9. Ozyris Brentley
By the time we finished eating, I was sitting back in my chair, rubbing my stomach. Miss Carolyn had damn near fed me enough food to last the rest of the day, and I wasn’t complaining. Everything she put in front of me had been good as hell.
My food didn’t even get a chance to settle before we heard Oaklynn start crying from the other room.
The second I heard her, I stopped rubbing my stomach and looked toward the hallway.
I looked over at Noree, and honestly, a nigga felt stuck. I was sure my thoughts showed on my face since Noree gave me a reassuring smile.
“I’m glad she finally woke up.” She pushed her chair back and stood. “It’s showtime.”
She laughed a little, but I couldn’t even fake one. My heart had already started racing.
“I’ll bring her into the living room, so meet me in there. Give me a second. Let me go grab her.”
“Aight.”
Noree walked out of the kitchen while I pushed my chair back slightly.
Miss Carolyn was still moving around the kitchen, cleaning up and putting away whatever food hadn’t been eaten before carrying the dirty plates over to the sink.
When she turned around, she caught me staring toward the hallway.
She smiled.
She didn’t say anything at first, but we shared a look. She looked like a proud grandma and a proud mama who was finally about to see her granddaughter meet her daddy for the first time.
Miss Carolyn walked over to me and patted me on the shoulder.
“You got this.”
Then she turned around and went right back to what she was doing.
I stood and stretched my arms above my head, trying to play it off like I wasn’t nervous as hell.
I had performed in front of thousands of people.
I had walked onto stages with crowds screaming my name so loudly that I could barely hear the music playing through my earpiece.
I had done interviews, award shows, and all kinds of shit without thinking twice about it.
But sitting down to meet my own daughter had my heart beating harder than all of that shit combined.
I left the kitchen and went into the living room. Once I sat down on the couch, I pulled my phone out of my pocket, trying to keep myself busy. I wasn’t really paying attention to any of it, though.
My eyes were moving across the screen, but my mind was down the hallway with Noree and Oaklynn. Every little sound made me look up from my phone.
I finally stopped pretending to read my emails and shot Unc a text to check on him, King, and Summer. He replied a few moments later, letting me know he was good and the kids were getting ready for bed.
I put my phone down beside me and rubbed my hands together. Five minutes probably hadn’t even passed, but it felt like I had been sitting there waiting forever.
Then I heard footsteps coming down the hallway.
I sat up straighter as Noree walked into the living room with Oaklynn on her hip. Oaklynn’s head was resting against her shoulder, and she was awake but still looked sleepy. She rubbed one of her eyes with her little fist while Noree gently bounced her on her hip.
“Hey, sleepyhead,” Noree said softly.
Oaklynn lifted her head and looked around the room. Her eyes landed on Miss Carolyn before she finally looked in my direction.
Noree smiled and pointed toward me.
“Baby, this is your dada.”
My chest tightened.
Oaklynn looked at me, then turned her head and looked back at her mama.
“Aww, it’s okay, baby,” Noree said. “You can say hi.”
I lifted my hand and waved at her.
Oaklynn stared at me for another second before she lifted her hand and waved back, wiggling her little fingers.
That did something to me.
My smile got so wide. I couldn’t help it. Just seeing her wave at me made me feel something I couldn’t even explain.
“Hey, Mama,” I said.
Noree walked over and sat down on the couch beside me with Oaklynn on her lap. Neither one of us tried to force anything. We just sat there, watching her and waiting to see what she was going to do.
Oaklynn looked at me again. Her eyes moved over my face before dropping down to the big iced-out chain around my neck.
That got her attention.
She leaned toward me and reached for it.
Noree laughed. “You better tuck that in because she loves flashy things.”
“I see.”
I laughed and reached for my necklace, trying to tuck it beneath my hoodie, but Oaklynn practically attacked me, trying to wrap her little fingers around it.
She stretched her whole body toward me, determined to get that chain. I caught her underneath her arms and picked her up, standing her on my lap.
“There you go.”
I kept one arm securely around her while she grabbed my chain with both hands. I looked closely at her face, still amazed by how much she looked like me.
“Who told you to steal my whole face? Huh?”
I tickled her, and she giggled while I kissed her cheeks.
That laugh put a huge smile on Noree’s face.
She sat there watching us for a moment before she stood.
“I’m sure she needs to be changed. Let me grab her wipes and a pamper.”
“Aight.”
Noree walked away, leaving me alone on the couch with Oaklynn.
I adjusted her in my arms and looked down at her. She was still playing with my chain, rubbing her little fingers across the diamonds.
She looked up at me.
“I wish my mom was still here. She wanted me to have a baby so bad.”
I sighed and looked at her little face.
“And now you’re here and… she’s not.”
Oaklynn continued staring at me like she was really listening. I laughed and shook my head.
“My bad. You don’t know what I’m saying, huh?”
She shook her head and said, “No,” surprising me.
I laughed harder. “Oh, you don’t?”
She shook her head again, making me laugh even more.
“Aight, at least you honest.”
Noree returned carrying a pamper and a pack of wipes. She looked between Oaklynn and me before smiling.
“Have you ever changed a pamper before?” she asked.
“Yeah, when King was little, but shit, I’m rusty now.”
“I got you.” She reached for Oaklynn. “Come on. Let me change your bottom.”
I handed Oaklynn over, and Noree laid her flat on the carpet. I leaned forward with my elbows resting on my knees while she opened the clean pamper and placed it beside her.
“Okay, pay attention,” she said.
“I am.”
She proceeded to give me a full lesson on how to change Oaklynn. I watched where she placed everything, how she cleaned her, and how she kept Oaklynn distracted long enough to get the clean pamper beneath her.
Oaklynn kept moving her legs and trying to turn over.
Noree laughed. “That’s why you have to be quick.”
“I see.”
Once Noree finished changing her, she stood and picked up the dirty pamper.
“I’m going to throw this away and wash my hands.”
“Aight.”
She walked out of the living room again, and Oaklynn stood there watching her leave. I thought she was going to follow her mama, but instead, she turned around and walked back over to me.
She stopped in front of the couch and tapped both of her little hands against my knees.
I looked down at her. “What? You want me to pick you up?”
She tapped my knees again.
“I got you, Mama.”
I picked her up and stood her on the couch beside me, keeping one hand around her so she wouldn’t fall. She immediately reached for the hat on my head.
“You want my hat too? First my chain, now my hat?”
I took the hat off and placed it on her head. The whole thing dropped down and covered most of her face.
I laughed as she reached up and tried to push it back.
“Look at you.”
Noree returned to the living room and stopped when she saw us.
“Wait. Let me snap a picture. This is too cute.”
She pulled out her phone while I leaned closer to Oaklynn, smiling at the camera. I lifted the front of the hat enough for her little face to show.
“Cheeeeeese,” Oaklynn said, posing for the picture.
Noree and I both started laughing.
“Oh, so you know what to do when the camera comes out?” I asked.
Oaklynn kept smiling like she understood every word I said.
Noree took a few more pictures before turning the phone around so we could see them.
“Who’s that pretty girl?” she asked Oaklynn. “Is that you?”
Oaklynn looked at the picture and nodded.
“Yesh.”
“That’s right. You’re Mommy’s pretty baby.”
Noree scooped her up and showered her with kisses, making Oaklynn laugh. She spun her around in a circle before setting her back on her feet. My hat slipped off Oaklynn’s head, and Noree grabbed it and handed it to me.
The second Oaklynn’s feet touched the floor, she took off running toward Miss Carolyn, who had just walked into the living room.
Miss Carolyn bent down and picked her up. Oaklynn wrapped her little arms around her neck.
I watched the two of them for a moment before turning toward Noree.
“Thank you.”
She looked at me, confused. “For what?”
“For being there for her… I can tell she’s loved like a muthafucka, and she’s smart.”
Noree’s expression softened.
“Aww, that’s cute. Thanks, Ozyris.”
I laughed. “You never call me by my real name.”
“Yeah, but I love your name. I really should use it more often.”
I smirked. “Yeah, you should.”
Noree paused and cleared her throat. She looked away from me and tucked some of her hair behind her ear.
“I appreciate you for coming, even without, you know… the DNA test being done yet.”
I nodded and licked my lips before putting my hat back on.
“I wanted to be here.”
She looked back over at me. “And that means more than you’ll ever know.”
For a second, neither one of us said anything. I just looked at her while she looked at me. There was still so much we needed to talk about and so much shit we needed to figure out, but right then, none of it felt as important as being there with her and Oaklynn.
Our conversation was interrupted when Miss Carolyn walked over with Oaklynn still in her arms.
“You two should stay the night,” she said.
Noree looked at her. “You know I don’t mind, but Ozy…”
I shrugged. “Honestly, I wanna spend as much time with my baby as I can.”
Miss Carolyn smiled. “Okay, great. I’ll blow up the air mattress. Noree, you can sleep in Oaklynn’s room, and Ozy, I’ll prepare the couch for you. I know you’re a big superstar, but over here, you’re just regular ol’ family.”
I laughed. “That’s cool with me. Thank you. I appreciate it.”
“You’re very welcome, suga. I got some spare men’s clothes for you too.”
Noree’s head snapped in her direction.
Miss Carolyn looked at her. “Chile, I am grown, so don’t ask.”
Noree shook her head. “You’re full of surprises today.”