We walked through the yard. I waved at some people who were yelling my name, and we made our way inside. As we moved around the living room to the dining room, we found Katie.
She stopped everything she was doing to run up to Islah and hug her.
“Cuzzo, I hope you don’t mind, but I’ma steaql ya girl and let her meet the family.”
I nodded. “Go ’head, I’ma fix me a drink.”
After getting my drink, I walked back out to the dining room, dapped up a few of my cousins, and sat down at the table ready to get into the next dice game.
“You ready for this?” my cousin Ron asked.
I laughed. “Nigga, when have you ever beat me in a game? Set the shit up.”
I don’t know how many games I played, but once the money being thrown on the table started getting bigger, I wasn’t letting up.
And I was taking niggas’ pockets and laughing while doing it. After a while, I saw Islah come in. She walked around the table with all them niggas staring at her and kissed me.
“That nigga Love never lose, huh?” one of my cousins said, making the room laugh.
“And he don’t play about this one either, Cory,” Katie said, “They are getting married.”
“Oh, word?” Cory said. “When are y’all getting married?” he asked, looking at Islah.
Islah looked at me, then back at him.
“Umm…whenever we pick a date.”
I looked at her, confused, but played it off.
“Yeah, we been having a lot going on. It’s coming, though.”
The topic changed for a lil’ bit, and I kept talking while thinking about how she couldn’t answer the question, but it was okay, cause every time somebody looked at her ring, the question got brought back up about when the big day was, and she was still dodging it to the point I was ready to go.
After the last game, I stood up from the table, then grabbed my money and Islah’s hand.
“Iight, fam, it was nice, but let me take the fam home,” I said, moving out of the dining room while dapping some niggas up.
Katie walked with us out to her sidewalk and talked to Islah about wedding plans while I yelled for Amir to come on.
Once I got him, Katie told Islah to let her know when the wedding was going to be, and we walked down the street to the car.
Amir and Islah talked the whole ride home; I didn’t say shit. I was stuck on how Islah couldn’t answer any questions.
When we got home, Amir went to take a shower while Islah walked into the kitchen and followed behind her.
“Do you want to marry me?” I flat-out asked her.
She almost choked on her water. “Yeah, baby, why would you ask that?”
I took a deep breath. “Islah, I am not trying to come for you, baby; please remember that, but you have been acting different since you’ve been back.”
“No, I haven’t,” she shot back.
I nodded. “You have, mamas. You ran out when you were with your girls and ignored us. You did the same thing to me inMiami, and any time I bring up something about the wedding, you dodge that shit.”
“I am not meaning to,” Islah expressed. “I don’t?—”
“I know you are not meaning to. I know you went through something traumatic. It just seems like you don’t want to marry me now, and I need you to talk to me.”
