There was a brief silence. “I didn’t know he was going to do that. He was asking us general questions about different things, and Chosen mentioned that sometimes, you go out with friends, and then he asked us if you were dating, and I told him yes.”
“I’m not sure how that was any of his business. In the future, I’d appreciate it if conversations with your father didn’t include me. You are an adult, and as far as Chosen, he doesn’t need to be asking him anything about me just like I don’t ask you all about him.” Her tone was friendly because she was talking to her child, but she was still boiling on the inside. Yes, she had mentioned to Cedric that she was on a date and maybe she shouldn’t have, but why did it matter? The man was engaged. Instead of accepting it for what it was, he really questioned their sons.
“Okay.”
She could tell her son felt bad about the drama that had unfolded, and she was glad she didn’t yell at him. She had spoken her piece, however, and next time, everybody was getting cursed out. Even after Blossom and Tech were seated at the lounge, her body was still tense.
“I’m gon’ need you to relax your face,” Tech teased her. “Your girls showed out on that court tonight. There isn’t one reason that you shouldn’t be smiling.”
“I know. I just can’t believe the nerve of that man. He’s engaged. He wants to drop one of our sons off his insurance, so he can add his fiancée and her child. I couldn’t give a rat’s ass what that man does, and he shows up at the game to try and check me?” Her voice rose an octave as she shook her head. Blossom was trying to calm down, but it was hard.
“That nigga is mad, plain and simple, and he wants you to be mad, too. We gon’ laugh, drink, and celebrate, while he drives home with steam coming out of his ears.”
Right on time, the server placed their drinks in front of them. Blossom lifted her glass with a smile and sipped the strawberry Hennessy through a straw.
“I thought once you started school, your late nights were going to be few and far between.”
Swallowing the vodka he’d just sipped, Tech placed his glass on the table. “That still stands, but this was special. It won’t be that late when I get home.” He looked at his watch. You sure about me coming to your crib? You can come to mine. Don’t let your ex switch up how you move if you’re not comfortable.”
“I’ll come to your home only because you have to get up earlier than I do. We don’t live exactly close to one another. I don’t mind taking that drive home.”
“Your sons aren’t home, so you can take that drive in the morning. You don’t have to leave as soon as I cum. Making me feel like you’re only using me for my body and shit.”
“Whatever.” She giggled. Blossom was only on her third sip of liquor, so she doubted that was the reason for her change in mood.
All was well again, and Cedric was an afterthought. If her moving on and being happy was going to make him mad, he could prepare to be pissed and to stay that way.
Khrome sat in a recliner in front of her daughter’s incubator. Between the tiny knit toboggan on her head, the tubes in her nose, and the tape over her eyes, Khrome could barely see her child’s face. Salty tears ran into her mouth as she thought about the fact that she was being released the next day, and she hadn’t even held her child. It wasn’t fair. The poor choices she made in life were affecting her child, which made Khrome feel like shit.
Going to Cam’s house and hiding out until he came home then blowing his brains out had crossed her mind more than once. Lethal was training for a fight, so he hadn’t been there all day, and she was kind of glad. Khrome wanted to be able to cry, sulk, and feel like shit without anyone trying to make her feel better. She didn’t deserve to feel better.
The nurse had brought her a breast pump and though she’d warned Khrome that she might not pump much in the beginning, it was still disheartening when she couldn’t even pump a full ounce. Khrome was beginning to wonder if there was anything that she could do right. She made sure to stay hydrated and despite not having an appetite, she forced herself to eatbecause she wanted her milk to come in. Breast milk was best for her baby, especially since she was a preemie.
Lethal was supposed to be getting her an apartment, but they hadn’t had time to get it done before she went into labor. Their daughter had a room at her father’s house, but Khrome didn’t have a home for her to leave the hospital and go to had she been born full-term. Lethal was the better fit as a parent, for sure. Khrome tried to make herself feel better by appreciating the fact that she had time to get her life together before Lyric came home. The doctor had explained more than once that Lyric had a long road ahead and that she would be in the hospital for no less than two months, and that was pushing it. Two months or more at home without her baby made Khrome feel physically ill.
Since Lyric was so fragile and her immune system was barely existent, the doctors didn’t even recommend skin-to-skin at the moment. It would be weeks before she could even hold her baby, and that was depressing. Cam causing her to go into labor so early had damn near killed her child. Lyric wasn’t quite ready to survive outside of the womb, and he’d forced her into the world. Khrome hated him more than she’d ever hated anybody in her life.
Tired of crying, Khrome wiped her face and gathered herself. Fear played a huge part in her breakdowns, but hormones played a part as well. Ever since she gave birth, Khrome had been praying to God that postpartum depression wouldn’t hit her. That was the last thing she needed. Feeling a presence behind her, Khrome looked over her shoulder and saw Lethal standing there. He looked tired, but he was still fine as hell. So fine that her belly quaked.
She stood and smiled at him. “I’ve been down here for about five hours. I’ll let you have some time. I’m going to go to the room and see if I have any success with pumping.”
“You sure? I’m not trying to run you off. There’s enough room down here for us both.”
“I’m sure.”
Khrome had refused a wheelchair down to the NICU, so she walked to the elevator to go back up to labor and delivery. Guilt was one of the main reasons that she didn’t want to be around Lethal. Not once had he acted like he blamed her for going into labor early, but she felt it was her fault even if he didn’t. Khrome would forever beat herself up for playing with fire and continuing to work after Cam found out where she was. It was one of the dumbest things she’d ever done, and she had done some dumb shit in her life.
Back in her room, Khrome took a shower, drank a bottle of water, ate some apple slices, and attempted to pump more milk. That time, she got a full ounce, but she was still disappointed. If she wasn’t hell bent on nursing her child, the moment she was released from the hospital, she’d go somewhere and drink her sorrows away because Lord knows she was going through it.
The NICU was the best place for Lyric to be, but that didn’t mean Khrome was happy about having to leave her there. Other people would be caring for her child. Even if she spent twenty hours a day at the hospital, there would be times that she had to leave. Pumping was making her stomach cramp, so Khrome gave up on trying to produce more milk. Something was better than nothing, and she could always try again later.
Grabbing the remote, she was going to watch something on television until she dozed off. The nurses kept trying to make her feel better by telling her she better get all the rest she could and use this time to prepare for Lyric to come home. Technically, she was still supposed to be in the womb anyway. Khrome already knew what channel she wanted the television on, so she was scrolling fast, but something on the news caught her eye and made her go back.
The caption read:Woman’s body found alongside the road by an early morning jogger.
There was a news crew at the location of the crime scene. Khrome increased the volume on the television and learned that the body had been discovered more than twelve hours ago. When a picture of Keyonna appeared on the screen, Khrome’s gut churned. Everything she had forced herself to eat was threatening to come back up. No details were given on Keyonna’s cause of death, but Khrome didn’t have to hear anyone tell her what she already knew. Nothing had been able to convince Khrome that Cam was going to let the money that Keyonna stole from him go.
It could have been her. It was going to be her, if Cam ran into her again. The fact that she and Keyonna had spent so long hating each other, only for her to turn around and help Khrome, made her chest tighten. Keyonna was the reason she’d gotten away. She helped Khrome and ended up dead. The news had switched to the next news story, and Khrome was still staring at the screen stuck on stupid. She could work for Lethal from her hotel room. If she needed anything she could have it delivered or ask Lethal to bring it to her.
