“Mhm.” She let it go, but I knew she didn’t believe me. “Just don’t bite off more than you can fucking chew.”
I paid for my flowers and stepped out into the sunlight. I wanted to feel like I was in control of something even if it was temporary.
Kairo handed me a loaded gun when he gave me that hall pass and I was ready to pull the trigger.
8
Kairo
After my mom’s Sunday dinner, Khloe said she had to run a few errands, so I took the opportunity to spend some time with my baby girl.
Kennedi had been begging me to take her to get boba tea—something she was weirdly obsessed with lately. I missed the days when she was a simple ice cream and sprinkles kind of girl, but now it was all about teas with little balls that burst in your mouth. That didn’t sound like anything I wanted to be a part of, but whatever made her happy.
I let her pick the place. Of course, she wanted to go to that trendy spot with all the neon signs and kids taking TikToks in front of the wall art. She ordered her usual and gave me this look like“You getting one too?”So I ordered a small, even though the idea of chewy shit floating in my drink still didn’t sit right with me.
She made me hold it up so she could take a picture for Snapchat. I smiled through it. That was the thing about havingdaughters—you do all kinds of shit you swore you’d never do, just to see them smile.
On the way home, she hooked her phone up to the Bluetooth and blasted some song by a rapper named NBA YoungBoy. I swear, these kids don’t know the first thing about real music. I let it play for about fifteen seconds before I turned it off.
“That’s what’s wrong with y’all kids now,” I said, shaking my head. “No soul in this music.”
She groaned dramatically. “Ugh, Daddy. You’re so old.”
I laughed and tapped the screen to queue up some real music. “Nah. You need to hear something with some feelings in it. Listen to this.”
I put onToo Closeby Next and turned it up loud enough to fill the car. Kennedi slumped in her seat, crossing her arms.
“Daddy, you really be thinking you cool, huh?”
I nodded with no shame. “I am cool. You just don’t know it yet.”
She rolled her eyes again but this time with a little smile. That was the fun part about having kids. She had Khloe’s attitude and my stubborn streak. Such a dangerous combo.
We pulled into the driveway, and I paused for a minute before cutting the engine. Kennedi was still humming the hook of whatever NBA YoungBoy song she got cut off from earlier, texting away on her phone like she didn’t have a care in the world. My daughter was about to be sixteen in a couple weeks. A baby in my eyes, but I wasn’t naive.
“Hey,” I said, keeping my eyes on the windshield.
She paused mid-text and looked at me. “What is it now, Dad?”
I scratched at the side of my jaw, suddenly unsure how to word what I was about to ask. I didn’t want to be too heavy-handed with it, but I also wasn’t gonna pretend like I didn’t know what was up.
“Are you talking to any boys?”
She immediately burst into laughter, the kind that made her throw her head back and slap her thigh.
“Why are you laughing?” I asked, fighting my own smile.
“Because… Why do you sound like that?” she said. “Like you're scared to ask.”
I chuckled a little. “Aight, fair. But nah, for real. You know you can talk to me, right?”
She looked at me. “Yeah… I know.”
That meant everything. I worked hard creating a space where she didn’t have to lie or hide behind closed doors. I never came at her like her mom did. Khloe, for all her strengths, still struggled with the whole “real world” part of parenting. Everything was rules and structure. She meant well, but sometimes it pushed Kennedi away. I’d always wanted to be different.
“There’s one boy,” she admitted after a moment. “He plays basketball.”
My eyebrows raised a little. “He goes to your school?”
