgot about the theme for Key party.”
“Oh, yeah.” Aura nodded. “The come in ya drawls party.”
I chuckled and responded back.
Me: Large top and large bottom. Don’t pick me up nothing wit’ no hearts and shit on it, Thyri.
She replied back immediately.
Thyri: I’ma do my best. But remember, we gotta stay in theme. Talk later
I stared at the screen for a few seconds, then it hit me. I hadn’t even officially asked her to be my Valentine yet. I was out of pocket and had to get on that before the party this weekend.
“Yo, you asked Danae to be your Valentine yet?”
Aura looked up from his phone with his brow raised. “What you mean ask her? That’s already understood. What other nigga gon’ be her Valentine?”
I laughed. “Nigga, no, it ain’t.”
He blinked at me, face all screwed up like I had said something wrong. “We together. How it ain’t understood that she my Valentine?”
“Women wanna be asked, bruh. Whether you’re dating, engaged, or married, they wanna be asked at all levels.”
“You asked Thyri yet?”
“Nah. That’s why I brought it up cause I have to. We late as hell.”
“So, let me get this straight. I’m supposed to formally ask something she should already know?”
“Yep.”
“You know what? Fuck it. If that’s the unspoken rule, then that’s the rule. I ain’t ‘bout to have my baby feeling left out anyway, so Valentine’s Day proposal it is. So, what you doing?”
I leaned back in the seat, thinking.
“We don’t do simple, but we do thoughtful. It’s last minute, so we might not be able to get no big shit done.”
“Says who?” Aura countered. “It takes money to do big shit. We got money, so we can do big shit.”
“Yeah, but the thought we put into it gon’ mean more than the money we spent, feel me?”
He nodded. “True. I ain’t tryna do nothing corny though.”
“Define corny.”
“Teddy bears holding stuffed hearts. It’s overdone, and it ain’t original. This our first Valentine’s Day proposal. We gotta make it memorable.”
“It ain’t my first one. I asked Kennedy wack ass when we were together.”
“And what you asked her with?”
I smirked. “A teddy bear holding a stuffed heart.”
“Exactly.” We burst out laughing. “Thyri deserves better.”
“Facts.”
The car went silent again, us both in our heads, trying to figure out the best way to make the new women in our lives feel special.
“I got it,” he let out. “The Galentine’s dinner at Mil’s tonight. They both gon’ be there.”
I sat up straighter and smirked slightly. “We gon’ crash it?”
“That sound aggressive as fuck.” He laughed.
“But effective and intentional. And it’ll be us officially letting everybody know wassup.” I thought about the fact that Thyri and I hadn’t officially announced that we were together and how I’d use the moment to do it.
“Bet. We gotta have something in hand when we pull up. I heard all that, it’s not about the money; it’s about the thought, shit you spittin’, but I gotta ice my baby out.”
“Oh, I’m on that. I’m just saying don’t go rushing around throwing shit together. Gotta think it through.” I looked at the time on his dashboard, and it read 5:45 p.m. “What time the dinner start again?”
“I think 8:30.”
“Well, let’s do the damn thing cause time is not on our side.” I dapped him up and got out of the car to hop into mine.
I started it up and headed over to my mom’s house where EJ was. She’d taken him out earlier on a movie date. She hadn’t called or texted me the whole time, so I assumed it went well.
My mind drifted to Thyri as I drove. I thought about how she’d feel about me stepping to Koric and also revealing that we were together.
I didn’t know if she’d told her ex-husband yet.
I really didn’t know much about the relationship other than she was happily divorced, and he was involved in KJ’s life.
I felt like that was all I needed to know.
So long as his being a present co-parent didn’t affect us, I wasn’t tripping.
I was pulling into my mother’s neighborhood when my phone chimed.
It was another text from Thyri. Unlocking the phone, there was a video loading.
Once it loaded, I hit the play button. It was Thyri showing me a pair of black silk pajamas with a heart on the shirt pocket. The camera then panned to her face.
“So, I know you said you don’t want all the hearts, but what about one heart? I think that’s a good compromise. What you think?”
The video went off, and I called her. She answered on the first ring.
“Hey, love.” Her voice came through melodic.
“Wassup, Ma? I was just calling to tell you that the pajamas are a yes.”
“Oh, good cause I already bought them.” She snickered.
“Mannn.” I laughed.
“What? I had to make you think you were involved. That’s what we do in a relationship.”
“Con your man?”
“I like to call it making a decision that’s best for the both of us.” I could hear the smile in her tone.
“Aight.
“You finished shopping?” I asked, getting out of my car and opening the gate to my mother’s townhome.
“One more store then I’m headed home to get dressed for the night.”
“Okay, cool. Send me pictures.”
“Will do. Danae is driving tonight. You mind picking me up after and ummm… having your way with me?” She flirted.
I smiled. “I can do that.”
“Perfect. Talk later.”
“Aight. Be safe. Watch your surroundings.”
“Will do.”
We ended the call, and I navigated my text thread and sent a message to Kyiris.
Me: Yo, Key. I need a favor.
Kyiris: Big favor or small favor?
Typing in the code to the door, I walked inside.
Me: You gotta determine that.
Kyiris: Aight, what you want?
Me: I need you to reach out to your homegirl at the flower shop and order me fifty long stem roses with the custom Will You Be My Valentine message on it.
Kyiris: Oh, that’s doable. I got you.
I’d gotten her to buy in on the small favor first before I got to the big one.
Me: I need it tonight tho. And I need it dropped off to Amil’s crib.
Kyiris: Now, wait a minute, nigga. You should’ve lead with all that.
I laughed out loud, knowing she was gon’ have some smart shit to say.
Me: You can send it in an Uber Black. I’ll pay. All I need you to do is make the call.
Kyiris: Smh. Alright wit’ ya late ass.
Me: Preciate you. Love you.
Kyiris: Mmhmm. Love you too.
In this short time, I’d learned that Thyri loved simple things like morning texts, good night texts, random videos that I thought were funny sent to her on IG, and Edible Arrangements.
She was easy to please, which made me want to make this Valentine’s Day proposal special for her without all the theatrics.
“Daddyyyy.” EJ came running at me full speed.
Thankfully, he had on grip socks because his head was no match for my mother’s hardwood floors.
“I thought you’d be back late,” she said, kissing my cheek.
“Nah. How was the movie?”
“It was good. He stayed quiet the whole time. You had to see him with a big bucket of popcorn and the slushy he tried to balance in his lap at the same time.”
“That’s Daddy big man.” I picked EJ up and swung him over my back.
“So, what you got planned for Thyri for Valentine’s Day? You need me to watch him?” We walked into the living room and sat down.
“If you could for a few hours, I’d appreciate it. Kyiris is throwing this “Will You Be My Boo” Valentine’s Day party for the couples.”
She chuckled. “One thing about my niece, she love a theme.”
“And will drive everyone crazy about it. Ma, she created a whole group chat and been sending scheduled updates.”
“She is my brother’s child for sure. Oh, there’s something I wanna show you. I’ll be right back.”
“Okay.”
“Daddy.” EJ called to me while climbing on my neck.
“Wassup, son?”
“Daddy, I play,” he said, flipping off my neck onto the couch.
“I see. You better be careful fore Grandma get you for flipping on her couch.”
“Get down, boy,” my mother let out, catching him mid flip. “You ain’t about to flip me into the emergency room.” Sitting back down next to me, she handed me a piece of construction paper that EJ had colored on.
“What’s this? A deconstructed family?” I laughed, holding it up to try to distinguish where the head began and feet ended. I did make out three circles and what I assumed was hair on two of them.
“Come here, EJ. Come tell Daddy what you drew,” she prompted.
EJ crawled into my lap, and I gave him the paper.
“Who did you tell Grandma this is?” She pointed to the circle in the middle.
“EJ!” he shouted, pointing to himself.
“And who’s this?” She pointed to the circle to the left of him.
“Daddy!” He grabbed my face and kissed my cheek.
“Mannn, get outta here.” I playfully mushed him, and he put his small hands up like he wanted to fight. “Type shit,” I muttered proudly.
“EJ, look.” My mother called for his attention, pointing to the circle on the right. “Who’s this?”
“That’s Mommy!”
My head snapped back slightly. My mother didn’t laugh. She just glanced at me then back at the paper.
“What’s Mommy name?”
“Tyri!” he shouted confidently.
I stared at the picture, wondering when EJ had started to put Thyri and mommy together in his little head. He traced the picture absentminded, not knowing he’d dropped a bomb bigger than anything Funk Flex could have done on the radio. I looked over at my mother, and she nodded once knowingly.
“That means something, Enzo,” she said softly.
“It means a lot. Children don’t attach titles to people easily.
But they do know who and what makes them comfortable and safe.
I knew Thyri did that for my grandson by the way he latched onto her at the Christmas party.
Her singing him to sleep that night when y’all were on the way to dinner further proved it. ”
I thought about what she said and agreed.
I hadn’t coached him. And Thyri hadn’t done anything other than show up as her authentic self.
She didn’t overstep. She didn’t play the role of mommy to EJ.
They just bonded, making it easy for him to get attached to her.
Making it easy for me to know that she was the one.
She adored my son and made him happy. In turn, that made me want to make her happy.
“When’s the last time you heard from Kennedy?” she asked a question I never thought I’d hear from her.
“The night me and Thyri were out to dinner. She came by the table and introduced herself as EJ’s mom then proceeded to tell me how we needed to be adults for his sake and let her see him.”
“She did that in front of Thyri?”
“Yeah.”
“And what did Thyri say? Because this gon’ determine whether or not she can hang with the Sullivans. You know we’ll cuss a bitch smooth out from here to LA with style and grace.”
Smirking, I nodded. “Then, you’ll be proud to know that she told Kennedy and her husband to get the fuck on but in a classy way due to the setting.”
“My girl. And Ms. Kennedy has a husband, huh?”
EJ climbed out of my lap and handed me the remote off the coffee table. I turned on the TV for him and sat him up on the couch.
“A husband and a kid.”
“I could say I’m surprised, but I’m not. That girl is trifling. Did her husband say anything to you?”
“Tried to but you know he ain’t get far. I think he got the hint that I’m not the nigga you can just say shit to.” I left out the part where I let him know that by breaking into their home and making it clear.
“It may be time to have your lawyer draw up them custody papers, son.”
I shook my head. “I’m not tryna go to the courts and risk them giving her joint custody.
Kennedy got her shit together, a husband, house, and she fits the look of a good mother, even though she’s a deadbeat.
And in the eyes of the court, I’m nothing but a single father with a business and plenty money coming in, who’s been taking care of his son for the last two years.
They don’t care about how she walked away. All they gon’ see is she’s here now.”
“I hear where you’re coming from. But…”
“There’s no buts, Ma. I’m not doing it.”
“And if she decides to beat you to it?”
“She won’t be around long enough to have the first visit.” I checked my watch and saw that it was getting late. I had to catch the Edible Arrangements store before it closed. “I’ma take him home tonight. EJ, go get your shoes.” Folding the picture up, I put it in my pocket.
He slid down off the couch and ran to the back.
“I love you, son.” She patted my back.
“I love you too, Ma.”
After putting on EJ’s shoes and coat, we headed outside. The air was cooler than it had been when I arrived. I strapped EJ into his car seat, shut the door, and paused for a second before walking around to the driver’s side.
My son had given Thyri a title that she’d obviously been living up to in this short time.
I had a choice to make. I could treat it like it was something casual or move like it was becoming permanent.
Seeing as anything I put my time and energy into always worked out in the end, I was choosing the latter.