“It did numbers, but not the numbers I had when you were producing. Aside from that, he’s just not about his business lately. I’ve been trying to give him grace. Everybody has shit to deal with outside of music, but it’s been a constant decline. He’s hours late for my studio sessions and almost missed the deadline for my latest single. He’s cool, and I appreciate everything he’s done to help, but I need a producer on the same page as me.”
“I get that. What are you goin’ for sound wise with this album? I got an idea from the single you dropped but tell me what you have in mind.”
For about an hour, Keith and I went over the elements he wanted to execute in his next album. After letting him know I was down to hop on his project, he laid out the times he planned to be in the studio over the upcoming weeks. Initially, I was hesitant to commit. I was glad I heard Keith out and got to see for myself that he was simply about his business and not bullshit. I considered myself blessed by the Most High to even have multiple artists asking me to work with them. As a music consumer myself, I knew people didn’t think about the producer when streaming their favorite artists’ songs, but it mattered. Everything mattered, from the speed of the tempo down to the lyrics in the bridge.
This music shit ran through my veins and came naturally. Had my dad not decided to throw a soundboard in my lap from behind bars, only God knows where I’d be right now. Times like these I had to count my blessings. I was nowhere near where Iwanted to be, but I’d come far in this industry. When I finally left the studio, I headed to my mom’s house to see what she was up to. The state fair was in town and I wanted to take her. My mom loved elephant ears and getting on the rides, so I made sure she was there at least one day of the week every year. It was something my dad used to do for her, but as I got older, I took over the duty.
The last time I’d come over here, Mia’s car was parked in the driveway. I was grateful the only car parked this time was the one that rightfully belonged here. A part of me knew Mia wouldn’t take my advice and leave me alone, but since she hadn’t tried to contact me, I had hope.
“What’s up, son? You just leaving work?” my mom asked as I stepped inside.
“Hey, Ma. Yes, ma’am. I had a couple people to meet with about upcoming projects, but not too many. I wanted to take you to the fair if you weren’t doing anything right now.”
“Damn, it’s that time of year already? I forgot it was even happening this week,” she admitted. “But yes, you know I wanna go. Let me freshen up and I’ll be ready in less than twenty minutes. You bringing my girl too?”
“Who is yo’ girl?” I asked jokingly.
“The only one I care to know about these days. We were texting yesterday, but then your dad called and I forgot to respond to her last message.”
Since my mom and Celeste kept sending messages through me like I was a damn pigeon, I gave Celeste my mom’s number so they could say everything without me in the middle. It made me happy that they were building a bond. Although Celeste wasn’t my girl yet, my mom loved her and that was important to me. I cared about whether my parents cared for my lady. They didn’t have to be the best of friends, but respect had to be there. Ineeded my wife to know my family was hers just as much as they were mine.
“I can call to see what she has planned. I know this is something we do together, so I didn’t want to invite anyone and take away from our time. I’m more than willing to have Celeste with us though.”
“I appreciate the thoughtfulness, son. I swear, you and your dad are so much alike that it’s scary. I know you’ve talked to him daily, but I wish you really knew the type of man your dad is. He may have that street side to him, but he’s such a gentleman. He was so patient with you growing up. You exude the exact same energy. Calm and collected. Having a level head is always gonna get you further in life. But anyway, call my girl and I’ll get ready.”
When she walked off, I sat at the table and placed a video call to Celeste. I wanted to see her pretty ass face. We’d spoken briefly earlier when both of us were getting ready for work, but that was it. A smile came across my face when the call connected and her face came into view.
“What’s up, beautiful? You still workin’?”
“Hey, you. And I’m about to leave. I was just grabbing my purse when you called. You wanna see me or something?” she asked with a sneaky smile.
“I always wanna see you, baby. I’m about to take my mom to the fair and wanted to see if you wanted to roll.”
“Oooh, yes! I haven’t been to the fair in years. I wonder if the turkey leg vendor is still out there. What time are we going?”
“They’re still out there. I’m waiting on my mom to get ready and I’ll come pick you up.”
“I can meet you there if you want.”
“I don’t want you to. Like I said, I’ll come get you when I leave my mom’s.”
“Okay. I’m going back to my townhouse; so that’s where you can get me from.”
“Cool. That’s closer anyway. I’ll call you when I’m outside the gate.”
“I’ll just text you the code. There was no attendant there when I left for work this morning,” She let me know.
Once we ended the call, I checked a few emails and scrolled social media for the first time today. I wasn’t very active on any apps, but I liked to see what was going on in the world. Most of the people I followed were other producers or people in the industry. Some I knew and some I didn’t. A gossip page I didn’t follow came across my newsfeed and all I could do was shake my damn head. Spinna’s ass had been photographed with Serenity in New York. It was an off guard of the two of them in a section of a club. Her head was in the crook of his neck while he had her wrapped in his arms.
Honestly, all this did was confirm Celeste was valid in anything she had going on with me. I didn’t give a fuck one way or another, but now, I truly didn’t care if the two of us were seen out together. He’d played in her face too many damn times for me to have any type of respect for his ass. He was showing the world he was happy with Serenity and I’d be showing the world I was happy with Celeste.
It took me less than fifteen minutes to get to Celeste’s townhouse. Like she’d said, there was no attendant at the booth. I entered the code and drove to her unit while my mom complimented the neighborhood. After parking in her driveway, I got out of the truck and walked to the front door. When I rang the doorbell, it only took a few seconds to hear footsteps on the other side.
“Hey,” she said as she pulled the door open. “Come in.”
Stepping inside, I pulled her into a tight hug. Before letting her go, I kissed her forehead and both of her hands.
“You ready?”
