by J Peach
“Come take a ride with me.” He reached for my hand. Sighing, I slapped my palm in his hand. With my phone and purse in my other, he led us out of the room. We went downstairs and straight out the front door, even so, I noticed how quiet the house was. No one was in the living room like before.
I didn’t worry about them. Instead, I got in the truck with Jerome, and he drove away from the house.
I stared at the bedroom sets, completely shocked. That was the weekend the kids and I were going to move into the new house, but after everything with Trell, I just felt completely drained, which was why I went out with the girls. Plus, since I never found the kids a bedroom set, I was alright with staying at the hotel until I did. I looked around but didn’t find anything I liked.
“Titanya helped pick everything out. I didn’t know what the fuck I was doing or what to look for,” he explained, motioning to the two platform beds. “The white one is for Keke, and the black is Kae’s. It’s a door basketball rim and pink beany chairs for them. It’s a bunch of shit in here. Like I said, I didn’t know what all to get or what all they lost in the process.”
Jerome had shocked the hell out of me completely. When he told me to take a ride with him, never did I expect him to bring me to a storage unit filled with stuff for my kids’ room.
“Thank you.” I didn’t know what else to say aside from that. I was entirely grateful for him wanting to do what he did. “Thank you,” I repeated while hugging him.
“No need, I told you I’m just trying to make shit right,” he stated. “Oh, I ain’t get you a bedroom set. Shid, the one yo’ ass had, you shared with that nigga, and I wasn’t replacing that shit.”
I broke out laughing because I knew he was serious as hell about that. My head shook at him, and I hugged him again. “I’m good with getting my room set. And you’re an asshole for all that extra stuff you just said.” Grabbing the sides of his face, I kissed him. “Seriously, Rome, thank you for everything.”
“We’re good. Come on.” He motioned to the open entrance. We walked out and went back to the truck. “Whenever you wanna move this in, let me know. I have folks ready, so we can have it done in no time. Since you got the house and everything, the sooner, the better.”
Hell, I was ready to get my ass out of that hotel. I dug around in my purse until I found what I needed. “Here, whenever you can have it done.” I handed him one of the house keys. Keke and Kae’s rooms were the same size, so it didn’t matter which one they got. I could easily buy myself an air mattress until I got a bedroom set. I had found my house furniture days before I received the keys to the house, and when I got them in hand, I had the living room couches and tables as well as the dining area set delivered.
I had everything I needed, except for the bedroom sets. Now that the kids had that, thanks to Jerome, we could officially move in.
“Keke, Kae, this is your uncle Keenan. He’s your father’s brother,” I introduced them.
Kierra took him in as if searching for some type of recognition. She must not have found any because a look of disappointment crossed her features.
“Hey, Keenan.” She waved, her voice soft.
“What’s up?” Kaeden held his hand out for Keenan to take.
He took it with no hesitation and shook it. “What’s up, little man? Damn, you look just like yo’ pops.” He stared at Kaeden for a long while before pulling him into a tight embrace, which seemed to have shocked the hell out of my baby boy. His arms were held outward as to not touch Keenan. After a few seconds, however, Kaeden patted the man on his back.
It was kind of comical, to be honest, because I knew the moment was completely awkward for him, and he was trying to play it off, but his movements told it all.
Keenan released his hold and held my son at arm’s length. “Damn, man, I’ve been waiting on this moment for years, yo. Keke, you too. Believe it or not, you used to love me,” he told her, and I laughed, agreeing with him. He was there for the first four years of her life.
“She did. ‘Kenken!’ She used to yell every time you came over. But only because you kept candy in your pockets.” I laughed again. I hated that I didn’t have any pictures of them for my kids to have and that I didn’t talk about Keenan or Kenneth a lot, so at least Keke would remember him.
“That wasn’t the only reason.” He chuckled before motioning us to the park bench. “Damn, y’all so big. Shit, time flew. Last I saw you, Keke, you were at my knees, and Kaeden was just palm sized.” He sat down on the bench and just stared at them. His excitement glowed through his glances.
“So, you’re older than my dad?” Kaeden questioned, going to sit beside him.
Keenan’s head shook. “No, I’m younger than him. I got some pics of him if y’all wanna see them.”
Kierra perked up then and sat on the other side of him. “I do.”
That made Keenan smile, and he pulled out pics from the duffle he carried. He then handed the bag to Kaeden. “In there are birthday cards y’all pops sent over the years. That nigga never missed a birthday or Christmas. He always sent something. He drew pictures and wrote letters at least three times a month to y’all, the three of you.” His eyes locked with mine when he said that.
I looked away from him to the bag that was filled with papers and unopened letters.
Never would I have thought that Kenneth would have gone through the trouble of doing all that for them. There were beautifully drawn pictures. Some were designed with Kierra’s name, Kaeden’s, even mine in a fancy font. There were a bunch of them too. All beautiful. The pictures varied from cartoon characters to misshaped patterns, all brightly colored.
“I kind of remember this,” Keke spoke with a light laugh. She held up a picture of her with Kenneth and Santa Claus.
“Oh, my God. How do you have these?” I asked him.
I hadn’t seen those pictures in years. I once had them when we were homeless until someone stole one of my bags with all our personal stuff in it. Social Security cards, birth certificates, pictures were all gone. We really had it rough starting over, and had it not been for Keke and Kae, I wouldn’t have had the strength to keep going.
“The copies you gave me, and the ones Kenneth had stored away,” he explained.
Seeing everything in front of me, I became overwhelmed, and I wanted to cry. Not only for our struggle but for the fact that someone else loved Kierra and Kaeden just as much as I did. Although Kenneth was locked up, everything that was in front of me told just how much he truly loved and thought about them throughout the years.
“Momma,” Kierra called, her tone sad and concerned.
I waved her off and wiped my eyes, realizing tears had fallen. “I’m okay. This just brought back a bunch of memories.” We definitely had an amazing life back then.
“What you doing now? Work wise?” Keenan asked.
I smiled at him. “Believe it or not, I’m a teacher. I was a grade school teacher for a few years, then I taught high school until they started closing all these damn schools. Now, I teach a G.E.D. course to paroled felons. I like it so far.”
Kaeden and Kierra burst out laughing at that last bit.
“Of course, you do, Momma,” Kaeden said and winked at me.
Kierra reached over Keenan and hit him. “Shut up, Kaeden. You irritating bug. Momma, ignore him.”
“Y’all stop,” I snapped at them before they could start fighting.
Keenan watched them in amusement. “I see y’all rough. Kae, Keke, y’all down with getting to know yo’ uncle and meeting y’all cousins?” He seemed excited about that.
“You got kids?” Kaeden asked while Keke went back to looking at the pictures.
“Yeah, I got two boys and a girl. They all younger than you. But y’all got a bunch of cousins your age. Y’all got aunties who wanna meet y’all,” he told them.
“I wanna meet them. We don’t have a lot of family. It’s just us,” Kierra chimed in as she held up a picture. “Is this you and my daddy?” she aske
d.
Keenan laughed as he grabbed the picture. The picture was of the three of them together. “Yeah. I wanna say we took this pic on your birthday. That’s why you got on the crown,” he told her. “It ain’t just y’all no more. A lot of our family is either dead or in jail. That’s part of the reason why we try to keep close and why we look out for each other. Believe me, I know the importance of family, that’s why I spent so much time looking for y’all. Now that I done found y’all, we ain’t gon’ ever lose touch. If y’all need anything, no matter what, call me. Yo’ moms got my number. Hit me up at any time.”
“Why you wanna do that, though? I mean, look out for us?” Kaeden asked him.
Keenan laughed at that. “Because we’re blood, Kaeden. Half of what runs through my veins run in yours. We family, that’s reason enough. Man, you just like Kenneth. Always quick with the questions and shaky about everybody. You’ll learn to trust me in time.” He didn’t seem offended at all by Kaeden.
Keenan nodded at him. “We’ll see. My daddy, you talk to him a lot?”
“Of course. We talk all the time, shid every day for real. He was happy as hell when I told him I found y’all. He can’t wait to talk to y’all,” he informed them.
For the rest of the day, we all hung out together. After a while, the kids had really warmed up to Keenan. Kierra told him about her dance classes and cheering. Kae talked about basketball and football with him, which overtopped everything since Keenan was a regular man who loved sports.
We all sat at a buffet where Keenan had arranged for some of his aunts, uncles, and several of their cousins to meet up with us. Kierra and Kaeden fit right in with them. My babies had fun meeting Kenneth’s side of the family. Neither was shy in the least bit. Kaeden pretty much interrogated everyone before he decided whether or not he liked them. It was one uncle who he hadn’t liked at all, and my baby made it known by avoiding him at all costs.
After we had dinner, we ended up meeting back up at the park because the kids weren’t ready to leave. Kenneth called Keenan’s phone and spoke to the kids. My heart broke as Kierra ended up crying. Talking to him and seeing those pictures brought back some memories of them together, that she remembered, and she just broke. It was heartbreaking to me. I hated seeing my babies cry. All I could do was console her.
When Kaeden spoke to him, his reaction was different. He talked to him like he had Keenan. Kaeden was completely detached, which I could understand. He never knew Kenneth, so he didn’t have the same relationship with him that Keke had.
When he asked to speak with me, it was time for him to go. I was glad for that because I didn’t know what I would say to him exactly. I wasn’t ready to talk to him yet. So, I was thankful for the interruption. Even so, he did promise to call or text later that night.
I was still surprised that Kenneth was able to get his hands on a damn cellphone while locked up. Even so, I didn’t dwell on that.
It wasn’t until eight o’clock that we called it a day, with promises to meet up again one day during the week. But Keenan promised to call the kids the following day.
Once we left the park, we went straight to the hotel and passed out.
“I have a hoop on my door!” Kaeden yelled from upstairs in his room. “I got a gaming chair and headphones!” He continued to yell out everything new he saw. To say my baby was excited would’ve been an understatement.
Jerome had called me late at night, telling me they had moved everything into the house, but I was too exhausted from that day’s events to get out of bed. Hell, my weekend had been eventful; from me getting drunk Friday night, to getting up with Keenan Saturday, it was nonstop action. It felt as if my body still hadn’t rested from Friday.
The day was Sunday, a little after ten o’clock in the morning. I wanted to get to the house and get situated before Monday because I had a bunch of papers to grade since I put off doing so to go out with Nya and the girls.
“Shid, he sounds excited as fuck.” Jerome chuckled as he came up behind me, wrapping his arms around my waist.
My head fell back, leaning against his chest. “He is. I didn’t know you got him a gaming chair, which he didn’t have before.” I glanced up at him as I felt his shoulder shrug.
“I told you Nya’s ass helped me. Shaun and Akil did too for Kae. I don’t know what all they got, I just paid for the shit. I don’t even know what the fuck a gaming chair does to be straight with you.” The seriousness in his voice had me cracking up.
“I don’t get it either, and that’s exactly why he never got one. He can sit on the floor or bed to play the game, but thank you. You’ve made his day.” I turned around in his hold, snaking my arms around his waist. “Thank you again. I know and heard what you said, but still, take my thanks. I really appreciate you doing this.” He looked as if he was going to be nonchalant about it, and I glared at him. “Jerome, take my thanks,” I insisted.
He let out a small chuckle. “You got it. You’re welcome, Nessa.” Standing on my tiptoes, I pecked his lips. “How was everything with Smoke yesterday?”
I didn’t get the chance to fill him in because the kids and I were out once we got into the room last night. “It was eventful but fun. A lot happened that I didn’t expect, but again, it was fun. The kids enjoyed meeting Keenan and some of their cousins. They got to talk to their dad too, so, yeah, everything went good. I’m just glad they finally have family other than me. Kenneth and Keenan are good dudes, so I know they’ll make sure the kids are looked after and get to know their side.” With all the letters, drawings, and other little things he had made for the kids, I knew he was going to keep in touch with them.
Once again, the idea of reaching out to my parents came to mind. I really wanted to see them regardless of how they were. I wanted the kids to meet and know them.
“Family is important, and it’ll be good for them to get a break from you every now and then,” Jerome said, stretching out on the couch.
Grabbing a pillow, I hit him with it. “They need a break from me?” Laughing, I sat beside him and took in my black, three-piece furniture set, the glass table that sat in front of the couches, and a mounted TV on the wall. “It feels good to have something that’s mine. You know, something I worked for. It feels amazing not having to depend on anyone. You know? Like, no one can come in and take any of this from me. It’s mine.” I couldn’t contain the wide smile my lips stretched into as I looked at my living room and dining room sets.
Jerome’s hum brought my sights to him. “Is that why you didn’t want me to get the bikes and shit?” he questioned.
I nodded. “Yeah, money changes people. It may start off as something nice, but then it’s you owe me. I did this and that, etcetera. You know. So, yeah, I don’t want anything else given to them or me. If I can’t afford to get it on my own, then we don’t need it. My kids have been through enough. I can’t have anything else taken from them.”
“I can understand that, and I know me saying I wouldn’t do no shit like that won’t ease shit for you because of what dude did. I ain’t no hoe ass nigga, so I ain’t on no shit like that, especially not to no fuckin’ kids. I get it. Shid, you know my situation, so I understand more than you think, Janessa.”
I turned to face him fully. “I don’t doubt that you do, and I never thought you would try to take anything back from them. It’s just that I’ve always had someone do for me, which left us in bad situations. So, I want to be able to really prove without looking for help or having someone just do it for me, for us, not when it comes to our livelihood. After that shit Trell did, I’d just rather not put my faith and trust in someone. And if shit goes wrong, it’ll solely be on me.”
Jerome licked his lips and nodded in understanding. “You almost sound like an adult.” My lips smacked, and I rolled my eyes at him. He grabbed my chin and tilted my head, so I was looking at him. “Real shit, I get it, Janessa.”
He was so damn understanding. I was definitely becoming crazy about that man. Smiling at h
im, I went in to kiss him, but he quickly pulled away as the kids came down the stairs. Jerome had moved to the other end of the sofa by the time the kids made it to the bottom step. I chuckled lightly but didn’t say anything or move closer to him.
“I love my room, Momma. Thank you!” Kaeden threw his arms around me, hugging me tightly.
“Me too. I love my pink bean chairs, the big TV, the computer, everything!” Kierra said with just as much excitement as Kaeden.
I glanced over at Jerome. I didn’t know anything about a computer. I would have to double check their rooms. I pointed to Jerome and was about to tell the kids he had gotten everything for their rooms, but the fast shaking of his head stopped me. “I’m glad y’all like everything.”
“So, this our house? Just ours?” Kaeden questioned.
I figured that was his way of asking if Trell would be coming back.
“Yup, just ours… unless… you wanna move somebody else in?” I asked slowly.
He glanced over at Jerome and immediately shook his head. “Nah, we good. Ain’t nobody else moving in here. It’s just us.” He stared directly at Rome as he spoke.
“Why the fuck you looking at me like that? I wasn’t tryna move into this mothafucka,” Jerome told him.
“Jerome! Mouth!” I yelled at him.
Keke palmed her forehead. “You seriously don’t know how to talk to kids. We’re going to have to work on you if you’re going to be around us. Jesus fix it!” she said, looking up at the ceiling as if talking to Jesus.
“Work on me? Why the fuck—”
“Bleep!” Kierra said, cutting him off.
Jerome stared at her in confusion. “Why the hell—”
“Bleep!” she yelled.
“Why—”
“Bleep!” she repeated.
Jerome’s lips twitched, and he chuckled. “I’ight, i’ight, I’mma work on it, bet?”