Chapter 19
After talking to the people who loved us most, Nyeem and I decided to tell our story. Once David York heard my version of events, he thought it would be more impactful if our interview were broadcast live on television rather than published in the newspaper.
Nyeem and I agreed, and our interview was scheduled for two days later, which was later this evening. I hadn’t slept well since agreeing to do this, and I couldn’t wait until it was over, although I was nervous about the fallout.
The best thing about today was that I had a huge distraction to keep my mind off our impending interview. Kilo and I were headed to my doctor’s appointment to find out if we were, in fact, having twins.
He’d suggested we change the appointment to another day, but I wasn’t interested. I’d been dying to find out if we were having twins, and I wasn’t sure how he could wait another day.
“You’re quiet over there, baby. You okay?” he asked.
I’d been staring out the window and reflecting on the past few months. Before I met Kilo, my life was pretty monotonous. I exercised, went to work, was an avid sports mom, spent time with my best friend and family, and stayed out of the way.
In just a few short months, this man had turned my world upside down in the best way. I could’ve blamed Kilo for opening a can of worms that I’d sealed shut almost two decades ago, but the only person responsible for Ambrose’s actions was Ambrose.
“I’m great. Nervous but excited about what we’ll see on the ultrasound.”
“I’m not the least bit nervous. We already know there’s at least one baby. Any more than that is a bonus. I’m ready for whatever God has planned for us.”
“I still can’t believe how much you’ve changed my life in such a short time. A few months ago, I didn’t even know you.”
“God is good as hell, ain’t He?”
I laughed and responded with, “All the time.”
We parked in front of Dr. Jordan’s office, and a few minutes later, we were waiting to be called back. Kilo angled his body toward me and placed his hand on my stomach, which was beginning to feel hard, but still only had a small bulge. I covered his hand with mine and rubbed the back of it.
“I can’t wait to find out if I’ve been talking to a boy or a girl, or two boys and two girls, or one of each,” he said.
He’d been talking to my stomach since we’d confirmed my pregnancy, and it was the cutest thing I’d ever witnessed. I had to remind myself often to let him have his moments because this was new for both of us in some aspect.
“I can’t wait to tell our families. We should go visit your parents and tell them in person,” I suggested.
“Really? You’d do that?”
“Of course. I want them to be just as much a part of this as my family.”
“Thank you, baby. I appreciate you being so considerate.”
He leaned in and kissed my forehead just as the nurse called us back.
It took about ten minutes to go through the initial part of my appointment.
None of it seemed important because we were so excited about the ultrasound.
My heart raced as the machine was wheeled in and Dr. Jordan prepared me for the ultrasound.
“You two ready to find out how many bundles of joy you’re carrying?” Dr. Jordan asked.
“What kinda question is that? We’ve been waiting a month, man,” Kilo responded a little too aggressively.
“Baby, be nice,” I warned as I squeezed his hand.
“I’m just saying. This has been the longest month of my life.”
I shook my head before focusing my attention on the ultrasound screen. Almost as soon as Dr. Jordan put the wand on my stomach over the cold gel, we heard a heartbeat. Although this was my second pregnancy and I’d had an ultrasound a month ago, I still had no idea what I was seeing.
“It looks like baby number two has come out of hiding. It’s official. You’re having identical twins,” Dr. Jordan announced.
“Oh my God,” I whispered on the verge of tears.
I looked at Kilo, and his eyes were still on the screen. A tear fell from his eye onto my stomach, and he used his free hand to wipe his eyes.
“Twins. You’re giving me twins, baby,” he said, finally looking down at me for a moment before his eyes were back on the screen.
He lifted my hand to his mouth and kissed my fingers. Dr. Jordan pointed out a few things on the screen before asking if we wanted to know the gender.
“Hell yeah!” Kilo exclaimed.
“How about you, Miss Kurrie?” Dr. Jordan asked.
“Let’s hear it.”
“You two will be blessed with two boys before you know it,” he announced.
“Two boys? Two boys? Oh my goodness. What am I gonna do with two boys?” I questioned rhetorically.
“Don’t worry, baby. I’ll be here with you every step of the way.”
He leaned down and placed a soft, sweet kiss on my lips. I needed that reminder because I sometimes forgot I wasn’t doing this alone.
“Can you share with us about how you and Mr. Ward became an item?” David asked.
Over the years, I’d always felt very comfortable with David when he interviewed me, and I only agreed to do the interview this way if he conducted it.
Nyeem was seated next to me, and we were holding hands. He told me upfront that he didn’t want to talk unless he had to, but he would allow me to do it alone. Kilo and my family were waiting in the wings, off camera.
“Ambrose Ward and I met when we were both students at Black Elm University. I was a freshman on the track-and-field team, and he was a senior on the football team. Initially, I wouldn’t say we were friends, because we only talked when we saw each other in passing.
Eventually, he asked for my number, and from that point on, we talked and texted a lot,” I told David and the viewers watching at home.
“What did you talk about in those messages?” David asked.
“At first, school, track, football, and random stuff we saw on social media.”
“How long after you gave him your number did the conversation move away from those things?”
“Maybe a month. I remember him asking if I would spend time with my boyfriend over the winter break. I didn’t have a boyfriend, and when I shared that, he said maybe he would change that.”
“How did that make you feel?”
I laughed. “I was a freshman who had gained the attention of a popular senior football player, so of course, it made me feel special. He knew I lived locally, and he had his own apartment, so over the break, he asked if I wanted to go out. I agreed, and we hung out a few times.”
“What did you do when you hung out?”
“We went to dinner, played miniature golf, and went to the arcade. It was nothing special, but I had a good time, and I guess he did, too, because he asked me to be his girlfriend.”
“Were you surprised?”
“Umm, a little. I mean, I thought he liked me, but he would be graduating soon and going to the league, so I didn’t think he’d want to date someone still in college with all that happening.”
“But you agreed anyway.”
I nodded. “I did, but he had one request.”
“What was that?”
“I couldn’t tell anyone we were dating.”
“How did that make you feel?”
“Not great, but I didn’t necessarily care if people knew or not. He pulled out all the stops for New Year’s Eve, and we were intimate for the first time.”
“Is that when you believe your son was conceived?”
“I’m not sure. We had sex several more times during the month of January, and every time, we used protection.
When my cycle didn’t come in February, I took a pregnancy test, and it was positive.
When I told him, he denied the baby could be his because we always used protection, and if it was, he told me to get rid of it. ”
“Just like that?”
“Those were his exact words, and it was the last time we spoke until recently. I told my best friend, Skye, my family, and my coaches. We came up with a plan. Everyone supported me in ways I didn’t think they would, and here we are today.”
I turned to look at my son, who beamed with pride. He lifted my hand to his mouth and kissed the back of it.
“Mr. Ward has told our producers that he’s been trying to have a relationship with his son since the day he was born. Are you saying that’s not true?” David asked.
“I’m not sure what son he’s referring to, but he’s never reached out to either of us, or any of my family members,” I said.
“Is that true, Nyeem?”
“Yes. If my mother had stopped him from contacting me, all my social media pages are public. He could’ve easily sent me a message.
Since he’s been in town, he’s had several opportunities to talk to me, but instead, he used each of them to talk down on me and belittle me.
I have nothing to say to Ambrose Ward. Based on what I’ve seen in the past month, he did me a favor by staying out of my life,” Nyeem said.
“I’m sorry that your experience with your father has been so negative. How did you handle it?”
“My mother, grandparents, and uncle taught me well. I don’t feed into negative energy.”
“Good for you. There are reports that Mr. Ward was arrested recently because of an incident that involved you, Miss Kurrie. Can you talk about that?”
“It’s an open case, and I was advised not to speak on it. However, the police report was posted, and it’s accurate.”
“Well, you all heard it here first. Thank you, Nyomi and Nyeem Kurrie, for taking the time to share your story. We’ve followed you for most of your life, and it’s been a joy to witness every single moment.
Nyeem, we wish you much success and can’t wait to see you on the field and the track this season and beyond. ”
Thankfully, the interview went off without a hitch, but it didn’t take long for Ambrose to post a response video. I refused to watch the video or read the comments, but Skye didn’t mind summarizing it for me as we all gathered back at my house for dinner.
“He looks and sounds pathetic, bestie. It’s the way he repeatedly contradicts himself that has the people in the comments tearing him to shreds,” she said.
“Good. We told our truth and are done with it. I need him to crawl back into his hole and pretend like we don’t exist, like he’s been doing for the past eighteen years.”
“Ward is old news, so this temper tantrum he’s having will fade away soon. Hopefully, he’ll find something else to do, and I won’t have to beat his ass again,” Kilo said.
“You might not need it, but you’ll have some help this time if I have anything to do with it,” Robby said.
“Both of you have too much to lose to risk it on him,” I said.
Once Ambrose was officially let go, Kilo brought Robby in for a series of interviews. He was offered the job a few days ago and accepted the position yesterday.
“I can be incognito, so I’ll take care of him, if need be,” Skye offered.
“Ma, it’s been a minute since you’ve had to bring that bat out. How about you leave it in retirement?” her son, Stokely, teased.
“Boy, the bat has never been retired. I almost used it on you the other night when you tried to sneak into my house at three o’clock in the morning.”
Stokely shook his head. “See, that’s why I don’t be coming home.”
She mushed his head, then wrapped her arms around him. Stokely was probably a foot taller than her, but he was still a mama’s boy.
“If you need me to keep an eye on your mother while you’re away, I got you, Stokely,” Knox said, winking at Skye.
She smacked her lips. “I don’t need you to keep an eye on me, but there might be a few other things you can take care of.”
“Mama, please,” Stokely said with a groan.
“The pizza is here,” Nyeem announced, breaking the awkward moment.
Kilo and Robby followed Nyeem to the door to get the pizza, and they returned with several boxes and bags. Everyone dispersed to wash their hands in all the sinks that were available and returned to the kitchen.
After piling our plates with the breadsticks and the pizza of our choice, we headed to the dining room. There wasn’t enough room for all of us, so we pulled chairs from the kitchen and made room.
For the first few minutes we discussed the interview. I didn’t say much because the thought of Ambrose exhausted me, and I had no more energy to give that nigga. When I’d heard enough, I stood and cleared my throat.
“Ahem. Can Kilo and I have your attention? We have an announcement to make.”
That was his cue to stand.
“If y’all got married without telling—”
“Mrs. Kurrie, I wouldn’t do you like that. Besides, my mother would disown me if I did something like that.”
“It sounds like me and Mareen are on the same page. I’m sorry for interrupting. Go ahead, Sweet Pea.”
“Thanks, Ma. Kilo and I found out today that we’re having . . .”
“Twin boys,” Kilo and I announced simultaneously.
The excitement in the room couldn’t be contained, and I was the happiest I’d been in years. The love that flowed between Kilo and me was the most genuine thing I’d experienced in this lifetime.