I listened to her pour her heart out while I wiped the never-ending tears from my face. I felt like shit, and there was nothing I could do about it.
“I was so scared and I needed you, Ari. You were the person who taught me about my period and how to put a pad on. I came to you when I needed advice about boys or hatin’ ass bitches at school. You weren’t only Nauri’s friend, I thought you were mine too.”
“Lyric, I was your friend. I loved you like you were my sister.” I cried. Tears blurred my vision, and my heart was completely broken.
“Then why did you leave me?” Lyric sobbed.
I got up from my seat and sat next to her. I wrapped my arms around her as we both cried together. She soaked my blouse with tears as I held her in my arms.
“I’m so sorry, Lyric. I fucked up. I was so caught up in my own pain that I never thought about what you were going through. I was wrong, and I can’t make any excuses for the way I treatedyou. When Keynauri broke up with me, I felt like the world was against me. You should never have been included in our shit, and I’ll never be able to apologize enough. What my father did was wrong and disgusting. He doesn’t deserve to breathe the same air as you and Noodle. He’s scum.”
My stomach grew nauseous thinking about what my father had done. I never imagined he could do something so heinous, but I guess I gave him more credit than he deserved. As many bitches as he fucked, there was no excuse or rational reason for him to be looking at a child for pleasure. A part of me wished Keynauri and East would have killed him, but then I would have lost the man who actually mattered in my life.
“I was so angry with you. I tried to call you, but I couldn’t reach you. I was too afraid to tell Keynauri because I knew he would blame himself. East was the only person who knew the truth because I didn’t want anyone to judge me or pity me. My aunt was pissed because she was messing around with him. In her mind, I came in and stole her man’s attention. Once she found out about Symphonee, she tossed me out on the street. East came and picked me up and moved me into his place.” She revealed.
“Damn, that’s crazy. East told me some shit went down with your people, but he never told me all the details. You already know you’re my little sister, L-Boogie. If you had told me what went down, I would have canceled that nigga a long time ago. How am I supposed to protect you if you don’t tell me what’s going on?” Logic vented.
“I didn’t want to risk losing you, too. It was hard enough trying to keep East from killing him when I first told him. It was my fault Nauri ended up in prison, and I didn’t want to lose another brother.”
“L-Boogie, you weren’t at fault for what happened to Keyz. We are protectors and that’s what he was trying to do. Protect you.He wouldn’t want you to blame yourself because he loves you. I love you, too. Don’t keep shit from us. It’s not your job to worry about the consequences. We do whatever is necessary for the people we love,” Logic declared.
“Logic is right. Keynauri would be pissed if he knew you blamed yourself. There is nothing he won’t do for you and Noodle. We are family, and it’s time for us to rebuild, so no one will ever be able to break us again. It’s been a wild night, and I think we should all get cleaned up and get some rest. The next few days are probably gonna be crazy, so we need to be prepared. Lyric already has her own room, but Nova, you can sleep with me.” I suggested.
“No, the fuck she can’t.” Logic grumbled. My eyes glanced between the two of them curiously. Based on the guilt expressed on my best friend’s face, it was clear that she had been keeping secrets from me. It reminded me of when we were in high school. Sneaky ass.
“I need a damn shot before I go to bed. Does anyone want to join me?” Logic asked as he stood up.
“I will. I need two or three after the night we’ve had,” Nova exclaimed.
The room went silent right away, and all eyes were on me. I tried not to appear suspicious, but it was no use.
“Bitch, what are you hiding? I know why Lyric isn’t drinking, but you’re awfully quiet. Now that I think about it, I never saw you take one drink while we were on vacation. Why is that?” Nova probed with her arms folded across her chest.
My head dropped in shame because with everything going on, I planned to keep the news to myself for a little while longer. Unfortunately for me, my best friend could read me like a book, so I wasn’t surprised she figured it out.
“It has to stay between us for now. Keynauri has enough on his plate, and I don’t want to add to it.”
“Bitch! You let your baby daddy knock you up? The man has only been free for twenty seconds! Y’all didn’t even let each other breathe.”
“It wasn’t on purpose. We got a little carried away, and I missed my doctor’s appointment for my birth control shot.” I covered my face with my hands in embarrassment. When I first realized my period was missing, I convinced myself it was stress from all the changes in my life. Then another two weeks passed, and there was still no sign of a period. My breasts were sore, and I woke up queasy every day. I still hadn’t taken an official test, but it would only be to confirm what I already knew.
“I can’t believe you have been keeping this from me. Well, y’all heffas are coming in the kitchen with us. You can take a shot of juice since you decided not to use your butt.” Nova huffed as she headed toward the kitchen.
Nova and Logic took their shots while Lyric and I scarfed down the leftover Diri Djon Djon, griot, and some freshly fried plantain. We laughed and kept the conversation lighthearted. Logic and Nova kept us laughing, and I couldn’t wait to pick my friend's head about how they managed to move past their differences.
I made sure everyone had towels and the essentials to shower before I retired to my room. It seemed so empty without Keynauri. Once I took a shower and got settled, all the emotions I had been holding in hit me at once. Logic assured me that Keynauri would be freed in the morning, but there were no guarantees.
I allowed myself to cry for a few more moments before I got up to clean my face. Regardless of the outcome, I would need to be strong for our children and my man. I slept in one of his T-shirts while lying on his side of the bed. I said another prayer for Keynauri's protection and freedom. We came too far not to get our happy ending.
The ride home was quiet, and I let my mind process everything that had happened over the last fourteen hours. When I showed up at Lyric’s house, I never expected to find Naiari’s father, Nathan, there. I hadn’t seen him since I cussed his ass out for playing with her emotions. I made it clear she would never need him for anything else in life and went on about my business. Something told me to beat his ass that day, but I decided to spare him. I regretted my decision.
For as long as I could remember, I was Lyric’s protector, but I failed her. I knew there was a reason she was so tight-lipped about who Noodle’s father was, but the truth was far worse than anything I could have come up with. I thought it might have been one of my homeboys or, worse, an opp. It never dawned on me that someone could have taken advantage of her.
My flesh wanted to roll up on him and beat his ass again because I couldn’t stomach the idea of his old ass climbing on top of my baby sister. Lyric was my first baby, and I prided myself on keeping her safe. I wanted to hold her in my arms andapologize for my mistakes. It made me think about Cocoa when she said I left her in the world alone. There was nothing I could do to take away their pain, but I vowed to do everything I could to be there for them going forward.
East was on the phone with someone I assumed was Lyric. There were so many questions swirling through my brain, and for the first time, I found myself looking at my homey funny. I asked him and Logic to look out for Lyric, but he took his job a little too far.
“I know, baby. I’m sorry I lost my cool, but you know how I get when it involves you and my baby girl. If it hadn’t been for Logic, it would have been even worse. Hell, I’m still angry, and he'd better pray we don’t run into each other any time soon, with his bitch ass.” East was seething with anger.
