Page 43 of And It’s Still You

His words hit my back. I refused to answer him. I got in my truck and drove off, leaving him standing there looking as stupid as he was. On the way home, I called Tre and let him know to fill me in on everything once they left. He agreed with no hesitation, and I was grateful.

Even though I’d left, I still wanted a hand in what was going on. They’d gone after my family, my son. There was no letting that slide. I could guide Tre and Cyn through everything until I was ready to move. As far as Onyx, fuck him.

Ocean greeted me as I pulled into the garage. He waited for me to close the garage before coming over to my door. I kissed the top of his head and smiled, knowing I’d made the right decision by coming home.

“What’s up, Bubba? How was yo’ day?”

“It was good. I wanted to go over Papa’s house, but Mommy said I needed to stay home for a day.” He pouted and I chuckled.

“She’s right. You’ve been hopping between yo’ grandparents’ houses like crazy. What? You don’t like spending time with us?”

“I do, especially since we’ve all been together. I like us living together. I didn’t like going back and forth.”

I draped my arm over his shoulder. “I didn’t like it either. Where’s yo’ mama?”

“She’s in the office. She said she was almost done working on some big account or something.”

“A’ight. Are you hungry?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Go get washed up, and I’ll order us some food. Sound good?”

Ocean dashed upstairs toward his room while I went to look for Moya. The door to the office was cracked, so I peeked inside to see papers scattered all around her and her face close as hell to the computer screen. She leaned back and started typing something, biting her bottom lip. A part of me didn’t want to interrupt her, but the situation with Onyx was weighing on me. All I needed was to be deeper in her presence to feel better, so I entered the office.

Moya didn’t even look up. She continued typing for a few seconds, then picked up her phone. “Oh, you’re actually early today.”

The way she said it had me stopping in my tracks. There was some bitterness to it, something I hadn’t heard in weeks. It caught me off guard, but I shook it off. She had every right to be upset. I’d been late the last two days, helping JMG, so I could only imagine how that made her feel.

“I didn’t want to upset you any further than I already had. Once again, I apologize for being late yesterday and the day before. Time got away from me, and I meant it when I said it wouldn’t happen again.”

For a moment, Moya was quiet. She sat there, staring at me. I wondered if my apology was enough. I thought she was going to snap, but instead, she waved me over to her. She stood up when I made it around the desk and rested her arms on my shoulders, intently studying my face.

“What’s wrong, Shea?”

I raced my hand down my face and sighed. “Onyx and I got into it, and I pushed him. I swear, Moya, I wanted to rock his shit, but I heard God tell me not to. I walked away and left before I did something stupid.”

“What happened?”

“He was mad that I gave him a time limit. I told him I needed to get home to you, and he ’bout flipped his shit. He started talking out the side of his neck, and I ended up shoving him. It went from there, so I left. I told Tre to keep me updated.”

“Hmm. So, I take it he’s still not a fan of me?”

“Onyx isn’t a fan of anyone but himself and JMG. He’s gotten so lost in it that he can’t see outside of it. I was like that at one point, brainwashed by him. Now that I stand on what I want, he likes to call me soft. I just know what it’s like to take a major loss.”

“Do you think the reason he acts the way he does is because he knows what it’s like too? I mean, I wholeheartedly believe he is the way he is because Angela left him. She had good reason, but I think he handles the pain differently.”

Moya had a point. I’d never thought of it that way. All my life, I’d witnessed Onyx being hard and emotionless. Even when his father passed, he didn’t shed a tear. Well, at least not around any of us. The only type of emotion I saw from him was when it came to his grandchildren. Other than that, I would’ve sworn his heart was made of ice.

“Damn. You’re probably right, Love. Honestly, I’ve never even thought to pick his brain and talk to him ’bout it. I’ve always taken him as the person he presents,” I expressed.

“While that’s understandable because he can be an asshole, he’s still your father. I can assure you some of his ways come from pain.”

“Whenever things calm down, I’ll sit and talk with him. I love him, but he gets on my fuckin’ nerves.”

Moya snickered. “Much like I am with Zena.”

Without another word, Moya pulled away and went back to working. I’d noticed she’d seemed a little distant since that night at my mom’s, but I wasn’t trying to read too much into it. I assumed that I was paranoid, not realizing I knew the signs with her.