His hand came up to cover hers against his face. “I believe you, and I trust you. I fuck with Little LA.”
He was different already. It was funny how that worked because she had been the same way.
“Let’s go,” she said quietly. “I know you want to see…”
“Go ahead and say her. I know it’s a her.”
“I refuse. Let’s go.”
And with that, they took off toward her doctor’s appointment.
“Aye, I got a bone to pick with you.”
“About what?”
“You’ve been frolicking all over town, like shit was sweet. Let me take care of you, and you looked me in my face and kept it from me. What’s up with that?”
She swallowed. Her fingers twisted in her lap. There wasn’t a clever comeback for that.
He pulled up to a red light and turned to look at her fully. “I will lose my mind if anything happens to either one of y’all. So the fact that you were walking around hiding this, not letting me take care of you the way I should’ve been, that’s what got me fucked up. That’s what I can’t get past right now.”
The light turned green. He faced forward and started driving again.
“I’m sorry,” she said quietly. “There’s no excuse for how I handled it.”
“I know you are.” He kept his eyes on the road. “But sorry, won’t give me back the months I missed. I should’ve been at every appointment. I should’ve been the one rubbing your back, making sure you ate. I should’ve known.”
She didn’t have a comeback for that. Because he was right.
“You make it sound easy,” she said finally. “Like I was sitting on the information for fun.”
He didn’t respond.
“I was trying to figure out what this even was,” she added, softer but still edged. “You and me. I didn’t want to tell you, and then you decide I’m just… another responsibility.”
He glanced at her, jaw still tight.
“I ain’t never been that type of man.”
Rolani turned the radio back up and grabbed her hand.
When they arrived, he helped her out of the car and into the building. He was handling her with kid gloves. And she thought it was cute.
They found seats in the waiting area. The space was full of expectant mothers and newborns—some women looked ready to pop, others cradling tiny bundles, a few with toddlers running between chairs. It smelled like bleach and a shitty diaper in the place, and Rolani wasn’t feeling it.
“What?” she asked at his face.
“You don’t smell that. One of these babies took a shit,” he fussed loudly.
Kennedi covered her face and popped him in the stomach. “Rolani, sit down,” she laughed. “You can’t say s.h.i.t around other people’s kids.”
“Shit, why not?” he smiled. “Their parents are probably saying worse.”
“Behave.”
He looked around the room, taking it all in before he sat down beside Kennedi.
The woman sitting across from them was swaying slightly, with her beautiful baby boy on her shoulder. He couldn’t be more than a few months old. The baby’s head turned, eyes landing on Rolani—big, curious, wide awake.
