Chapter 3 Sooner Than You Think #2
“Okay. Let me get you some good pictures for your baby book, and you’ll be good to go.” She maneuvered the wand some more and pressed buttons on the machine. “Oouu, this is a good one. Baby is sucking their thumb.”
I sat up a little to get a better look, and it was the clearest photo I’d seen to date. “Awww. Look at my Baby Boo.”
“I know, right?”
She captured two pictures before the baby moved again. “Any questions for me?” she asked, wiping the gel from my stomach and pulling my tank top down.
I always dressed casual for my exams. Today was an Aritsia tee, cargo shorts, and Chloe sandals.
Not only was my stomach growing, but my hips were spreading.
I was already a thick girl, so the extra weight just made me extra juicy in all the right places.
I wasn’t letting pregnancy work me. I was working the pregnancy.
“Yeah. I have one. Am I able to fly?”
“Sure. I don’t see why not. Baby’s good. You’re good. You haven’t had any complications. Are you traveling anywhere far?”
“Just back home to New York for a little bit.”
“Oh, okay. Yeah, that’s fine. Do you have an OB there that you can see in the event you need to before you come back here?”
I nodded. “I do.”
“Perfect. Do me a favor. Give the OB’s information to Jada, and I’ll fax over your chart just as a safety measure.”
“Okay. Will do.”
“Alrighty then. You have a great day, and I’ll see you soon.”
“You too, Dr. Harris. And thank you.”
She waved and left the room. Hearing that I was clear to fly eased my worries. Despite the warning that Pryce had given, I had to make sure I was good before I did anything. Ebone had booked my business class ticket for tomorrow morning at 9:15 a.m. Nervous was an understatement.
After scheduling a follow up appointment, I walked outside into the warm Houston air.
Crossing the parking lot to my car, I got in and leaned back against the seat.
It felt like this trip back home would turn my world upside down again.
On one hand, I was scared as hell. On the other, I knew I needed to come clean in order to breathe easy.
Hiding from Pryce didn’t make me feel good, especially hiding something as serious as a pregnancy.
Starting my car, I sat my purse in the passenger seat and pulled out my phone to connect it to the Bluetooth.
No sooner than I put the car in drive, the phone rang with an incoming call from Trill.
I rolled my eyes and sucked my teeth. The man couldn’t even give me seventy-two hours of no contact.
Pulling out of the parking lot, I tapped the screen to answer his call.
“Hey,” I spoke in a dry tone.
“What it do, bae?” He slurred a little. “You feeling better today?”
“I said I needed a couple days, Trill. And why do you sound like that?”
“I know, but I was thinking…”
My phone beeped, indicating an incoming call. I glanced down at the screen and swallowed hard seeing Pryce’s contact. Did Kyiris tell him she spoke to me? I thought, completely tuning Trill out.
“Adai. Adai.” He called my name, but I was too busy trying to focus on the road and the incoming call.
“Let me call you back, Trill.” I didn’t wait for him to respond, just clicked over before Pryce could hang up.
“Hello,” I let out slowly as I pulled up to a red light.
“What time your flight land tomorrow?” His voice came through, deep and controlled.
“Huh?” I let out as I melted into my seat. My heart beat loudly, and my pussy throbbed. It didn’t make no damn sense how turned on I was yet scared hearing his voice.
“What time your flight land tomorrow?” he repeated, shocking me.
I was almost sure that his reply would be something smart like, “I ain’t no parrot, Dai.” Was this a sign of change?
“Umm…” I started, still caught up in his response. The honking of the horn from the car behind me made me jump a little. Realizing the light had turned green, I pressed on the gas and pushed forward.
“You driving?”
“Yeah.”
“Aight. Hit me when you get to your destination so we can talk. It don’t sound like you’re paying attention.”
“I got this,” I countered. “What do we need to talk about?”
“The question I just asked you twice.”
I paused, thinking my response through, before speaking. “I’m gonna need a couple days before I see you, ba… I mean, Pryce.” I caught myself before I could call him bae.
“Damn, the last six months wasn’t enough? You know what? Don’t even answer that. I get it.” He let out an audible sigh, and I held my breath. “Just let me know when you touch down if that’s not too much to ask, Adai.”
“Okay. I can do that,” I replied softly, hoping he’d be this calm and understanding once he saw me.
We both went silent, and then, I heard his name being called in the background.
“These niggas act like they can’t even spell they own name without my help. I gotta go. Don’t forget what I said to do, Dai.”
“Okay.”
“Aight. I love you.”
Hearing him say the words were different than reading them.
I felt temporarily paralyzed. Maybe it was the shock of hearing his voice after all this time or the fact that he seemed to think before he spoke.
That was rare for Pryce. I felt the baby kick as if he or she were prompting me to repeat the sentiments to their father, so I did.
“I love you too.” Ending the call quickly before he could sense the heavy emotion building up in me, I grabbed the steering wheel with both hands.
Pryce had never been a man who asked for anything quietly. And while it seemed like he was respecting my space, I knew the man that I spent four years of my life with like the back of my hand. That said, anything could change at any moment with Pryce Sullivan.
I walked through LaGuardia Airport slowly toward baggage claim with my hand resting on my belly.
Being pregnant made me more aware of my surroundings, especially when I was out alone.
Traveling while pregnant made me pay attention to how fast people walked, how close they stood to me, and how easy it was to get bumped into if I wasn’t paying attention and turned the wrong way.
With that in mind, I kept a ‘resting mommy face’ on at all times –– one that said I was going to protect myself and my baby at all costs.
As I made my way to the carousel at Terminal C for Delta, I spotted my mother.
She always stood out to me no matter where we were.
Not just because I was the spitting image of her but also because she always dressed cute.
Ever since I was younger, my mother always took pride in her appearance.
Today, she had on a fitted t-shirt, linen pants, and sandals.
On her arm was a mini denim Chanel hobo bag.
I was almost certain that her sandals were Chanel too.
“Over here, Daisy.” I called her by her nickname.
Her head whipped in my direction, and she cracked a wide smile. Starting toward me, her arms were already opening before I could reach her. “Don’t get yo’ ass whooped callin’ me that.” She playfully threatened me.
I stepped into her hug, and she embraced me in a way that only a loving mother could. The hug didn’t last long before she pulled back and brought her face to my belly.
“Heyyy, Baby Boo.” She kissed my belly that seemed to grow a little more overnight. So much for trying to hide the bump.
I laughed at her talking to my belly in the middle of the airport as people walked around us.
“You act like you haven’t seen the bump, Mommy.”
“It’s been a couple months since I’ve seen you in person. It’s rounder now. FaceTime and pictures are nothing like the real thing.” She stood and couldn’t stop smiling. “I can’t believe somebody is about to be calling me Grandma. It’s the greatest gift next to you calling me Mommy, Dai.”
Tears welled up in my eyes, and I failed at holding them at bay.
“Oh, Lord.” She laughed. “Here you go. This baby making you even more of a crybaby than you already were.”
“I’m not even crying. I have allergies.” I giggled. “And I’m not a crybaby.”
“Girl, please. You’ve been a crybaby since Pre-K. It’s the Sag in you. Y’all be overwhelmed with emotions.”
“This is true.”
“Come on so we can get your bags.” She looped her arm in mine, and we walked to the carousel.
“I only have one suitcase. I packed light. Not sure how long I’ll be here.”
“Well, depending on how much you packed, we may have to fit a shopping trip in. I’m sure you can’t fit nothing you left behind.”
She grabbed my Glamaholic tote, and we started the walk to the parking garage. Halfway there, I caught myself scanning the crowd to see if Pryce had shown up. Always on guard, my mother slowed her pace and started looking around too.
“Who we lookin’ for? You know I’m licensed to carry.” She tapped her purse and gave me a knowing nod.
I laughed and hooked my arm tighter through hers. “It’s not like that, Mommy.”
“Okay. Why your head on a swivel then?”
“I’m looking to see if Pryce showed up.”
“Oooohhh. Did you tell him you were coming?”
“He’s kinda the reason I’m here,” I told her honestly.
That got her attention. “Mmhmm. And?”
“Nothing. I’ll see him when I see him. I’m just checking to make sure he’s still respecting my space.”
“You know you can’t duck that boy forever. Especially now.”
“I’m not ducking him, Ma. You know that.”
“What do you call it then, Dai?”
We made it outside and into the garage where her car was parked on the first level.
“I call it attempting to regroup after a breakup. Healing, if you will.”
“Right, and then a baby entered the picture. You made no attempt to tell him about the pregnancy. You were ducking him.”
“He made no attempt to reach out,” I fired back, trying to figure out whose side she was on. “So, again, not ducking him.”
“Okay. So, you avoided him.”
“Ma.”
We reached the car, and she popped the trunk, placing my suitcase inside.
“I’ll drop the subject. We can agree to disagree, Dai. I’m just happy you’re here. You and Pryce can figure that out when the time comes. Right now, I just want to enjoy you and my grandbaby.”
We hopped inside her Jeep and drove out of the garage. On the way to my condo, I pulled out my phone to text Ebone but went to Pryce’s thread instead.
Me: Hey. I’m back in the city.
The three dots appeared on the screen, and his reply came faster than I expected.
My Forever: I know.
My heartrate quickened, and he texted again.
My Forever: You always know where your heart is, Dai. I’ll see you soon.
I stared at the screen, trying to figure out how soon he meant. Because I certainly wasn’t emotionally prepared for a reunion that I couldn’t plan for in advance. Was I?