Pressure sounded annoyed now too. “She hung up soon as she said it. Didn’t even ask how her damn kids was doin’.”
“See?” I wiped my hand down my face. “Nigga, somethin’ off. Pluto don’t act like that unless they around some shit they know we wouldn’t like.”
Pressure went quiet for half a second like the picture finally clicked in his mind. Then he said exactly what I expected.
“A’ight, bro. I’m loadin’ the kids in the car. I’m not playin’ with them tonight.”
“I’m on the way,” I said, already grabbin’ my keys and walkin’ out.
When I pulled up, Pressure was outside in sweats and a hoodie with both babies in car seats on the ground in front ofhim. Kaylon was fussy as hell and Prestyn was kickin’ just ‘cause he felt like it.
Pressure looked pissed and tired at the same time. “Bro, grab one of these babies so we can go.”
I grabbed Kaylon’s car seat by the handle and shook my head.
Pressure locked the front door and jogged to the truck. “Pluto got me out here bein’ a single father for no reason. They bet not be out here showin’ they ass.”
We got the babies in the back and Pressure climbed in the driver’s seat with this frustrated exhale that came from a place deeper than annoyance.
“You got her location on?” I asked as he pulled out the driveway.
“Yup.” He tapped his phone on the screen. “She at some fuckin’ lounge.”
“Man…” I dragged my hand down my face. “What the fuck they doin’ at a lounge at one in the mornin’ when they both married women?”
Pressure kept drivin’, but his mouth started movin’ faster the more he thought about it. “Man, she ain’t even ask if I was straight. She know I been over here fightin’ for my life wit’ a newborn and a one-year-old. Kaylon shittin’ back-to-back and Prestyn runnin’ laps like he trainin’ for somethin’. I reheated my food three times and still ain’t touched it. She got me over here feelin’ abandoned as hell.”
I stared at him for a second then burst out laughin’. “Nigga, let me find out you goin’ through postpartum.”
Pressure side-eyed me hard, but he couldn’t help laughin’ too. “Fuck you, nigga. You know I’m right.”
I let out a breath ‘cause he wasn’t lyin’. “Nigga… I’m feelin’ that same shit. Toni got me mad as hell. She know I don’t like her bein’ gone all damn day, and she still cut her location off like she single.”
Pressure nodded, lookin’ at the road but talkin’ like he was ventin’ for both of us. “They out here actin’ like they ain’t got responsibilities.”
“I don’t like it,” I said, my voice low ‘cause the worry was kickin’ in just as hard as the anger.
Pressure breathed out hard, almost like he was tryna shake the irritation out his bones. “Man… I swear if they somewhere actin’ like they ain’t got no rings on, I’m draggin’ everybody out that bitch.”
“And I’m right behind you,” I said ‘cause I was dead ass.
The babies made noise in the back, and we both turned around at the same time like two stressed out parents even though only one of us had kids in the car.
Kaylon kicked in his sleep, and Pressure let out a frustrated groan. “Look at this shit. They got us out here with kids in the backseat trackin’ locations. What kinda life is this.”
“This that married life where the wives think they the only ones allowed to act crazy,” I said.
Pressure nodded slow. “Not tonight.“
We looked at each other, both of us fed up, worried and irritated the exact same way.
“Bro…” I said, my voice low. “This shit crazy.”
Pressure tightened his grip on the wheel. “We gon’ find they ass.”
We rode like this the whole time, both of us irritated, both of us worried, and both of us tryna hold on to whatever sanity we had left.
Pressure pulled into a lot across from the lounge where Pluto location was pingin’. Music from inside rattled the windows and a line of people was still outside even though it was late.
