Chapter 12
Monroe had prepared for Monae since they concluded their phone call a few hours prior.
He'd called his personal house cleaner to straighten up his home while he got dressed, and handled some business over the phone. There was always some work to be done, the streets never stopped calling, and there was always money to be made, but Monroe knew how to press mute. Some things in life were more important, and he'd always prided himself on being able to keep his priorities straight. Everything didn’t deserve his attention, and he damn sure wasn’t making every issue his priority.
He'd spent most of his life chasing money, protecting the family empire, and making sure everybody connected to him ate.
However, today he wasn't just trying to make a memory with his daughter, he was curating a new normal.
Monroe had dressed casually, wearing brown designer sweats, a cream t-shirt, and the gold Cartier resting on his wrist completed the look.
He kept a fresh ceasar cut, his waves deep enough to make a person sea sick.
He was effortlessly fine, and that would forever be his strong suit.
He stood in the mirror brushing his hair, and rapping along with Lil’ Wayne's Mr. Carter until the sound of the doorbell echoed through his home.
A smirk tugged at the corner of his mouth, already knowing Monae was standing on the other side.
Monroe made his way downstairs with that same effortless swagger he'd carried his entire life.
When he opened the door, the sight of his twin standing before him made his heart smile.
"There she go!" Monroe greeted, stepping back, so Monae and Sienna could enter. Monae laughed, wrapping her arms around his waist.
Monae smiled so big, her admiration evident on her face as she embraced Monroe. "Hey, Dad."
Monroe hugged her back, holding on a second longer than he normally would've. He still wasn't used to moments like this. There'd been plenty of people excited to see Monroe Black over the years, but this felt different. He looked over Monae's shoulder at Sienna.
"What's happenin'?" He casually greeted her, making her feel welcomed in his home at the same time.
"Nothin' much," Sienna smiled. "Somebody been rushin' me all mornin'."
Once the door was secured, Monroe led the way into the living room.
"I made sure your chair had an extra cushion in it,” Monroe smirked and said.
“For what? Monae was confused
"'Cause after this ass whoopin' I'm 'bout to hand out, you gon' need somewhere soft to sit." Monroe teased.
"In your dreams," Monae replied, laughing at her father.
“Confidence is good,” he approved. “Ain’t gon’ do nothin’ but make losing harder.
“Tuh, you trippin’,” she replied, unfazed.
"Let me go get these cards right quick. You just get ready to put in that work," Monroe stated, walking to one of his guest rooms to grab a few games.
What he hadn't expected was to feel Promise as soon as he walked in.
She was absent, yet still present in every way that counted.
It had been her who had insisted for him to get the UNO cards, Spades deck, and Scrabble board game.
Monroe smiled thinking of the day he bought these games because Promise had won that argument.
"You don't know how to have fun," she'd laughed that day, tossing the games into the shopping cart while he rolled his eyes.
"I own every casino in three states."
"And none of 'em got Uno."
At the time, she didn't know she had prepared Monroe for this moment, but he was grateful she had. She'd been turning his house into a home long before he even knew why.
Monroe nodded. “Thank you, Doll,” he said just above a whisper, appreciative of the woman she was.
When Monroe returned to the living room, he held Scrabble, sorry, Connect Four, UNO, and a deck of cards so they could play Spades.
"Are we going to play all these games?" Monae asked with widened eyes.
"Yup," Monroe confirmed, sitting everything down on the couch.
"Which one you wanna play first?"
"Uno," Monae said quickly, glancing at her mother like they shared a secret Monroe knew nothing about. Monroe had caught it, but chose to let it ride.
"You know the rules, or we need to go over them before we start?" Monroe asked, taking the cards out of the box, and instantly started shuffling the UNO deck.
"Nope. I know how to play my hand," Monae shot, and Sienna cracked up laughing.
"Oh..." Monroe slowly nodded while shuffling the cards. "So you talkin' spicy already."
"I learned from the best," Monae said, looking at Sienna.
He chuckled. "We gon’ see."
Monroe didn't know it yet, but he would soon find out that they played all day. After sitting on the floor across from Monae and Sienna.
"Pick an odd number," Monroe said before dealing the cards.
"Seven," Monae replied with a confident smile.
Monroe dealt the cards, took a few seconds to separate each color by hand, then waited a few seconds for Sienna and Monae. Sienna played her card first since she sat to Monroe's right, Monae went next, then Monroe.
They continued this rotation until, "UNO!" Monae boastfully exclaimed, then laughed teasingly.
Monroe looked back and forth at the three cards that remained in his hand, then shook his head. "Nah! Yo' lil' ass cheated," Monroe shot, leaning his back against the couch.
Sienna laughed so hard she could barely breathe.
"Cheated!" Monae shot back. "You was talkin' real jazzy on the phone, Dad. What happened?"
"Mannn, we 'bout to run it back. I gotta watch you," Monroe said, sitting up straight.
"How I cheat?" Monae asked, with her head leaned dramatically to the side.
"You was shufflin' funny," Monroe murmured.
"What!" Monae laughed.
"But you the one who shuffled these cards," Monae said, grabbing them from the table. "It's Mommy's turn to shuffle now tho."
"Mhm," Monroe said, feeling salty. "I'm definitely watchin' yo' cheatin' ass," Monroe stated, remembering the games he and Sienna used to play back in the day.
Sienna laughed. "We never played UNO.
"I know we didn't, but I know you ain't forgot all them spades games we used to play." The beam of recognition shined in Sienna's eyes.
"One thing about me though. I ain't never got to cheat you to beat you." She winked, dealing the cards.
Monroe watched her like a hawk. "I see yo ass is still lyin' 'bout it too."
Monae hollered laughing, loving the banter between her parents. They played back and forth for another ten or fifteen minutes until Monroe shouted. "UNO!"
Monae had one card in her hand, and Sienna had four. They went around the table again, and Monae ended up drawing two more cards. "OUT!"
Monroe shouted, slamming his card on the table. "See, that first hand was just a warm-up. I'm ready now," Monroe boasted.
Now it was Monae sitting there with a sour face, but she wasn't mad.
She was competitive. She grabbed the cards and shuffled them about eight times, trying to make sure the deck was thoroughly mixed.
She didn't want to get the same cards she previously had in her hand.
Monroe cut the cards, then tapped the top.
"That ain't gone help you," Monae said, dealing the cards.
Monroe chuckled again. "We'll see."
Monae smiled hard as soon as she picked up her hand. Sienna laughed instantly.
"Aww shit, Muffin… Why you cheesin’ like that?"
She didn't respond.
"It's on you, dad."
Monroe chuckled. "She just tryna keep a good attitude. It take a strong person to lose back to back."
Monae nodded her head, humbly. Monroe played a blue 5, Sienna put down a blue 0, then Monae slapped six DRAW FOUR cards down at the same time. "UNO!" She shouted, then started two-stepping to Tamia's Can't Get Enough.
"Hell nah! You can't do that," Monroe was mad.
"You know the rules, Daddy," Monae stated with ease. "You shuffled too, remember."
“Nah, y’all set a nigga up,” Monroe accused.
Sienna fell straight back, laughing so hard tears streamed down her cheeks.
"I ain't did nothin',” Sienna denied.
"I think that's twenty-four cards you gotta eat," Monae said, continuing her two step. She loved this song and was feeling loose. Their laughter bounced off every wall in the house, filling spaces Monroe hadn't realized had been empty until Monae showed up.
"Come dance with me." Monroe looked at Monae like she'd lost her mind. "Don't be like that. Play the song back and come dance with me," Monae told her father. "Maybe I'll let you win the next game." Monae's confidence was on a thousand.
By this time Sienna was sitting up grooving while absorbing the whole scene as it played out. Monroe sat the thirty cards he held down on the table, and danced with Monae. He couldn't deny her. Once the song ended, Monae played her last card, winning the game.
"Let's play spades," Monroe said, done with UNO for the day. "I don't know how to play that," Monae told Monroe.
"I'll teach you," he said, gathering the cards to put back in the box.
Patiently, Monroe explained suits, books, partners, bidding, and why paying attention mattered more than the cards in your hand.
Monae listened the same way she'd listened at the museum, hanging onto every word as if each lesson was something worth keeping forever.
She asked questions when she didn't understand, smiled every time she got something right.
Sienna sat quietly off to the side, scrolling through her phone, but every few seconds her eyes drifted back toward them.
Sienna wasn't paying attention to the cards anymore. She was watching history write itself. Years from now, even if Monae didn’t remember every rule Monroe taught her, she'd remember who taught her.
She'd remember the way her daddy looked at her every time she got something right.
She was watching a picture-perfect picture of a father bonding with his daughter.
They'd played countless games within the tw-hour time frame.
Everybody had a chance to win at some point, but now it was time to switch gears.
"You hungry, Monae?" Monroe inquired.