Heartbreak And Past Mistakes

by Chenell Parker

  “Nigga, what? You ain’t my man,” Lyric snapped back.

  “You must be trying to walk. You got me fucked up if you think you bout to ride in my shit and talk to another nigga,” Bronx said angrily.

  “But anyway, hey daddy,” she replied while rolling her eyes.

  “Yeah, okay. I see you cleared that shit up though,” Bronx pointed out.

  “Where you at Lyric?” Lenard asked.

  “I’m on Magazine St. Why? What’s up?” Lyric questioned.

  “Man, come swing around here and get your mama before her ass be going to jail again,” Lenard replied.

  “To jail!” Lyric yelled. “What happened daddy?”

  “I’m getting all my shit from by Hillary’s house and she just showed up over here. Mel be on that bullshit,” Lenard fussed.

  “Okay daddy. Give me a minute to go home and get my car. I’ll be there in a few,” Lyric replied.

  “How long is that gonna take Lyric? This shit gon’ turn out bad,” Lenard sighed.

  Lyric didn’t want to bring Bronx around her parents, not yet anyway. She hadn’t known him long enough for all that. Besides, she wasn’t ready to expose him to her family drama. He didn’t need to see Melody acting a fool while her husband moved out of his girlfriend’s house. It was too early in the game for that.

  “I’ll be there as soon as I can daddy. I’ll call her and talk to her until I get there,” Lyric said.

  “Why can’t you come now Lyric? Who are you with?” Lenard questioned.

  “I’m with my friend, but-” Lyric said before Bronx snatched the phone from her hand.

  “How you doing sir? This is your daughter’s boyfriend, Bronx. I don’t mind bringing her over there. What’s the address?” Bronx asked.

  “No, the fuck you didn’t!” Lyric yelled.

  Bronx ignored her as he listened to her father give him the address. He knew the area that he was in well. He was about ten or fifteen minutes away, so he headed in that direction once he hung up the phone.

  “So what, I’m not good enough to meet your people?” Bronx asked as he looked over at her.

  “First off, don’t put words in my mouth because I never said that. I don’t just bring anybody to meet my parents Bronx. That’s a big step for me and I take that seriously. Despite what you told my daddy, you are not my man.”

  “Yet,” he interjected.

  “Whatever, but it’s only fair that I warn you. My mama has no filter and it’ll be even worse because she hates my daddy’s girlfriend.”

  “Damn. Your pops is a savage. He got two girls?” Bronx asked.

  “My mama is the wife, boo. They were separated for a few years though. My daddy lived with his girlfriend for a while but him and my mama just got back together,” Lyric said, giving him a little background info as he drove.

  When they pulled up to Hillary’s house, Lyric saw her father and two of his brothers carrying boxes out of Hillary’s house. They had a small moving truck parked at the curb that they loaded the boxes onto. Lyric spotted her mother standing across the street yelling something to her husband. She and Bronx got out of the car and walked over to where Melody was.

  “Hey baby. What are you doing here?” Melody asked as she kissed her daughter.

  “I should be asking you that question. Why are you standing over here?” Lyric asked.

  “You know I can’t get too close to her. The bitch still got a restraining order on me,” Melody replied.

  “That’s not what I mean. Why are you out here at all?” Lyric asked.

  “Because that’s my man and I wanted to make sure he got everything. I don’t want him to have a reason to come back over here. Who is this?” Melody asked as she pointed to Bronx like she just realized he was standing there.

  “How you doing ma’am. I’m Bronx, Lyric’s-”

  “Friend,” Lyric said, cutting him off before he could finish his sentence.

  “I’m trying to be your son-in-law if your daughter stop playing,” he replied.

  “At least he’s cute. I don’t need no funny looking grandkids,” Melody replied.

  “Ma!” Lyric said as she covered her face in embarrassment.

  “Look at this bitch. Bad built hoe looking like an improper fraction. Big at the top and small at the bottom. How you go from all this ass to that slab of concrete that she got behind her. Your daddy know he wrong for that shit.” Melody frowned when Hillary came to the door.

  “She looks so sad,” Lyric said.

  “I know this ain’t my baby standing here having sympathy for the next bitch. Not the same baby that I went through fifty-six hours of labor with. That’s what she gets for messing with a married man,” Melody replied as Lyric rolled her eyes discreetly.

  They all stood there and looked as Lenard and his brothers walked back into the house. A few minutes later, one of his brothers came out with some more stuff as Lenard and the other one struggled with a weight bench.

  “Let me go see if they need help,” Bronx said as he walked over to Lyric’s father.

  They were happy to have another set of hands and he jumped right in to assist.

  “He’s handsome. Where did you meet him?” Melody asked once Bronx was out of earshot.

  “He came to the firm once before, but we officially met at the gym the day that you flaked on me. We went out a few times and he’s cool,” Lyric replied.

  “It seems like he wants to be more than just friends,” Melody pointed out.

  “He does but I’m not ready for all that. I’m done with relationships and friendships too,” Lyric replied.

  “I know you’ve been hurt a lot in the past but I really don’t want that for you, Lyric. Your soulmate is out there baby, but you’ll never find him if you shut everybody out.”

  “You’re right ma, but I just plan to date for now.” Lyric shrugged.

  “When the right man comes along, you’ll know it. You must like this new one any time you let us meet him so soon,” Melody said, referring to Bronx.

  “That was not my intentions. We were just leaving from breakfast when daddy called me. That nigga is cocky as hell.”

  “That shit is sexy to me,” Melody said.

  “Yeah and I’m definitely your daughter because I think so too,” Lyric laughed.

  She and her mother talked as the men continued to move her father’s things out of Hillary’s house. Once they were done, Lyric and Bronx went back to her parents’ house and he helped them unload everything. Before long, Lenard had pulled out the grill and had salmon and chicken on it. Lyric and Melody hooked up some crawfish pasta and they ended up spending the entire day in the yard. Bronx fell right in with Lyric and her family and her parents liked him already. Even when her uncles left, they stayed over until about one that morning before going back to Lyric’s house.

  “I’m in baby. You might as well be my girl for real now. Your mama and daddy already love me like a son. Your pops invited me over there next Sunday to watch the game and everything,” Bronx said as he drove.

  “Too bad their opinions don’t matter,” Lyric replied.

  “How long are we gonna do this Lyric? I’m all for playing hard to get but that shit gets old after a while,” Bronx said.

  “That’s just it though Bronx, I’m not playing. I just got out of something and I’m not ready to jump into anything else,” Lyric admitted as they pulled up to her house.

  “That nigga wasn’t your man though. Y’all kicked it for a while and he pissed you off. At least that’s how you explained it to me.”

  “We weren’t in a relationship but we were close to it. I already told you about how my first two relationships ended. I don’t know if I’m strong enough to go through that again,” Lyric admitted.

  She hated feeling and sounding vulnerable, especially in front of a man that she barely knew. Bronx was different though. He was nothing like the men that she’d dated before and that was one of the things that she liked most. He wasn’t stuffy and he w
asn’t so serious all the time.

  “All I want is a chance Lyric. If I fuck up and you want to be done with me, I can’t do nothing but respect that. I’m really feeling you and I think we would be good together,” Bronx replied.

  “Can I take some time to think about it?” Lyric asked him.

  “Are you serious right now? Nigga sat here sounding like a straight up bitch and you still shooting me down.” Bronx frowned.

  “I’m not shooting you down. I didn’t say no. I just think we should get to know each other a little better before we take that next step. It’s a delay, not a denial,” Lyric reasoned.

  Bronx just sat there and stared at her for a while before a huge smile covered his face. “I can respect that. But remember what I told you a while ago. If you give up the pussy, all bets are off. You’ll be mine whether you want to or not,” he said as they both got out of the car.

  Lyric was laughing but he didn’t find anything funny. She disarmed her alarm from her phone before opening her door to go inside.

  “Call me when you make it home,” she said, assuming that Bronx was only trying to make sure she got inside safely.

  “You can lock up my baby. I’m staying here with you tonight,” he replied.

  “But, you don’t have any clothes,” Lyric pointed out.

  “I sleep in the nude, so you might as well get used to it now,” he smirked.

  Lyric only shook her head and laughed, even though she knew that he was serious. She usually went to the gym on Sundays but she didn’t mind missing a day. She had a treadmill in her spare bedroom, so she would probably just work out at home.

  After taking a shower, Lyric climbed into bed and found something to watch. Bronx took a shower right after her and joined her a little while after. Just like he’d said, he walked out of the bathroom butt ass naked and snuggled right up under her in the bed. Lyric wasn’t worried about anything happening because she was still on her cycle. She was thankful for that much because she wasn’t sure if she could have done it on her own.

  Chapter 16

  Lyric dreaded going to work that Monday morning but there was no way to avoid it. She had blocked Javier from calling from his personal and work cell phones and she hadn’t heard from him since their altercation that Friday night. Javier wasn’t the type to involve anyone else in his business, so he never tried to call her from another phone. Lyric knew that he was going to try catching her at work and that was proven the moment she walked into the office. There was a huge flower arrangement and two neatly wrapped gifts sitting on the floor in front of her office door. Lyric didn’t even bother opening the gifts but she threw the card away and sat the flowers on the counter in the break room. She didn’t give a damn what Javier said or did, she was done with him and that would never change.

  “I’m just in time. Make me a big cup of that. I have a long day ahead of me,” Mr. Malone said when he walked into the break room and saw Lyric standing there.

  “It must really be serious. You never come into the break room,” Lyric replied.

  “I went to your office and they told me that you had just left. I’ll be in my office. I’m running late for a conference call,” Mr. Malone replied, right before he walked away.

  Lyric gulped down the last of her coffee and got right to work making Mr. Malone a cup. Once it was done, she headed to his office to drop it off. She smiled when she saw Nova sitting behind the desk with Martha.

  “Good morning ladies,” Lyric said as she kept going.

  Nova looked like she was busy taking notes and she didn’t want to disturb her. When she walked into Mr. Malone’s office, he was wrapped up in his call. Lyric was about to hand him his coffee and leave, but he stopped her before she could. He put the call on mute and handed her a gold envelope.

  “Bring this down to the mailroom for me, Lyric. Tell Jeremy that I need this to go out as soon as possible,” Mr. Malone instructed.

  “Okay and his name is Jared,” Lyric corrected with a giggle.

  “That’s why I have you here. You remember the names and I cut the checks,” he laughed as she shook her head and walked away.

  Lyric took the elevator to the first floor, preparing to go to the mailroom. She hadn’t seen Jared in a few days, so it was the perfect time for them to catch up. As soon as she got off, she was greeted by a familiar face sitting in the lobby. She smiled when she saw the same woman who was there before to speak to Javier about her son.

  “Hi,” Lyric said when she walked over to her. The woman looked much better than she did before and she didn’t appear to be as frail.

  “Hey sweetheart. How are you?” she asked as she smiled.

  Instead of the big oxygen tank that she carried before, she had a smaller portable one on her side. She still looked sickly but not as bad as before.

  “I’m fine. How’s everything going with your son?” Lyric asked her.

  “Nothing has changed. That’s why I came back over here to see Mr. Livingston. I made an appointment this time though. My son is scheduled to be sentenced next week and nobody seems to care,” she replied as she teared up.

  “I hope everything works out in your favor. How did you get here?” Lyric asked.

  “My neighbor gave me a ride. She’s outside waiting for me. You’re such a sweet girl. I wish it was you who I had to come see.”

  “Me too. I wish there was more that I could do to help but I’m not an attorney,” Lyric said.

  “What’s your name?” the woman asked Lyric.

  “My name is Lyric,” she replied.

  “That’s a pretty name. My name is Mary.” She smiled.

  “I’ll be sure to keep you and your son in my prayers Ms. Mary,” Lyric said as she patted her hand.

  “Thank you, baby. I really appreciate that.” Mary smiled as she watched Lyric walk away.

  Lyric spoke to a few people as she headed to the mailroom. As soon as she opened the door, she heard Jared’s music playing from the small radio that he kept on the counter.

  “Just the person that I wanted to see. I was coming up there as soon as I got my cart filled. I’m mad as fuck at you right now yo,” Jared said in his up north accent.

  “Why? What did I do?” Lyric questioned.

  “Why you tell my girl to start fucking with other niggas? That shit was mad foul yo,” Jared fussed.

  “What the hell are you talking about Jared?” Lyric questioned.

  “Did you tell Nova that she should date other people?” Jared questioned.

  “That was not how that conversation went. I can’t believe that she even told you that. Wait until I talk to her messy ass.” Lyric frowned.

  “You better straighten that shit out Lyric. You know how much I’m feeling your cousin. Now, she out here dating her mailman and shit,” Jared said as he appeared to have calmed down a little.

  “She actually told you that?” Lyric asked in shock.

  Nova was wrong for even bringing up their conversation to him and Lyric couldn’t wait to tell her about it. That was exactly why she didn’t tell anyone her business now. Nobody knew how to keep shit to themselves. Nova was dumb as hell to tell Jared what she was doing and who she was doing it with.

  “I asked her if she kicking it with anybody else and she told me,” Jared replied.

  “I told her that it was okay to date as long as she’s not in a committed relationship with anyone. I know you like her but there’s nothing wrong with her keeping her options open. That goes for you too,” Lyric noted.

  “I’m good on options. I’m trying to be on some exclusive shit. Stop putting all those thoughts in her head yo. Everybody don’t have to be a hoe,” Jared argued.

  “The fuck you trying to say nigga,” Lyric snapped, slightly offended by his choice of words.

  “You know I’m not talking about you,” Jared laughed.

  “I don’t find nothing funny bastard. How is dating being a hoe? Y’all got life and bullshit mixed up,” Lyric said.

  “That m
ight work for you, Lyric, but every woman is not the same. I get that you don’t want love and relationships but some women do,” Jared pointed out.

  Lyric didn’t know why he assumed that, but his assumptions couldn’t be further from the truth. That was exactly what she wanted but she was having a hard time finding it. Bronx wanted to give it to her but she was still unsure. Being hurt was a part of life, but Lyric was tired of the pain. Getting over it was the hardest and she didn’t know if she was willing to risk her heart like that again.

  “Bye Jared. Don’t forget to put a rush on Mr. Malone’s package,” Lyric said as she walked out of the mailroom.

  Loud voices greeted her as soon as she made it to the lobby and she wasn’t surprised that one of them belonged to Javier. He usually maintained a professional attitude while in the office, but he sounded heated now.

  “I don’t know how many times I have to stress this to you. I can not help you or your son. I will not put my neck on the line to get him a lesser sentence, only for him to turn around and do the same things when he’s released!” Javier yelled at Mary as she sat in the chair and wiped the tears from her eyes.

  “All I ask is that you take a closer look at his criminal record. Something is not right. You said that I had to make an appointment to see you and I did. What was the point if you still can’t help me?” she sniffled.

  “Maybe you misunderstood me the first time or maybe I misspoke. It’s not that I can’t help your son. I just won’t help your son. He’s a known gang member and he’s right where he needs to be,” Javier snapped angrily.

  Lyric stood by and listened but she’d heard enough. Javier was like the devil in a suit and the only thing that was missing was the horns. He had no sympathy and even less compassion. It didn’t matter to him that the woman that he was talking to was distraught and crying uncontrollably.

  “You’re just as bad as those uppity people at the DA’s office. If I had money, y’all would be breaking y’all necks to help me. You gon’ get what’s coming to you, though. You can’t treat people like that and get away with it forever,” Mary sniffled.

  “Show yourself out and stop wasting your time coming up here,” Javier said as Lyric rushed over to the woman.