6. Clover
6
Clover
“ W hy the long face, Eeyore?” Brooke approached me with her and Lake’s son, Blaise, attached to her hip.
I shook my head as I munched on my turkey and cheese sandwich. “I don’t know.”
“Clo,” she sighed and took a seat next to me, placing Blaise on her lap. “There is clearly something going on between you and DaVinci. Y’all can put on a front for everyone else, but I see right through it. Y’all are usually all up under each other, always touching and kissing. Y’all have barely looked at each other since he got here. Just the fact that y’all got here separately tells me everything I need to know.”
Nodding, I continued eating my food but said nothing. She wasn’t wrong. I was deep in my feelings about my argument earlier with DaVinci. It wasn’t even an argument really, but it had me in my feelings regardless. I hated that I couldn’t fully help him return to his old self. I didn’t know the pain of being shot or even the recovery process so mentally, I didn’t know what my husband was going through. All I wanted to do was help him though, and he rejected me earlier. That was the real problem. A bitch like me didn’t do rejection . A nigga had never rejected me a day in my damn life, so the fact that it was coming from my husband hit a little different.
“Is there anything I can do to help?” She quietly asked, bouncing Blaise since he was getting fussy. “I don’t want you to not enjoy your party, Clover.”
“I’ll be fine, I promise,” I lied, shoving some plain Lay’s chips into my mouth.
I was having anything but fun. I was actually on the verge of tears every ten seconds. That was the exact reason I had ducked off in the corner, but I knew I couldn’t hide for long. It was almost time for us to find out the gender of our baby anyway. Outside of saying hey when he arrived, DaVinci and I hadn’t shared any other words. I pretended to be too busy talking to guests or running to the bathroom frequently. Since his ass wanted to just sit down and chill , I knew he wasn’t coming after me. Every time I moved, I felt his eyes on me, but I refused to acknowledge that.
“Wassup? Y’all good?” Lake walked up, looking like the menace that he was.
Dressed in all black, he looked like he was prepared for war. The nigga didn’t wear blue or pink like he was specifically instructed to do. On top of that, he was wearing the Pooh Shiesty ski mask and a mouth full of golds. Why the fuck he had that on at my gender reveal was beyond me. He looked like a true YN that you didn’t want to see in a dark alley. Ladies and gentlemen, this was the crazy ass family I married into.
“Yep,” Brooke nodded.
“Nah, I meant you,” he pointed at me and dragged that same finger to point in DaVinci’s direction. “And my brother.”
Taking a long sip of my cold water, I nodded as well. “Mmhmm.”
“That’s bullshit,” he pulled a chair out and sat on it backwards to face me. “What that nigga do?”
“Lake,” I giggled at the expression on his face.
“What? I know you ain’t do shit. You’re an angel,” he winked. “So what the nigga do?”
“Lake, get out of their business,” Brooke tapped him. “And here, your son needs his diaper changed so go handle that.”
He sucked his teeth and took Blaise into his arms. “Yeah, I’ll do all of that as soon as I find out what Vinny’s ass did.”
“He didn’t do anything. It was just a stupid argument. We’ll be fine.”
“Gahdamn Blaise!” Lake’s top lip curled as he jumped straight up. “You smell like something crawled inside of you and died! Brooke, why you can’t change him?!”
“The baby bag is at the table,” she pointed and scurried away.
Lake took off after her, prompting me to laugh and wonder what the dynamics between Vin and I would be once our child was born. Before I had a chance to get up, my mother came over next.
“You okay, baby?” She stopped in front of me, wearing a comforting smile.
Rubbing my belly as I felt our baby kicking, I smiled back at her. “Yeah, I was just taking a minute.”
“Okay, well I think Charm is about ready to get the reveal started,” she briefly glanced over her shoulder. “Are you and DaVinci alright?”
Damn, was it that fuckin’ obvious? I guess it had to be. Brooke made a good point. DaVinci and I normally couldn’t keep our hands off each other. It was rare that he even let me breathe without him in a public setting. I just couldn’t fake it with him at the moment though. My hormones only intensified every single thing I felt, so while it wasn’t that deep…it was that deep.
“Yep. I was just about to get up, go to the bathroom, and then go over there with him,” I lied, pushing myself out of the chair.
“We’ll talk later,” she eyed me, letting me know that she was aware of my lies. “I’ll let Charm know that you’re going to the bathroom before she bursts at the seams with trying to do the reveal.”
Laughing, I shook my head up and down and watched as she walked away. In the process, DaVinci and I locked eyes. Rolling my eyes extra hard, I made my way to the private bathroom in the back of the venue. Once I was inside, I released a deep sigh and stared at my reflection. I didn’t have to pee. I just wanted to be out of the presence of everyone while trying to gather my thoughts. A rough knock at the door moments later startled me.
“Occupied!” I called out to the stranger on the other side.
“Open the door,” DaVinci’s voice demanded in a way that let me know he wasn’t playing.
After staring at the door for a few seconds, I unlocked and cracked the door open. Our gaze met once again, and he pushed his way into the bathroom. An uneasy silence lingered between us, but our eyes remained steadied on one another. Vin reached behind him and locked the door before inching in my direction. Every time he took a step forward, I took a step back until I was pressed against the sink.
He lifted a hand, his fingers curling around my neck just below my ear as he leaned in to bring his lips close to the opposite ear. “Don’t ever leave the house mad at me, Clover. Anything can happen and you know that. Try it again, and I’m putting a paddle to yo ass and not stopping until I’m tired,” he reprimanded me in a sexy ass tone. “I’m so fuckin’ in love with you that this shit is scary, aight? I hate that I’m not the man I once was. Our marriage is new, and I feel like I’m already letting you down.”
Shifting my eyes up to his as he pulled back a little, I fell in love with him a little more. The vulnerability in his eyes and words melted my heart.
“You’re the same man, Vinny. You just don’t see that. Some of the physical things temporarily changed about you, but in here?” I placed my hand on his chest. “You’re the same man who would die for me. You’re the same man who loves me with everything he has, so how is that letting me down? I know you’re frustrated with this healing process, but it is just what it is, love. The less you fight it, the quicker you’ll heal, I’m sure,” I giggled and kissed him. “I’m sorry I left the house upset. I wasn’t mad. What happened in the shower just felt a lot like rejection, and I don’t do rejection.”
“I admit I pushed you away, and for that, I can apologize. I know you say it’s not about the sex for you, Clo Baby, but I miss being inside of you. Everything except that working on my body is blowing the fuck out of me,” he expelled a defeated sigh.
I tilted my head in understanding because this wasn’t the first time I heard this. His lack of sexual arousal was a point of contention for him . Though I loved our sex life, it wasn’t the entire reason I fell in love with DaVinci. It played a part, but if we had to get creative in the sex department, then I was perfectly fine with that. As long as I had his heart, everything else could be worked out.
“I know,” I whispered, caressing his face. “Baby, you’re putting too much pressure on yourself. You need to relax and see if that’ll help. I think your mind isn’t allowing you to…you know, get hard, because you’re already apprehensive about not being able to.”
He nodded slowly, bringing my hand to his lips and kissing over and over. “You might be right. I’ll try to relax next time,” he released my hand and then sensually kissed my lips. “You’re so special, and I’m so lucky. Let’s go find out what we’re having.”
The sadness I’d been feeling since earlier that morning was replaced with relief and excitement. Unlocking the door, we walked out of the bathroom and back into the main area where Charm was clearly running around looking for me.
“Oh my God!” She rushed to my side. “I’ve been looking all over for you. Are y’all ready?!” Her eyes shifted between me and DaVinci.
“Yes,” we both nodded with an eager smile.
She grabbed a mic from someone behind her and started speaking. “When I found out my twin was pregnant, it made my heart so happy. If y’all know Clover, then y’all know she was anti-kids and relationships until she met her wonderful husband, DaVinci,” there were light chuckles from the guests. “DaVinci, we are so lucky to have you as part of our family.”
He touched his chest and nodded once. “Love.”
“Without further ado, first, I want to play a video, and then we will do the reveal. Everyone, please direct your attention to the screen in the front of the building,” she pointed with the mic.
DaVinci and I turned around as the lights dimmed in the place. Ribbon In The Sky by Stevie Wonder started playing as an assortment of photos and videos of me and DaVinci were displayed on the screen. Squeezing his hand, I glanced up at him, and he seemed to be fully enthralled in the presentation.
“I’m the grandfather of the baby, and I think it’s a girl,” a video of my father appeared next.
“I’m the grandmother of the baby, and I think it’s a girl,” my mom voiced in the video, standing next to my father.
My eyes started to water as the video continued playing with everyone giving their predictions about the gender. I gasped loudly when a clip of River started playing. She was finally out of the hospital but staying in a vocational rehab facility getting her cognitive functions back. She could talk but mixed her words up a lot or used words that didn’t make sense for what she was talking about. It also took her a little longer than her normal to get words and sentences out.
“I…a-am…River. I…am…the…a-a-aunt,” she paused and smiled, something she did when she was trying to get her words together. “B-baby is the b-b-boy!”
“Awh my Ri-Ri!” I gushed, swatting at the tears that were trying to fall. “Oh my God!” I screamed at the next video as tears cascaded down my face like a waterfall.
“I am the great grandfather of the baby, and it’s a…mmm…and I can’t say both?” Randall looked off camera for a second and then back at the screen. “ Shit, alright, if I gotta choose one, I’ll say…a girl.”
Eyeballing DaVinci, I was happy to see the big smile on his face. He gave Charm a quick hug, thanking her for including River and Randall. Charm was so fuckin’ thoughtful to have even thought to get this video months ago before he died. The lights came back up and the words turn around started scrolling across the screen. Doing just that, I saw Charm bouncing up and down with excitement. There were now two easels set up as well with balloons attached.
“I tried to think of something that spoke to your creativity, so…” she placed a few darts in my hand and then some in DaVinci’s. “Inside one of the balloons is either pink or blue paint. Keep throwing the darts until you see pink or blue, okay?” She zealously instructed.
Giggling, I started throwing darts. Our guests were cheering us on, and Lake was talking shit per usual. Bright colors of yellow, orange, and green were getting splattered all over the canvas. Vinny and I were just having a good time trying to pop the balloons that I almost forgot the purpose of it in the first place.
“It’s a girl!” Lake shouted, pointing at DaVinci’s easel that had bright pink sliding down it.
“Congratulations you two!” Charm screeched into the mic. “It’s a girl!”
Pink strobe lights and clouds of pink smoke filled the venue as DaVinci grabbed me up and hugged me tightly. A girl. We were having a little baby girl.
“I love you, baby,” he whispered in my ear, still holding on to me as if I was going to disappear.
“I love you more,” I assured him with certainty.