Baby Momma

by Tosha Damaya

  "I need you to talk to Zeke,” she replied, ignoring his statement.

  "Usually, my threesomes involve two women, not men. But I’ll call to see if he’s down.”

  “Bye, fool.” She didn’t have the patience for Ethan.

  “I’m just kidding, CeCe.”

  Sierra melted at the mention of the nickname he had given her. She hated that Ethan had an effect on her.

  “What’s going on?” Ethan asked.

  "Zeke has a date with Danielle tonight," Sierra said in a rush. She kept watching the door as she spoke. Sydney wouldn't like her intervening in her life.

  "That's not possible, Zeke doesn't want anything to do with Danielle. I highly doubt it's a date," Ethan stated.

  "Well they're meeting tonight, and it hurt Syd's feelings.”

  Ethan snorted. "This whole let's have a baby and still be friends idea is ridiculous to begin with," he stated. He never thought it was a good idea, to him it was just messy and irresponsible. Their father was probably rolling in his grave right now because of Zeke's stupidity.

  “I know.”

  "Honestly Sierra, they need just to get together. I think they're the only ones that don't realize that they're in love.”

  "Well Syd finally admitted to having feelings, but Zeke is still blind. Can you please talk to him?"

  Ethan was quiet for a moment. He couldn't believe that Sierra called him to ask for his help. He’d try to talk to Zeke, but he wanted something from Sierra in return. "I'll speak to him if you agree to go on a date with me."

  This motherfucker, Sierra thought. "Fine, but don't expect to fuck me afterward."

  He chuckled. He loved the way Sierra never held back and said what was on her mind. "For such an educated woman, you have a dirty mouth, Sierra. I'll be in Texas next week. Don't forget your promise.”

  Sydney came out of the bathroom after a fresh shower right as Sierra was ending the call. "Who was that?" She had only caught the last little bit of the conversation.

  "Just someone that doesn't understand the word no.”

  Sydney changed into some of Sierra's clothing and the two them laid in bed, lost in their thoughts, when Sierra's phone started to ring again. Sierra thought it was Ethan, but it was Zeke calling her instead.

  "It's your future baby daddy."

  "I'm not here," Sydney whispered.

  It was Déjà vu. "This is childish as hell," she yelled at her sister before answering the phone. "Hey, Zeke."

  "Sierra have you seen Sydney? I'm trying to find her."

  Sierra was tempted to cover for Sydney, but she was tired of the Zeke and Sydney saga. Always one to stir up trouble, Sierra told the truth.

  "She's right here Zeke, hold on.” She handed Sydney the phone. "Handle your shit," she whispered before leaving to freshen up.

  Sydney couldn't believe that her sister would sell her out to Zeke. She swore that Sierra was bipolar. One minute she hated Zeke, and the next she was trying to help him. Sydney could never understand some of Sierra's actions.

  Taking a deep breath, she spoke into the phone. "Hello."

  "Sydney, why would you leave like that and why haven't you been answering your phone? I've been calling you."

  She came up with a quick lie. "I know I said that I would stay, but something happened at the store, and I have to go check it out." Zeke knew how important her business was to her, and he wouldn't want her to neglect it.

  "Okay. Well, how about I pick you up later tonight?" Zeke suggested.

  Sydney thought it over and didn't think it was a good idea.

  "I made plans to go out tonight.”

  "Really? Are you and Sierra doing something together?" he asked, fishing for more information.

  "No."

  "No?" Zeke repeated.

  "No. Listen I have to go, but I'll talk to you tomorrow," Sydney said before ending the call.

  ≈

  Zeke stared at his phone, baffled by the conversation that just transpired between him and Sydney. He could tell over the phone that she was mad at him. He reminisced on the last few hours he’d spent with her and couldn't find a thing that would put her in a bad mood.

  When he woke up this morning with her sleeping in his arms, he got up to make breakfast but realized that he didn't have much food, so he went to get take out instead. When he returned home, she was gone.

  What the hell had happened in that hour?

  Zeke looked at the note Sydney had written.

  Danielle called while you were gone. Sorry, but I had to go. - Sydney.

  Maybe something happened between her and Danielle. He wanted to know what they talked about, so he called his ex.

  "Hi, Zeke," Danielle said into the phone in an excited manner.

  "Danny, did you speak to Sydney today?"

  "No. I called, but no one answered."

  "Okay. Listen we may need to reschedule our meeting tonight. Something's come up." Zeke was already looking for something to wear so that he could go see Sydney in person. Something was bothering her, and they needed to talk.

  "No, we can't put this off. I told you I needed your legal advice. I know we're not together anymore, but you're still my lawyer, Zeke."

  Zeke groaned. He now regretted mixing business with pleasure when it came to Danielle. Now he couldn't get rid of her. She never followed the rules and instead of coming to the office like everyone else, Danielle expected him to drop everything and come to her beck and call whenever she wanted. He was getting tired of it and sick of her.

  "Okay, we'll meet tonight at seven." It wasn't a date, so he wasn't picking her up. "And you're sure about the location. I took you there while we were dating, and you hated it, Danny."

  The restaurant was Sydney’s favorite place to eat. It reminded Sydney of her father’s farm. The one time he took Danielle, she complained the entire time. Zeke never took her again.

  "I'm sure. I'll see you then, Zeke," Danielle stated before hanging up.

  Zeke looked at the clock and saw that it was still early. He decided to leave Sydney alone for now and to catch up with her later.

  ≈

  Zeke walked into the restaurant and spotted Danielle sitting at a table in the far left corner. As he walked towards her, he thought that she looked completely out of place. This place wasn’t her style.

  He greeted her with a kiss on the cheek. "You look beautiful Danny," he commented.

  There was no denying that she was a good looking woman. She had a light-skinned complexion thanks to her white mother and black father. Her facial features were outlined by the short pixie cut that she never grew out. She knew she was attractive and used it to her advantage.

  "Thank you, Zeke," Danielle returned before sitting down. She had already ordered some wine and offered Zeke some. He refused.

  "No thank you, as soon as we talk about whatever issue you're having, I'm going to head out."

  Danielle rolled eyes. "Why can't you stay for a little while? Am I that repulsive that you can't spend time with me?"

  He should've never agreed to meet with her. Zeke looked at Danielle and realized that she never wanted to talk about any legal problems. He had given her the benefit of the doubt and trusted her, but now he knew it was a mistake. She was dressed to seduce him with her tight fitted dress and face coated with makeup. No matter how many times he told her it was over, she wouldn't listen. So he was going make it clear and simple for her now.

  "Danielle. The two of us are never going to work. What we had between us is over. There will never be another romantic relationship between us. Honestly, there will never be a professional relationship either because, after tonight, I'm no longer your lawyer. I was hoping that we could remain friends, but it's obvious that we can't do that," Zeke stated in a straightforward manner.

  Danielle reached out and grabbed Zeke's hand. "Is it because I don't want kids? I thought it over, and I'll have at least one child in the future for you. If I do that, can we make it work?" she pleaded.

/>   Zeke removed his hand from her grasp. "It was over between us before the subject of kids even came up. That was just the last straw, Danielle."

  "Is it because of Sydney? I knew something was going on between you," she accused, pointing a finger at Zeke. "Even this morning, she answered your phone like it belonged to her."

  Zeke cocked his head to the side when she mentioned calling this morning. "I thought you said she didn't answer, Danny," he commented, catching her in a lie.

  Danielle realized her mistake and tried to backtrack. "That's not what I meant. I -"

  "Just save it, Danielle. Sydney and I are just friends."

  She snorted. "Yeah right, so you're telling me that nothing has ever happened between you two," Danielle questioned.

  "At this point, it's none of your business what’s going on in my personal life. It's none of your concern." He wasn't telling Danielle anything about his relationship with Sydney.

  She leaned back in her chair and crossed her arms. "So you don't have any feelings for her?" Danielle taunted with a smirk.

  "No."

  Danielle smiled. "So you don't mind that she just walked in with a date," she pointed out.

  Zeke turned immediately and observed Sydney walking into the eating area holding hands with her ex-boyfriend, Davis. He couldn't pinpoint what type of emotions he was feeling, but he knew that he didn't like what he was seeing. Davis was a chauvinistic pig that thought he was better than anyone else around him.

  Danielle observed Zeke's reaction and laughed out loud. "Are you sure you don't have feelings for Sydney, because you're acting like a jealous boyfriend, Zeke,” she teased from across the table.

  Zeke ignored her and got up to go see what the hell was going on with Sydney.

  Chapter Ten

  Sydney was in the process of reviewing her menu when she was snatched up from the table. She started to panic until she saw the person who had intruded on her dinner date. Zeke.

  "What is your problem?" she shouted, pulling her arm back. She didn't even realize that Zeke was at the restaurant until now. She looked around until she saw Danielle seated at a table in the corner. They made eye contact, and Danielle sent a sinister wave towards her way. Sierra was right about her.

  While her mind was wondering, she didn't notice that Davis was moving towards Zeke with rage. She was knocked out of the way when Davis pushed Zeke in the chest.

  "That's no way to treat a woman. Show some respect," he yelled before shoving Zeke again.

  Sydney watched in horror as Zeke slammed into another table where other guests were eating. Sydney didn't want anything to get out of hand. The last thing she wanted was to see her ex-boyfriend and best friend get into an altercation because of her. Before Sydney could stop anything additional from happening, Zeke rushed towards Davis and tackled him to the ground.

  “Stop it!”

  They didn’t listen. Both men were equal size, but Zeke had the upper hand. He was on top of Davis punching him.

  "You have the nerve to talk about respect," Zeke declared while slamming his fist into Davis's face. "What type of respect do you have for Sydney when you cheated on her?"

  Davis was able to move Zeke off of him and then took control, getting a few hits. They continued to roll on the ground, oblivious to the crowd surrounding them. Sydney tried to stop the fight, but it was impossible. It finally ended when two men from the restaurant staff intervened.

  Sydney didn't know what to do. She stared at both men bloody, bruised, and dirty from the altercation. The crowd was slowly dispersing, but were still whispering amongst themselves. Davis had attempted to get to Zeke again, but he was blocked before he could reach him.

  Zeke and Davis stared at Sydney. It was obvious that they wanted her to make a choice. To her, in a situation like this, there wasn't a competition. She loved both men, but only one held her heart at the moment. She went to console Zeke, but was beaten by Danielle. She watched as she fawned over Zeke, making sure he was okay. Feeling defeated, Sydney went over to Davis.

  "Are you okay?" she whispered, kneeling in front of him. She could see his marks more effortlessly because his skin tone was lighter than Zeke's.

  "What do you think?" Davis sarcastically responded. He wiped his bloody lip with the back of his hand. "Tell me how does he know that I cheated on you? We put that behind us a long time ago."

  Sydney sighed. She couldn't believe Zeke brought that up during the fight. "He's my best friend, Davis. I tell him everything," Sydney explained. She didn't tell her family about Davis's infidelity. Zeke knew about the situation because when they were first building their friendship, Davis was still trying to win her back.

  "I was elated that you wanted to meet up tonight, and I was hoping we could move forward. But if he's a part of your life, I don't see it happening."

  "I don't know why Zeke responded the way he did.” She looked over and saw Zeke staring at her.

  Davis snorted. "I do."

  ≈

  Law enforcement responded to the scene and took reports from Sydney, Zeke, and Davis. Collateral information was obtained from anyone else who witnessed the fight. No one was arrested because the primary aggressor could not be determined. Zeke provoked the confrontation by grabbing Sydney, but Davis was the one that started the fight by pushing Zeke into the table.

  Zeke was upset that Sydney never came to him after the incident ended. Instead, he got Danielle in his face until he forced her to go. He left and waited in the parking lot for Sydney to leave, eager to get the chance to talk to her about what happened. His hopes were diminished as she came out with Davis, went straight to his vehicle, and left without looking in Zeke's direction.

  He drove home with an attitude and took his anger out on Ethan when he called thirty minutes later.

  "What's got your panties in a wad?" Ethan teased after Zeke yelled at him.

  Zeke wasn't in a mood to talk. He just wanted to take a shower and call it a night.

  "Ethan, now isn't a good time. Call Trevor or Gavin and aggravate the shit out of them," he suggested.

  "Wait, I wanted to talk to you about Sydney!" Ethan shouted before Zeke could hang up on him.

  Hearing Sydney's name alerted Zeke. "What about Sydney? Is she okay?" he asked quickly.

  "As far as I know she's okay, Zeke. I wanted to talk about your friendship. I don't think it's a good idea for you to continue this baby-making project. Women like Sydney treat sex differently than men do. If you aren't going to pursue a relationship with her, then don't get her pregnant. You should bring a child into the world where he or she has both parents in one household," Ethan declared.

  Where in the hell is this coming from? Zeke looked at the phone to make sure he was talking to his baby brother. "I'm so tired of everyone trying to dip into my business with Sydney. What we do doesn't concern you, Ethan," he grumbled into the phone.

  "I care for Sydney just like she's family, so it does concern me. If any one of our female relatives were asked to do this, we would probably all pile up in dad's old suburban and go beat that man's ass. Why would you want that for Syd? You want her to be a single mother?"

  "She is not going to be doing it alone; I'm going to be there. We're going to raise the child together," Zeke argued.

  "But in two separate homes! Children with two-parent households are more likely to succeed, Zeke! You're already putting that kid at a disadvantage."

  Zeke stayed quiet and listened as Ethan talked. He realized that his brother was making some decent points. But he would make sure that his child had every opportunity to make it in life. There were thriving children that came from single parent and divorced households.

  "If you aren't going to be with Sydney, I want to set her up with someone I work with," Ethan continued talking when Zeke didn't respond. "Name is Aaron. He's a good guy, no kids, and makes a decent salary. I think they would be good together. I'm coming out to Austin next week for business and may bring him with me," Ethan said.

 
; "No," Zeke replied quickly.

  "And why not?" Ethan taunted. He didn't know anyone named Aaron. He was just testing Zeke.

  "I don't want anyone to use Sydney. She hasn't had the best relationships, and I'm making sure the next guy isn't going to hurt her."

  "And what if you hurt her?"

  "I'm not."

  Ethan sighed. He swore his brother was so blind and oblivious to his feelings. "Be honest with me, Zeke. Do you have any romantic feelings for Sydney?"

  "I would be a fool to not notice how beautiful she is. When I first met Sydney I was interested in her, but I realized that we're better off as friends.”

  Zeke stopped talking when he heard his front door slam shut. He still held the phone to his ear and barely listened as Ethan kept speaking. Zeke was more concerned with who had just left his home. Peeking out of his window, he recognized Sydney’s SUV leaving his driveway. He started searching for the keys to his car.

  “I think you’re in love with her.”

  Zeke paused. Am I? He shook the thought from his head. No, he wasn’t. He would know if he was, right?

  “I love her, but I’m not in love with her.”

  “Think about this,” Ethan continued. “How would you feel if you ever lost Sydney? Or if another man came into her life.”

  “I wouldn’t like it,” he admitted after a moment. He instantly thought of the fight he’d had with Davis at the restaurant. Did it occur because Sydney was with Davis, or because she was on a date? He honestly didn’t know.

  Zeke sat on his couch and eyed his keys lying on the television console. “Ethan I’ll call you later.”

  “Wait! Think about what I said.”

  “I will, I have to go,” he said into the phone before ending the call. He grabbed his keys and headed towards Sydney’s apartment.

  ≈

  We’re better off as friends.

  The words were ringing in her head as she drove home.

  After leaving the restaurant, Davis drove her home. She was only there for five minutes to grab her car keys so that she could head out to Zeke's house. She wanted to tell Zeke that she loved him. When she arrived, the door was unlocked, so she let herself inside. She didn't expect to hear him talking on his phone about her.