It was crazy how her mother had refrained from gambling all these years then all of a sudden as soon as they agree to both be there for Mason, she relapsed. Maybe it was from the stress of worrying about Monique. That could have very well been a trigger for Sonya, but Mason’s father wasn’t around. His mother had switched up on him and now, his grandmother was on some other shit. Symphony didn’t want Mason growing up around all kinds of addiction. If she ended up addicted to something, she’d literally pull her hair out one strand at a time.
She knew if she confronted her mother, she’d get defensive. The same way Monique used to get when she was confronted about her drug use. It was a never-ending cycle of attitudes, deflecting, gas lighting, and lying. The first time her mother was addicted to gambling, Symphony was affected, but she wasn’t expected to loan her mother money. It didn’t bother her when her mother stayed out late gambling because then she could break curfew and stay on the phone longer than she was supposed to. There were times her mother cut it real close withthe utilities getting cut off or them running out of food, but Symphony never saw real struggle behind Sonya’s addiction.
By the time she got evicted, her kids were out of the house. Monique didn’t go to college, but she met Mason’s father and got a job. He hustled and with both of them making money, they got an apartment together. Monique was smart with her money, and she used to take money from her boyfriend’s safe all the time. When Mason was five, Monique found out her baby daddy had twins on the way with someone he swore to Monique was his cousin.
Monique broke up with him, and she had enough money saved to last for about a year and a half. She was good on the bills and spoiling Mason. It was around that time she started partying harder and meeting different men. She just wanted to forget all of the heartbreak she endured because of Mason’s father. Even when she partied three nights a week and got black out drunk, Monique was still a good mother to Mason. Symphony wasn’t sure exactly what occurred to make her sister become addicted to pills, but she was good and hooked. And Sonya was good and relapsed.
It was annoying to Symphony that she couldn’t even bask in the afterglow of the amazing sex she had with Block. She had been knocked off her cloud abruptly. It was always something coming along and ruining whatever piece of peace or nostalgia that she had, and Symphony was getting tired of it. She loved her family with everything in her, but something had to give.
The simper that lifted his mother’s cheeks made Brazil happier than he’d been in a long time. He loved his life. He was blessedbeyond measure, but since laying eyes on Unique, life felt different. In the most beautiful way.
“She is gorgeous,” his mother marveled as Brazil passed her first grandchild to her.
“Yeah, she is. And tiny too. I can fit her entire body in one of my hands.” Brazil shook his head still not fully able to process the fact that he had a daughter.
His mother’s eyes never left Unique’s face as she walked over to the couch and lowered her body. “All this hair. Oh my gosh. She’s perfect.”
Brazil sat down in the recliner that sat adjacent to the couch. “You know you have to stay with me tonight, right? I’m scared to have her by myself overnight,” he admitted making his mother laugh.
“You didn’t even have to ask. My bag is already packed.”
Brazil gave a subtle nod. He was going to be alright. Even if he didn’t have a support system, he would have figured things out on his own, but he was glad to have people in his corner. He was also glad that he had his life together and news of Unique didn’t send him running. She had a father and a cousin that cared enough about her that she didn’t have to be placed in the system. Brazil’s thoughts drifted back to the day that he met Giavanna, and how going to her home gave him the comfort he needed to share custody of his child with her.
“Looks like a pretty nice neighborhood,” he mumbled when turning into the subdivision.
After following the GPS’s prompts, he pulled in front of a modest home. Brazil walked past the purple Camry parked in the driveway and admired the paint job that glistened underneath the sunlight. The car was beautiful in his opinion and fit the woman that he met at the lawyer’s office.
Two seconds after he rang the bell, Giavanna opened the door appearing frazzled, but she was still sexy which was crazyto Brazil. There was a bonnet on her head, and she was dressed in black sweatpants and a white shirt.
“Hi,” she greeted him breathlessly. I was trying to finish getting dressed, but Miss Mamas is on one today. She’s quiet now but just two minutes ago, her little butt had the devil in her,” Giavanna chuckled as Brazil crossed the threshold of her home.
An aroma resembling freshly baked chocolate chip cookies met his nostrils. He wasn’t sure if she was baking or if she had a candle burning or some kind of wax melt, but the smell made her home feel warm and cozy. As he followed her 5’4 frame into the living room, Brazil spotted a swing gently rocking from side to side as the tiniest baby he’d ever seen lay nestled inside.
“Oh wow,” Brazil instantly fell in love with her chubby cheeks that were rosy and the mass of silky hair on her head. “She’s small.”
Giavanna grinned like a proud parent. “That little butt has a set of lungs on her. I don’t know how long you plan on staying, but it’ll be time for her to eat in about twenty minutes if you want to feed her.”
“Yeah, sure. I can do that.”
Giavanna nodded. “I’m going to finish getting dressed and clean my room since I have backup. Let me know if you need anything.” Giavanna disappeared, and Brazil sat on the edge of the couch and stared at his daughter.
She looked so peaceful that he didn’t want to disturb her. On top of that, he was scared to pick her up. Unique made Brazil feel like a giant with abnormally large hands. After staring at his daughter for an extended period of time, Brazil focused his attention elsewhere. Giavanna’s home was very neat, warm, and cozy. She had a gray sectional, and the décor in her living room consisted of mostly blue and silver.
There was a picture frame to the left of him on the coffee table, and he noticed a slightly younger Giavanna standing with two other females. It appeared as if they were at some kind of lounge or restaurant. She wore a black catsuit that looked painted on. Her hair was in long faux locs and without a drop of makeup or eyelash extensions, she was still the baddest one in the photo. Brazil didn’t know a thing about Giavanna, but she seemed like good people. What other kind of person would offer to look after their newborn cousin and not go after child support from the father that played professional soccer.
Maybe, she was genuinely a good person, or maybe there was an endgame. Only time would tell. Unique had just started to stir when Giavanna came back in the room with her hair slicked back into a low bun. Her sweats had been swapped out for black jeans with rips in the knees. She brought the smell of baby powder and vanilla with her. She smelled so soft and clean that Brazil’s dick stirred. He loved a good smelling woman. When he realized that she was arousing him, Brazil pulled his gaze away. Kera was deceased, but Giavanna was still her cousin.
“I’m going to warm her bottle. You want something to drink?”
“Oh nah. I’m good.”
Patiently, he waited for her to come back. She passed him the bottle and sat on the opposite end of the sectional. Brazil wasted no time looking over at her. “You knew I was Unique’s father. Kera had to tell you that. So, why didn’t she ever tell me she was pregnant?”
“I don’t know if she ever told you, but Kera had been off and on with this guy, Sammie for years. He’s bipolar, but he refuses to take his medication. What he would do was drink and get high every day. More often than not, he was violent and abusive. As unhinged as he was, the nigga had money, so Iassume the way he spoiled her outweighed the way he treated her. Every time she attempted to leave, he kept pulling her back. By the time she found out she was pregnant, she assumed it was his until she got an ultrasound and found out she was three and a half months. They’d only been back together for a month and before that, they were broken up for six months. She came to me crying saying it couldn’t be his baby and if she told him, he was going to go the hell off.”
Despite not liking where the story was going, Brazil listened intensely.
“She used to be real sick, and she couldn’t hide the fact that she was pregnant. He assumed it was his, and when she told him it wasn’t, he broke her nose. A neighbor called the police, and he was arrested. He had an active warrant, so he stayed in jail for five months. For five months, she had peace. When he came home, he apologized, promised to change, and told her he would accept Unique and raise her like his own. What transpired in the car that day, I’ll never know. I just thank God that Unique wasn’t inside.”
