Brielle’s closed lips spread wide across her face as she turned away from me and mumbled, “Damn. That was a whole read.”
“Whatever. Y’all know I’ve always been like this. I don’t need a mothafucka that don’t need me, and once I’m off you, I’m off you,” I defended, looking down to rotate the stack rings on my fingers.
Shauna’s dreads shook from left to right. “Your ass has gotten way too comfortable with sayin’ goodbye to niggas and running away from your feelings is a race you’ll never win, boo.”
I ran my tongue along the front of my teeth before parting my lips to speak. “Who says I’m running?”
“Girl, what? Your track star ass stay running away from the good and running straight to the bullshit,” Shauna declared, continuing to call me out.
My eyes shifted downward to my ankle as I wound it in circles. “I guess some old habits die hard.”
“You said it yourself, he checks all your boxes, right?” Brielle confirmed.
“Yeah, and?”
“So, stop being childish and go get your man, Cassidy! People are gonna talk shit regardless, but if you believe him when he says that he ain’t know that bitch, then nobody else’s opinion should matter,” Brielle continued.
Lauryn dipped her head in a nod. “Mmhm, including ours.”
“But the question is, do you believe him?” Shauna inquired.
“I didn’t at first, but I’m not sure if whether I believe him or not even matters at this point.”
“Has he ever lied to you before?” Brielle added.
“I’m sure he has in some capacity, right? Niggas lie all the time. It’s practically embedded in their DNA.”
“Yeah, sure. but what if he wasn’t lying about this?”
“Damn, you mean I slapped that nigga for no reason?” Lauryn asked, cocking her head to the side.
“Hold up, you what? When did you see him to slap him?”
“Girl, I slapped the dog shit out his ass for what he did to you, in my dreams, though girl. I was tearing his ass up, too! Ain’t nobody going to get away with embarrassing my blood! You know I’m ‘bout it, ‘bout it!”
I chuckled. “You know I appreciate your crazy, pregnant ass, right?”
Lauryn shot me a face-splitting grin. “But for real, Cass. You need to take a good look in the mirror and ask yourself what you really want. If it’s him, great. But if it’s not, you gotta be okay with that, too.”
As hard it was to sit there and take everything my girls threw at me, it was what I needed to hear. “You’re right. You all are right. And I think maybe that’s why things are aligning for me the way they are right now.”
“So, it sounds like you’re moving to New York, huh?” Brielle asked.
“Yup. Looks like I am,” I confirmed.
Shauna raised the glass of Moscato she had in hand. “Well, congratulations, girl.”
“Look at us, y’all! We’ve got new jobs, new promotions, new houses, marriages and shit! Life may feel like some bullshit most days, but it’s days like this that I feel like things are really going to turn out great for all of us,” Lauryn cheered.
Two glasses of wine and an additional hour of girl talk later, I hugged Lauryn one last time before heading to the front door.
“Yo, Cass. Long time, no see,” Lauryn’s brother, Mark, announced, approaching me from the right.
“Mark, hey. I was meaning to get over to you and say hey, but that sister of yours has been working me like a slave since I got here this morning,” I said, letting my hand slip away from the doorknob.
“It’s all good. I already know what’s up with her crazy ass. How you been, fam?”
“You know me, just hanging in there. Making moves when I can make them,” I said illusively. “How are you?”
