Page 31

“Flip the camera, Nari. Let me see him,” that was Juvie’s voice that I heard.

I didn’t even know that she was on the phone with him. That explained why she walked in here, holding the phone in her hands. I was shocked to see them on a facetime call with each other. The two of them carried on like they hated each other. Well, my sister carried on like she hated his ass. She would get so frustrated that most of the work gets put on her.

Nari stood there, and she flipped the camera, allowing her baby daddy to see his son.

“Deja, what’s good?” Juvie asked me.

I reached my hand out, taking the phone out of my sister’s hand. While I did that, she walked away, going over to her dresser, so she could pull some clothes out.

“Nothing, what’s going on? When is your next day to come and get Nico?” I asked, on his ass. Ever since my sister had that near death experience, I needed everyone to do their part.

“I’m about to come over there right now. Ima feed him, bathe him, and put him to sleep. Your sister told me to stop and get her some Chic- fil-A, so that’s what I’m doing. She didn’t want the food Tameka cooked,” he said, glancing up at me for a second.

He was driving. Juvie really was a handsome boy. Him and I were about the same skin complexion. He was tall as hell. I think Nari told me that he was already 6’5. He had a slim build. He was only eighteen, yet he already had plenty of tattoos. As he drove with just a wife beater on, you could see the two full sleeved tattoos he had. I absolutely hated to see a man with gold teeth in his mouth, and that’s what he had going on. I knew they weren’t permanent though because sometimes when he came around, he wouldn’t have them in. Beautiful white teeth flashed whenever he smiled, so I had no idea why he decided to wear that bullshit in his mouth. Juvie kept his hair in braids. Right now, he rocked straight back braids, and they were fresh, as if he’d just gotten them done.

I didn’t care if him and my sister were together or not. I just wanted them to do what the fuck they had to do to be great parents to Nico. That’s all I wanted.

“I see ya’ll are getting along. I like that,” I told him, and he laughed.

“Anari not my enemy. I’m never at odds with my baby mama. She always beefing with me because she likes to think that I turn down opportunities with my son so that I can go out and run the streets. If I can’t get Nico, it’s because I have a game or I have practice. I know I have shit that I need to work on, so that’s what I’m doing. Just like she fucked ya’ll up with that shit that she pulled, she fucked me up with it too. That’s my dawg at the end of the day, and I don’t want anything bad to happen to her,” he finished.

I could tell that his words were sincere. As he spoke, the feelings that he had for my sister were clear as day. I liked that he acknowledged his flaws, and he knew that there was room for improvement. I had faith that him, and my sister would get it together.

We eventually hung up, and I tossed Nari’s phone on the bed. I watched her as she slipped a hoodie over her head. This was my first time actually paying attention to her ass. I guess when I came over earlier, I was still thinking about the rumors going around on social media, that I didn’t take the chance to fully look at Nari. When she pulled that hood over her head, that told me everything that I needed to know.

“Come here for a second,” I called out. She walked over to me…. no, she limped over to me. The second she was close enough, I put a hand on Nico’s back, so he wouldn’t move, and then I reached up to attempt to pull that hood off her head, but she backed away. She was trying to hide whatever might have been on her neck.

“Deja, move! Let me get my son,” she said, reaching for him, but I pushed her ass back. I don’t play about my nephew. I’ll deprive him of going to his mama, and his daddy.

“When you dropped Nico off yesterday with Juvie, you fucked him?” I asked, getting right to the point.

“What? No!” she expressed.

“You’re a fuckin lie!” I was on her ass.

When I said it, she laughed and then flopped down on the bed. She lay where my feet were. She rested on her back, pulling her hands up, so that she could place them behind her head. After a few seconds, she turned to look at me, then smiled.

“Okay. We did have sex. Deja, I needed it. Me and Juvie haven’t done anything since we had Nico. I’ve been hating his ass for the past five months, so he couldn’t even get a kiss out of me. I been going through so much. I had a weak moment last night. His mom wasn’t home. It was just the three of us. He bathed and fed Nico. I was about to leave, but it started raining, so I stuck around for a little bit. We talked. He apologized for his role in my unhappiness, and feeling alone. One thing led to another,” she let me know. All I did was shake my head, as I looked over at her.

“I hope you made him put on a fuckin condom,” I spat.

“I did. You know I’m on birth control, so we’re fine,” she said.

I didn’t say anything else after that. I just found a spot on the wall and stared at it. I was deep in thought. My mind was heavy on the argument that I had out front with my mom.

“What’s wrong with you?” Nari asked me after a few moments of silence.

“I let your mom get under my skin, per usual,” I told her.

“In a perfect world, the two of you will be able to get along. I’m in therapy. Maybe the two of you can try it,” she suggested. I waved her off, pretending not to hear her.

I eventually stood up with my nephew. I didn’t want to leave him, but I told Wolf that I would cook dinner tonight. On nights that I didn’t have to work at the club, I liked to have dinner ready for my man as soon as he walked through the door. He’d already texted me, telling me that it’s been busy at the shop today and that he wouldn’t be home until after eight. That gave me enough time to get home, shower, and get started on dinner.

I handed Nico over to my sister, and as soon as she got him, she started kissing him, calling out his name, so that he could wake up. While she did that, I hugged her, let her know that I loved her, and not long after that, I walked out the door. I didn’t bother going back into the kitchen to say anything to my mom once I made it downstairs. I think we both said enough to each other this evening.

After placing my shoes on my feet, I walked out the front door. My car was parked in the driveway, so it was a quick walk getting to it. Once I planted myself in my seat, I quickly started the car up and headed to Wolf’s place.

Because I had to drive in rush hour traffic, plus there were a couple of accidents on the highway, it took longer than usual for me to make it home. I felt like I literally dragged myself out of the car, and over to the elevators. I stepped onto the elevator with a white couple, who quickly spoke to me, and made room for me to join them. They got off before me, and moments later, it was my turn to get off.