“Oh word, so that means she’s somebody. I mean I already knew that shit when she walked her pretty ass up in the shop and had your non-social ass grinning and opening doors.”
“Fuck you. My mother raised me right. That’s all it was. A man being polite.” They both knew it was a lie.
“She’s tight East, I respect your urge to bepolite.”
Numbers thought about Joi. She was a little slim-thick but pretty as hell and fuckable. Those were his only qualifications where women were concerned. Not that he would get with one he knew was attached to East but he had no issue acknowledging Joi was nice.
“Yeah, she is, and don’t mention that shit again or I’ma crack your shit,” East warned, half-joking but with truth attached. He didn’t like the fact that Numbers had recognized anything about Joi, but it wasn’t like he could stop anyone from seeing what he himself saw.
“Come on, fam. You know that’s not me. I’m just stating facts. But you’re telling me everything I need to know. You damn near gave me play by play on what Nae’s mouth was like, but you don’t even want me mentioning how pretty little baby was.”
“Ay, what the fuck did I just say?” East warned again with a little more aggression behind it.
“Chill. You get my point.” Numbers laughed before lifting the blunt from behind his ear and digging in his pocket for a lighter. When he didn’t locate one, East opened his drawer and tossed one to him.
“’Preciate it.” After he fired up, he relaxed a little more. “So what’s good though? You trying something new?”
East thought about Numbers’ question, leaning back in his chair but staring at the door to his office. Truthfully he didn’t know what the hell he was doing with Joi but he was damn sure doing something.
“I can’t really answer that.” He laughed at himself for not knowing.
“That’s my answer right there. If it wasn’t anything, you would have hit me with ‘Nah, fam. We’re just fucking. You can have next.’ You’re on some ‘I can’t really answer that’ type shit. That’s your girl.”
East smirked and dragged his hand down his face before he gripped the back of his neck.
“We are what we are,” was all he gave.
“So she can fuck with another dude and you’re cool with that?” The thought alone had East’s trigger finger itching.
“If she wants to see another side to me, then yeah, she can fuck with someone else.”
Numbers nodded. “You still fucking other hoes?”
East smirked, considering Joi had made it clear he had better not be moving like that but he refused to admit that to Numbers because he agreed and planned on honoring her request, for now.
“Why the fuck are you in my office?” He glanced at Numbers, whose smile spread wide.
“That’s your girl, East. There isn’t a damn thing wrong with that if she’s a good one. Hell I’m thinking about finding me a solid little baby to get with.”
“Bruh…” East shot him a look that had Numbers laughing hard and choking on the smoke from his blunt. His name was derived from the fact that his sex partner number was so high. It was nothing for him to be with two or three women a week, sometimes in a day and all different.
“Ay, every man has to slow down at some point. If the pussy is good, then I can settle down.” He shrugged like he really meant what he was saying but East wasn’t falling for it.
“Didn’t Ms. Anna have you up in church last Sunday and now you’re sitting here lying your ass off? I see that repentance doesn’t last long.”
Numbers chuckled and shrugged. “All I’m saying is I might try it. I didn’t guarantee success.”
East laughed at his boy, totally understanding. It was his feelings exactly about how he was dealing with Joi. East planned on trying things her way but there was no guarantee for success. He was a loner, had been that way most of his life. She was infiltrating the solitude he had grown used to without his permission, however East didn’t possess will power to stop her.
“But ay, there’s nothing wrong with wanting something solid,” Numbers added, almost giving East permission to change.
Numbers was the closest thing East had to a friend. They had known each other for years, hung out occasionally and hit the streets together from time to time. Neither man had a propensity for bonding with others and that was what made them work. They had each other’s backs but never in a way where either felt pressure to be one way or another out of obligation. They moved how they moved. Neither needed anyone in their corner because they were self-sufficient but they had each other if it were ever necessary.
“I don’t know what the fuck I’m doing,” East admitted, not concerned with how it would come off. There was no judgment from Numbers and he appreciated the ability to speak his mind freely without it.
“I know you don’t. All you’re programmed to do is bust a nut and move on to the next.”
East laughed, nodding to agree. “But that means she must really be something. If she has your ass unsure and questioning things, then she’s worth you not knowing. You might not like it but the benefit might outweigh the struggle.”
