“D, my boy!”
I turned and saw Malik coming through the crowd, Sametra on his arm in an emerald gown that worked with her belly and everything. She saw Halo and lit up.
“Malik, what’s good, bro?” I dapped him up, then looked at Sametra. “You look beautiful. How you feeling?”
“Pregnant and tired, but I wasn’t missing this.” She was already reaching for Halo. “Girl, look at you. That dress is everything.”
Halo hugged her, laughing. “Thank you, friend. Your dress is gorgeous too.”
Sametra rubbed her belly, then looked between Halo and me with that knowing smile. “So… y’all are here. Together. Is my girl officially a WAG now?”
“Don’t start, Mimi,” Halo warned, still smiling.
“I’m not starting, I’m observing.” She looked at me. “You clean up nice, DaVinci. You better treat my girl right. I like y'all together.”
“Appreciate it.” I kept my hand on Halo’s waist. “Y’all just get here?”
“About twenty minutes ago,” Malik said. “This setup is clean. You did your thing.”
“Thanks, bruh. Just tryna give back, you know.”
“I respect it.” Malik looked at Halo, then back at me. “Y’all look good together, for real.”
“Thanks, man.” That meant something coming from him.
After a few more songs, we all headed to a table. We slid into easy conversation. I watched how comfortable Halo looked. Laughing, talking, and touching my arm when she made a point.
That was all I wanted. Ease. Trust.
“I’m going to get a drink,” Halo said after a while. “Anybody want anything?”
“I’m good, baby,” I said, and Sametra stood up.
“I’ll come with you. I need to stretch my legs anyway.”
They walked off, and Malik turned to me with that look men get when they about to ask some real shit.
“You really feeling her, huh?”
“Yeah, man. I am.”
“I can tell. You look different. Happy.” He leaned back, grinning. “She done shook some shit loose.”
“Every day with her in my life is a good day. A blessed day. I could sniff my baby out in a crowd; that’s how wide open my nose is behind her. No bullshit.” I admitted. I watched Halo at the bar, laughing at something Sametra said. I didn’t want to let her out of my sight.
Malik nodded toward his wife. “Sametra got me the same way, probably worse. I can’t even say half the shit I will do for her. I’ll be in jail, but that’s what she deserves. Fuck it.”
“How’d you know she was the one?”
He thought about it. “She existed. I knew Sametra was going to be my wife the moment I laid eyes on her. But the answer I think you want is when I realized that this wasn’t fleeting.”
“Yeah.”
“I knew when I would rather risk everything with her than play it safe with anybody else.” He looked at me. “You there yet?”
I watched Halo. She stood near the bar talking to Omni, her head thrown back in laughter at something my sister said. Nobody told her how to stand, how to smile, what to say. She moved through life the same way shemoved through that fire scene—on her own terms, unapologetic, not asking for permission. She didn't need validation from me or anyone else. She was already a catch.
That's what made me want to be part of her world. Not because she needed me to complete her, but because I wanted to see what we could build together.
