I paused what I was doing to turn to Shiloh. “Yo, that’s dope, baby boy. Congratulations! If it’s going to be hanging somewhere, me and your mama need to know where. You know she’ll need a million pictures for her collages.” Grai loved to scrapbook and had pictures of every milestone in the boys’ lives tucked away in bulky journals.
He chuckled. “Yeah, she will.”
I left them in the bedroom to hop in the shower. I didn’t take my time, because I was ready to be around the people I loved most. The boys were still on the bed when I came back out, refreshed. Loh was watching TV while Ace still stared at the ceiling. “Ma said the food is ready,” he shared with me as I spritzed myself with cologne.
“Okay, cool. Let’s go eat.”
The three of us raced down the stairs with me smoking both of them. Grai shook her head at us when we rushed into the dining room, out of breath. I rubbed my hands together in excitement, taking a seat at the head of the table. Grai sat onthe other end, with the boys side by side, and my mama on the opposite side. I led us in prayer, then we began to dig in.
I’d admit Grai put her foot in that pasta, but I expected nothing less. It was my favorite, so she had plenty of time to perfect her recipe. We had lighthearted conversation while we ate, and I had to agree with my mother that they were all doing well.
After dinner, Grai followed me to the backyard to get some fresh air. The boys went to entertain themselves in whatever way they wanted since it was Friday night, while my mother prepared for bed. She didn’t play about her beauty sleep and was rarely up too late at night.
I took a seat on the lounge chair, and Grai filled up the one beside me. We were quiet as I rolled up a blunt to share. “A rose garden would look so beautiful over there.” I glanced up from where I was breaking down the bud to find her pointing at the far-left corner of the backyard. “I would be able to see it from the Juliette balcony,” she continued.
I nodded, then looked from the area she spoke of to the back of the house. I noted it would also be seen from my bedroom window. Grai settled back into her seat with her chin resting on her knees.
I lit the tip of the blunt and inhaled deeply. The smoke filled my lungs and had me coughing seconds later. “This some rapper,” I warned her while taking another drag.
I felt the weight of Grai’s eyes and turned to look at her. Her eyes were zoned in on my wrist. “Aw, you still have this?” she asked in reference to the bracelet she made me when we were younger.
I always had a habit of doing anything and everything Grai wanted to do. She would sign up for all kinds of free classes at the rec centers or library, then drag me along with her because she didn’t want to go alone. I used to go merely as her protectionand support at first, until I started to realize those classes would be filled with girls. My phone stayed full of options because of it.
I passed the blunt over to Grai, blowing smoke in her face. She laughed while waving the cloud from in front of her. “Rude, much?” I didn’t respond as I continued to study her soft features. Even wearing a head scarf, she was as elegant and beautiful as ever. I wished she had the ability to see how fucking amazing she was. Drey tried to ruin her, but by the grace of God, he didn’t succeed. Grai still remained nurturing, kind, and loving to not only her boys but others too.
“Why are you looking at me like that?” she asked when I continued to stare at her. I remained quiet but refused to look away. Eventually, she blushed and rolled her eyes.
We fell into a comfortable silence that didn’t bother either of us. Hooking my arm around her shoulder, I pulled her closer until she was tucked under me. After placing a kiss on her forehead, we settled back into our bubble of serenity, listening to the rustling trees and crickets.
Chapter 9
Grai
“TT Grai!” Autumn yelled excitedly when I opened the front door.
“Autumn!” I mirrored her excitement while widening my arms for a hug. She raced into them with my sister Kemani and her husband Kaiser standing behind her. I greeted and hugged them next. “Omg, look at your belly, sis.” I bent down, rubbing her very pregnant belly. I couldn’t wait to welcome my new niece to the world. “Come on in, y’all. Everybody is in the backyard.”
I closed and locked the front door, then followed them to the back of the house. We exited through the sliding doors to a backyard full of life. Autumn ran straight to join her cousins, who were busy playing with water guns and balloons. Toni and the kids were already here, so now they had the full gang, including my two. I loved that my boys had plenty of cousins to hang out with.
Today, we had been officially moved into Poppa’s for an entire month. I had to admit, life was good. There were some adjustments, but there was nothing that made me dread this arrangement. He’d agreed to have a Sunday dinner that turnedinto a cookout because the weather was so perfect. Poppa was on the grill with Kaiser and my father, Devin.
My mother, Tracy, was sitting with Mama Dee, having margaritas that were going to have them singing oldies. The liquor always got those two activated, and they’d be back here dropping it to the floor, putting all the young women to shame with their certified Megan Thee Stallion knees. I gave them about an hour before the shenanigans began.
When my parents arrived earlier, I greeted my mother with open arms, completely forgetting about her smart remark. Poppa had done such a good job of settling my nerves, so it felt useless to be in my feelings about it. While it did hurt, coming from her, I decided to put it in the past. I was thankful to be able to spend time with my family.
I sat under the shaded patio with my sisters, catching up on all the tea. Toni shook her head. “Y’all hos need to get out the house more because I will never go out with Shara’s ass again,” she fussed, then took a sip of wine.
I tucked my feet under me to get comfortable. “What happened now?”
Our cousin Shara was a true wild child. While you were likely to have a ball with her, things could also go very wrong. And baby, when they went wrong, you always regretted even going out with her ass in the first place. I’d been in shootouts, bar fights, and almost sold off as a prostitute. I got a chill down my spine just thinking about that shit. I told Toni to stop going out with her. I couldn’t risk it after that. I had too much to live for. Toni did, too, with my nieces and nephews.
“Girl, why did she take me with her to meet this couple that wants to slut her out?” Toni blurted, getting closer.
My eyes damn near popped out of my head. Even Kemani leaned in too. While she’d been distracted by her phone since wesat down, Toni now had her full attention. She nodded. “What? I know you lying.”
Her cute laugh filled the air. “I wish I was, sis, but no, they were feeling on her the entire night. I was afraid to let her leave with them. She insisted though. Said they were paying her good. Either way, the ho left me stranded all the way on the Southside.”
Kemani and I both shrieked in horror. Granted, Solaire wasn’t the most elegant city in the country, but the southside was the literal slums. Not even WeDrive liked to drive out there. It also had a stench. You could smell a Southside muthafucka coming a mile away. I did not hang around those parts, and I didn’t care what somebody called me because of it. I’d be every punk, scaredy cat, and pussy in the book, but I wasn’t going. Count me out every time if the words south and side were involved.
