by Dior, London
I dreaded going back to the room to tell Milan what was up, but I knew I had to. When I walked into the room and saw the fucked up look that was stuck on her face, I knew that she wasn’t going to make it easy.
“Did you get rid of her?” Milan rolled her eyes.
I sighed. “Not exactly. She gone sleep in the guest room tonight.”
“The what?! Hell no, Wise. I’m not trying to be in the same house as her. My kids are here too. I can’t.”
Milan began to snatch off my clothes that she had on, then she grabbed her own, pulling them on.
“Hold up, what you doing?” I asked. “Where you about to go this late?”
“Home Wise! I’m not leaving one fucked up situation and jumping right back into another! This is a disaster.”
I grabbed her by the arm and pulled her to me. “Chill out. First of all, you won’t be going nowhere until I handle that nigga. Second, you know I would never fuck over you again. I’m not about to let you get away. Just ride with me.”
“Ride with you? How you asking me to ride with you and you got another bitch in the next room? Why is she still here, Wise? Huh?”
I paused for a second, not even wanting to tell her the truth. But I wasn’t a lying ass nigga. I had to tell her. “Because I can’t just throw her on the streets. She might be pregnant with my seed…”
Chapter Eighteen
Milan
“Pregnant?” I asked out loud. I couldn’t believe that Wise had fallen for the okie doke. Furthermore, I didn’t care if the broad was on her deathbed. Either, she had to go, or I was leaving. I understood that she lived here, but that was irrelevant. The moment he invited me back to his house, her rights to it was terminated.
“Yeah, man. And I swear that I didn’t know that girl was pregnant. This is news to me.”
I let out a sarcastic chuckle as I looked at his stressed face.“That’s because she’s not pregnant! Think about it, Wise. She’s conveniently pregnant when you’re about to replace her. She’s playing on your emotions because she knows how passionate you are about children!”
Wise stood there as if he was thinking about it. He didn’t say anything, so I continued. “First, you need to find her a hotel or something for the night, and before she leaves, you need to go to the 24 hour Wal-Mart and get a pregnancy test!” I tried to speak as calmly as possible. I didn’t know what games Sasha was trying to play, but I wasn’t even about to allow her to run them on my man. Wise and I had been through too much.
“I can’t send that girl out in the streets by herself, Milan.”
“Well, I’ll do it. Just go get that pregnancy test!” I all but yelled. I loved Wise and the man that he had become. But, he was tripping with this situation.
Wise let out a sigh. “I’ll handle it.”
I could tell by the look in Wise’s face that he was annoyed. I watched him walk out the room, dialing some numbers on his cell phone. I followed behind him, listening to whoever he was speaking to on the other end. He was arranging for somebody to come and get Sasha. That was fine by me; as long as she was gone.
I stopped following Wise and decided to go get little Ms. Sasha so that she could get her stuff together and be waiting by the door. I was about to open up her room door and walk in, but she was on the phone and her conversation was very interesting.
“What was I supposed to do? Yes I’m sure it’s your baby!” I heard her attempt to whisper.
My face screwed all the way up. I knew that she was on some bullshit! Now I was about to act a fool!
Chapter Nineteen
Sasha
I sat around being every fucking thing that Wise needed me to be and he had lost his rabbit-ass mind if he thought that I was going to allow that bitch, Milan, to come in and take my place. She’s not even on his level. Wise is a boss and she’s a trifling little hood rat that can’t take care of her responsibilities as a mother and fights at the welfare office.
I turned my nose up as I ended the conversation with my little creep buddy. Men were so stupid. They allowed pussy to control their whole thought process. I chuckled, thinking about my little secret.
In the beginning, I told myself that he was a revenge fuck. However, his sex was enough to keep me coming back for more. However, he was a crazy son-of-a-bitch. I didn’t want him either, but if I couldn’t get rid of Milan, then I would settle for him, especially under our current circumstances. Wise would be pissed to see me with the next man. Then, he might just start noticing me.
I had to think of a plan. Wise had to still care for me since he allowed me to stay. He gave me my inch, now I had to stretch it to a mile.
I smiled, thinking of the perfect plan. However, just as I was about to call up Jabari’s crazy ass, the room door came bursting open, and Wise’s little charity case came storming in.
“You dirty little tramp.” She yelled. “I knew that you was on some bullshit.” She yelled, pulling up her sleeves like she wanted to fight.
I smirked, “Excuse me. Can you get out and close the door, I don’t have time for you ratchetness. I don’t want to stress the baby out.” I kept a straight face, but I wanted to laugh at the look of disgust that she gave me.
“Stop lying, bitch! You’re probably pregnant with the mail man’s baby! Now get the fuck out before I put your ass out!” She began to walk towards me. I wished she would put her hands on me! I’d break her neck. She better not let the good looks fool her.
“First off, Wise said that I could stay because he wants me here! Second, you wish this wasn’t his child. He’s been trying to get me pregnant forever sweetie!” I lied, wishing it were true. Wise acted as if I wasn’t good enough to have his child or something. I wasn’t good enough for anything but to take care of Melanie.
Hell, I was never good enough. That’s why I had other male friends… a couple of them. Wise just didn’t know, plenty of men made advances toward me; even his so-called friends. I did everything, including trying to prove my loyalty by losing myself in Wise. I wasn’t supposed to fall so hard for him, and he was never supposed to break my heart as bad as he did.
“Why y’all in here yelling when my kids are sleep in the next room?” Wise finally walked into the room, just in time.
I turned to him, plastering on my most innocent face, “Wise, she came in here bothering me, getting all ghetto!” I defended myself.
“Nah! This heffa’ is a fraud! Ask her who she was just on the phone with! That’s her real baby daddy!” She blurted out, shocking me. The heffa’ heard my conversation! I thought that I was quiet enough. Now I had to smooth things out because she didn’t know how to mind her own got damned business. I was not about to allow her to mess up my plans.
Chapter Twenty
Jabari
“That’s twice mothafucka!” I yelled, holding on to my side. “You done let that mothafucka put his hands on me twice, my nigga! What’s really good?” I asked Keem, ready to go in his shit. Things weren’t going how we planned them out and I was starting to get pissed.
Keem kissed his teeth. “I told you to let me handle things my way, but you keep doing crazy ass shit! What the fuck you take the kids for?” Keem stood up in my face like he wanted to buck. “And why the fuck you pull a gun out on him in front of everybody?”
Ma’fuckas just kept testing me. I was going to show his ass that I’m still that nigga. I was the one that showed him the game, and I was the one that put him on, but now he was acting brand new since Wise thought that he had the game on lock. If it wasn’t for me and my people, Wise wouldn’t be half the nigga that he thought he was.
“Fuck that. You the one acting like you scared of the nigga. What was that at the party? Huh? And at Jamella’s crib, why you ain’t come stop that nigga? I’m tired of sitting around like I’m just this bum ass nigga while y’all living good.”
“Look, I have to still play my role. Wise got a whole army behind him, and I’m not trying to have those problems. You know most of these niggas loyal to
him because of his brother. But, when we get rid of Wise, everything we built will be all on me and I need that smooth transition. I keep telling you that I got you!”
“Got me how? Throwing me some chump change? I still ain’t get that bitch Milan to get him to tell her where the stash at. They trying to flex on me and shit. Let me find out that she been messing around with him this whole time… I’m killing her too.” I flinched as I used a piece of tissue to wipe my bruised lip. That nigga Wise really tried to fuck me up. I couldn’t wait to take his ass out. He should have killed me when he had the chance.
Keem shrugged, putting his phone back in his pocket. “Fuck Milan. I got it if you chill the fuck out! I got a plan B. I been fucking with Sasha on the low. Wise done fucked over her enough, so I think she gone be down for whatever. Wise just called me to pick her up now.”
I wanted to laugh in his face. If that was his plan B, then Keem was as dumb as I thought. I had been fucking with her tramp ass for a minute. She didn’t know shit about Wise’s operation. Plus, she played the role, but she wasn’t gone turn on that nigga!
Chapter Twenty-One
Wise
I looked at Milan then back to Sasha. “What the fuck is she talking about, Sasha?” I asked, staring at her accusingly. Sasha was a sack chaser, but she had sense and she knew how to carry herself like a lady. I never pegged her to be a hoe. I wouldn’t have kept her around my daughter if I suspected that.
“I don’t even know. I’ve never done anything to her. She’s the one that took you from me, and now she wants to make up lies. Isn’t it enough that she’s messing up my life?” Sasha whined, staring at me with those sad eyes. I looked away from her. She sure did know how to play on my emotions.
“Stop lying! You can run that shit on the next man, but I got this one. Wise, check her phone. She was just talking to somebody else. I heard her!” Milan folded her arms across her chest and shifted her weight to one foot.
I already knew how crazy she was, and my best bet was to get Sasha out of the crib until I figured things out. I hoped that Sasha wouldn’t try to play me like that.
I turned to Milan, “Chill out, man. Go check on the kids.” She gave me the side-eye, but she left. I knew that I would be hearing an ear full later. I focused back on Sasha. “We better than that right? I know you know that a baby ain’t gone keep me around.”
She nodded. “Wise, I swear I wouldn’t do that. I’ve been nothing but loyal to you; even when I had the chance not to be. Your friends has made advances at me, even her so-called man. Hell, I heard that she was trying to set you up. So I think that I’m the last one to watch. Your crew is snakes and so is she.” Sasha looked me dead in the eyes, and all I could think about was which one of my homeboys was trying to fuck with her. I already knew about Milan and Jabari, so that was irrelevant. Milan’s loyalty was with me.
“So who was trying to get at you?” I asked staring at her for the answer to the million dollar question.
She smirked. “You’d be surprised. Your circle isn’t as tight as it seems. But, I’m not going to sit here and convince you of what type of person I am and how I had your back. You’ll figure it out in due time.” She said matter-of-factly.
My antennas were all the way up. I always thought my circle was tight, but maybe I was wrong. I opted to drop the conversation for a later date as my phone vibrated with a text, alerting me that Keem was outside. I reached into my pocket and grabbed a few hundreds, handing them to her. “Look, Keem is outside and he’s going to follow you to the Western to make sure you get settled in good. We’ll sort this out tomorrow. If you pregnant with my kid, I got you.” She didn’t protest, she just grabbed her things and smirked.
“Hmmph… Your right-hand man Keemie, huh?” She chuckled and walked toward the door. I wondered what the fuck she meant by that!
I always prided myself on keeping my circle tight and the bullshit away from me, but now I was starting to everything. However, I couldn’t say if Sasha was on some bullshit, or if what she was saying about my people was true. I honestly didn’t give a fuck, though. I wasn’t taking no chances. I was watching everybody, Sasha included.
After I watched her get into her ride, I didn’t go back into the room with Milan. I knew she would trip, and I had other things to handle. I went into my office and closed the door before sitting at my desk. I leaned back and let out a deep breath of air, pinching the bridge of my nose.
After taking a few minutes to relax, I reached into my drawer and pulled out my burn out phone to call the only mothafucka that I knew I could trust without a doubt, my brother Carter. I tried not to involve his crazy ass in my shit, but I needed him right now.
Carter was a no bullshit type of nigga. He used to be heavy in the game until his right-hand was murdered. He retired and moved to Atlanta, but he always told me to call him if shit got too heavy. I had a feeling that shit was about to get real heavy.
“What’s up lil’ bro. If you calling me, some shit must have popped off. Do I need to make a trip to the D?” He spoke into the phone as soon as he answered.
“Shit haven’t popped off yet. But, I just got that feeling. You remember Sasha right?”
He chuckled. “Yeah that sneaky bitch. I hope you ain’t let her get you into no shit.”
I shook my head. Carter never liked Sasha, ever since the day I met her. I thought it was because he liked me with Milan. He always said that I needed to stop fucking over Milan and do right by her. He was about the only nigga that knew Milan and I were together like that, and he was the only nigga that knew how much I cared about her back then.
“Not exactly. But that’s a different story. She trying to hint that I got snakes in my camp and I need to make sure them ma’fuckas don’t bite my ass; if you know what I mean.”
“Say no more.” Carter shot, then I heard ruffling in the phone for a second. “Me and my nigga Don will be on the next flight out. I got you lil’ bro. You all I got, so you know I’ll split a nigga shit wide open for you.”
I just nodded as we ended the call. If anybody would get to the bottom of shit, I knew big bro would. I didn’t necessarily need him to handle my problems. I just wanted him by my side. If I had to take out my whole crew and start over, I was prepared to do that. At the moment Jabari’s punk ass was the least of my worries. Handling him would be easy. He was all bark and no bite.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Milan
I woke up the next morning, entangled in Wise’s arms. He was still fast asleep and for a second, I dreaded even having to get up. But, it was Monday and the kids needed to get to school and I had to go back to work.
My weekend was crazy and a part of me didn’t want to step back into my reality; especially with everything going on. I laid there for a second, just staring at Wise. I began to wonder if Kayla really was his child, and what life would be like if everybody just left us the hell alone.
“I must be a sexy ass nigga.” Wise’s deep rasp interrupted my thoughts. His eyes were still closed.
“Boy please. Don’t flatter yourself.” I chuckled, attempting to get up, but he pulled me back down by his side.
“You sure is staring like I am. And where you about to go? Lay here with me?” He wrapped his arms around me tightly, spooning me from behind.
“I wish I could.” I whined truthfully. Lord knows it was so comfortable in his embrace. “But I have work and the kids have school.”
He nestled his face in the crook of my neck. “Fuck yo’ job. You know I got you. I been told your wannabe independent ass that I would take care of you.”
I let out a sigh. “And I told you that I wasn’t depending solely on a man for nothing. Plus, your taking care of me had stipulations, and you knew that I was with Jabari.”
Wise chuckled with a snort. “And you see where that shit landed you. That’s why you should have been listened to me and got rid of that nigga. Now we going through the most just to end up where we should have been all along.”
&n
bsp; I kissed my teeth. “Wise please. Just like you had Sasha. Now she’s pregnant with your pretend baby! I don’t care how that girl tries to lie. I heard her telling somebody on the phone that they were the real daddy.” I knew what I heard, and that girl may have been able to run game on Wise, but I was a female just like she was, and Wise was my man. So I’m protecting my man.
“That’s what they got D.N.A tests for. And my bad about last night. I wasn’t thinking straight. You know I wouldn’t have let that girl stay here. I got too much shit going on. Plus, I’m hearing that niggas snakes. I ain’t got time to be looking over my shoulders.”
I flipped around to stare him in the face again, wondering if he was talking about Keem. Keem and Jabari were pretty close, even though they didn’t portray it in public. However, I always felt that Keem was loyal to Wise. He always had his back.
“People like who?” I asked, finally getting out of his embrace. I stood up and slid on my jeans.
“I don’t know, and that’s the fucked up part. But you better believe I’m gone figure it all out.”
I just nodded as I continued to throw on my things and Wise sat up. “I’m sure you will. But can you go get the kids ready? We still have to go by the house so that you can get your car, and I need to grab a few things for the babies..”
***
An hour later, the kids had been dropped off at school and daycare, and Wise had dropped me off at work. I had a little clerical job inside of a mortgage company with my own office. It wasn’t much, but it kept food on the table.
I thought about Wise’s offer to just quit and it didn’t sound bad. I knew that he had more than enough money to make sure that we were well taken care of, and I could stop going to that ratchet ass DHS office. Sometimes my pride was too much, though. I knew that I didn’t have to struggle, but I never wanted to give a man all of my power.