Chapter 17
SEVENTEEN
MAUI
“Thank you. It tastes really good.”
I looked over at Shaydon as I ate the boudin mac and cheese he’d gotten me from someone he knew in Beaumont.
It was so good. My tastebuds were enjoying it.
Barbecue sauce was drizzled all over it, along with another sauce.
I wasn’t sure what that sauce was. What was crazy was that I wasn’t a fan of having cheese on my boudin, but I liked this.
“You’re welcome. I’m glad you’re feeling better. You look amazing.”
“Thank you.”
I was moving around and doing the things I wanted to do easily.
It had been three weeks since I’d had the baby.
My heart was still in disarray, but physically, I was fine.
I thought about my baby all the time. Bali had taken pictures of the baby for me, since I’d blacked out.
I often looked at the one she captured of Mythic holding her with tears streaming down his cheeks.
She was so tiny, practically fitting in the palm of his hand.
I was almost eighteen weeks, so she had all her limbs, nose, and ears.
I cried over those pictures for at least a week or two.
I hadn’t looked at them since, because I wanted to move on.
Not being with Mythic was also taking a toll on me.
He didn’t realize how difficult the decision was for me.
He thought it should have been easy. I loved him so much.
That went without saying. Being without my family was hard.
I was miserable, although I was with him.
At home I was miserable without him. It was a catch twenty-two, I guess.
Shaydon had been coming to see me twice a week.
I was grateful for that, because I needed companionship.
I thought Mythic would have helped me through losing the baby, but I also knew he was waiting for me to call him.
I felt like I shouldn’t have had to tell him I needed him at a time like this.
My mind was always racing, thinking about whether I would go to him or leave well enough alone.
I’d done without him for three weeks . . . three long ass weeks.
As I finished off my food, my daddy walked into the kitchen where we were. “Shaydon, what’chu tryna do, nigga? Every time I look up, your ass here, like H-Tine is up the street,” he said, copying the way Shaydon said H-Town.
I slowly shook my head and chuckled. “I’m just checking on my friend. Ashanni and Milana are busy during the day. I know being alone is hard when you’re emotional.”
“Friend my ass. I got my eyes on you,” he said, pointing his finger at him with his eyebrows lifted.
I giggled, then wiped my mouth. “Maui, Nesha said to be expecting a call from her later.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Tell Shylou that I will fuck a nigga up behind my baby. That way, if you mistreat her, he won’t be surprised by what happens to you.”
Shaydon chuckled and shook his head. “You ain’t gotta worry about that, Mister Mayor. I love Maui. I’d never hurt her,” he said while staring at me.
I cleared my throat and looked away. This shit was reminding me of the why choose novels.
I could use a Shaydon and a Mythic. Shaydon would be for the family’s acceptance, but Mythic was everything I fantasized about.
I didn’t know a thing about Shaydon’s sex game, and I had no plans of finding out.
He was a cutie though. That was for sure.
My dad’s eyebrows were lifted, and he had a half smile on his face. “A’ight. I’m just saying. Don’t get fucked up.”
He walked off to his in-home office and shut the door. I inhaled deeply and released it. “That man is something else.”
“He loves his baby. I get it. I’m pretty sure everyone gets that energy.”
I glanced at him. “It seems like you’re fishing for details, so I’ll give them to you.
He doesn’t approve of me being with Mythic .
. . none of my family does. That’s who I love though.
Mythic is not the man they think he is. Just like you cater to me, he does the same.
He’s tender with me and always shows how much he cares.
He loves me too. I can’t speak for how he is with everyone else.
He did his best to show them how good he was for me, and shit that happened two years ago messed all that up. ”
I stood from my seat and went to throw the container away as the doorbell rang. My dad’s office door swung open. “That better be Marcus. His ass missed the meeting this morning, talking about he had a custom job to do. He gon’ fuck himself out that assistant mayor position.”
I sat back in my seat as I listened to what was going on at the door.
It wasn’t Uncle Marcus. If it were, he would have been a lot louder.
He would have been louder for any family member at the door.
He came back with an extremely extravagant bouquet.
It was gorgeous. He included my favorite flower: stargaze lilies.
I knew it was from Mythic. No one else would be sending flowers.
He set it on the table with a frown on his face. Snatching the card from the stem, he slowly extended it to me. I knew he wanted to read it, and I would let him. He needed to see just how sweet Mythic was. I opened the envelope as he and Shaydon watched me.
Maui,
I hope all is good with you, baby. I swear you’re all I think about.
I’ve been trying to wait and see if you would reach out.
I suppose you’ve moved on and no longer need me.
I love you so much. This shit is killing me.
I hate that we can’t be together. I understand how hard it is for you to choose me over your family.
I also understand that choosing me would be like going against your brother.
I just want you to know that if you never hear from me again, that you will always be in my heart.
Whenever you want to reach out, I will always be available for you, frfr.
You my life, baby. Without you, I don’t have one.
Nobody gets me like you do. So I guess I’ll just be a fucked-up nigga for the rest of my life.
Nobody moves my soul like you. You understand me beyond even my own comprehension.
My soul will forever be tied to yours, even if yours becomes tied to someone else’s.
I don’t even want to end this letter, because I could go on and on about how much I need you and how much I love you. I swear, I sound like a fucking lame.
I wish our baby was still here, because then no one would be able to stop me from seeing you.
You should also be receiving a package that I had generated from Indigo’s photo.
AI is a fucking beast. I hope it takes your breath away as it did mine.
Again, I love you so much . . . so much until it hurts.
I wish you well, baby. At any time of any day, I’ll always choose you.
Love Always & Forever,
Mythic
The tears were pouring from my eyes. I shoved the card to my dad’s chest and ran up the stairs to my bedroom.
His letter was so painfully beautiful. It was even more than what I expected.
Mythic was way more intelligent than what people thought.
He let me see all of him, parts of him no one else was privy to.
This was so fucking hard! I needed to hear his voice.
After reading that, I had to. I pulled my phone from my pocket and called him.
“Hello?”
“Mythiiiic. Oh my God. Your words . . . I love you too.”
He remained quiet while I cried my damn eyes out.
It felt like I would throw up any minute.
My spirit was so broken. As if it couldn’t get any worse, my daddy appeared in my doorway with the package Mythic spoke of in his letter.
I put the phone on speaker, and said, “I’m sorry.
I just got the package you spoke of. Let me open it. ”
He still remained quiet as I took it from Daddy Mayor and tore it open.
When I saw the family portrait on the canvas, I broke again.
I dropped to the floor as I stared at it.
It was of the two of us and what looked like a one-year-old Indigo.
Jesus. She was so beautiful. We looked so happy in the picture.
My dad handed me a small box that must have dropped from the package.
I opened it to see a bracelet and necklace set.
They both had pendants on them, and without opening them, I knew they would be pictures of us.
I opened the one on the bracelet first to see it was only a picture of Indigo. I opened the one on the necklace to see it was only Indigo as well. I immediately put them on and tried to calm my emotions. “Mythic, this so beautiful. Thank you.”
“You’re welcome, baby,” he said as I heard a horse whinny in the background. There was a lot of movement, then I heard a door close. “I miss you so much, Maui. I’m not gonna reiterate everything I already said in the letter. I just . . . fuck, man!”
My heart was hurting as I listened to him break. I glanced up at my dad, and his face was red. He walked away, I supposed to go and keep Shaydon company. “I miss you too.”
“Then please put me outta my fucking misery. Be with me or kill me. Shit! I can’t take this shit no more.”
When I remained quiet, he said, “I have to go, Maui. I’ll be at home all day in case you wanna come over and unload that glock.”
The call ended, and I closed my eyes. Listening to him this way was so damn hard, because it wasn’t him.
Mythic didn’t beg for shit. He waited until you freely gave it.
He didn’t even beg for pussy. He never had to beg for mine.
I freely gave it to him to feel all his thickness inside of me.
The way he picked me up and shoved his dick in me against the wall was my favorite.
My pussy would squirt even more in that position.
I sat on the floor and leaned back against the bed. I closed my eyes, begging God to make a way for us to be together. “Maui, I’m gonna head out, baby girl.”