Opening his messages, Logic sent a text to his accountant requesting that he deposit half of the money Rahlo sent him into his savings and then send ten bands to Al. Within minutes, his accountant replied, letting him know he’d get right on it.
“Sweet,” Logic mumbled, going into the kitchen to grab his bills folder and glasses.
Taking a seat on the couch, Logic slipped on the glasses and opened the folder. A smile graced his face when he noticed that everything was up to date. There wasn’t a red stamp or bold overdue sign anywhere, and Logic thanked God for the little things. For the first time in a long time, he was ahead, and the feeling brought a smile to his face.
“Girl, no, I’m about to move around,” Scottie voiced, walking from the back with her bags. “I’ll call you when I get in the car.” She ended the call, walking past Logic, who didn’t stop her. Pausing, she looked back at him and sucked her teeth.
“So, you don’t have nothing to say?”
“What do you want me to say, Scottie?” Logic cocked his head to the side. “You want me to beg you not to leave and kiss your ass?”
“Something! Why would you just let me leave all mad?”
“'Cause that’s what you do. Shit gets hard or don’t go your way, you leave. The fuck I'mma stop you for, we kicking it, but we’re not together, and I don’t have time to chase you.”
“I didn’t say we were together,” she pouted, dropping her bag. “But your sisters are so disrespectful.”
“Let’s be real.” Logic removed his glasses. “How would you feel if you cleaned up and somebody came behind you cooking and then told you to clean it up? On top of that, you didn’t make them shit. You should be lucky they didn’t knock all that shit over.”
“I just wanted to do something special for you.”
“And if we were here alone, cool, I’d love that. But, shorty, we are not, and I’ll never eat a gourmet meal while they eat some sugary bullshit.”
“That’s the problem. We’re never alone.”
“And you knew that when you started coming back around. I’m not holding you hostage, shorty, you can dip at any time.”
“You could at least plan a trip for us or something. You’re making money now.”
“I am, but I’m not trying to splurge on a trip and come back to the projects. Like I said though, I’m not holding you hostage.”
“I wanna be here.”
“Then go put your shit back and chill out. I need to go look for a car and then I'll take yall to the mall. It’s not a trip, but-
“The mall is perfect,” Scottie cheesed, perking up at the thought of spending money. “And what am I going to get from the mall?” She walked up to him, slipping her arms around his neck.
“Depends on how good you throw that neck,” Logic whispered in her ear, slipping his hands between her thighs.
“Oh, you know I'm a fool with the shit. Come on.” She grabbed his hand, pulling him toward his room.
???
“What time are you coming to pick her up, Tyrell?” Maple questioned, glancing at Tyler, who was sitting on the floor in her coat with her Winnie the Pooh book bag under her arm. It was Friday and she was supposed to spend the weekend with Tyrell, but it was four hours past the time he was supposed to pick her up. Maple already knew the deal, but she still called him, hoping he’d keep his word for once.
“Look, it’s not a good weekend. I thought Vic and the kids were going to be gone, but-” Tyrell tried to explain.
“I swear you the sorriest nigga I know,” Maple laughed. “Why would you wait so fucking long to say something?” she snapped. “My baby has been sitting here in this hot ass coat for hours waiting for you, and what the fuck do them being gone mean? She’s not some outside child, shit, they are the fucking outsiders, you were ours first.”
“I’ll make it up to her.” He sighed, not wanting to tell her that his wife didn’t want Tyler coming over because it confused their kids.
“You’re so fucking sorry. You’re her father dummy. Her first love. You’re supposed to teach her how a man is supposed to treat a woman. You’re supposed to set the standards for men in her life. Tyrell, you’re supposed to show her what love is and all you do is lie and disappoint her. Don’t even worry about making it up to her. I’m gonna teach my baby how to love herself because niggas ain’t shit.” Maple hung up in his face and looked over at her baby girl sitting on the couch.
“Ty,” she softly called out. “Go take your coat off. He’s not coming.”
“But he said,” Tyler whined.
“People lie, Ty.”
