Fireworks 3 and 4

Chapter Twenty-Seven

    Life has this funny thing it likes to do. It likes to make you think that everything is going great, that all of the bad days are behind you. It waits until you get into this comfortable groove of working on your art, satisfying your man, gossiping with your homegirls and keeping tabs on your family before dropping another bomb into your lap.

    Mia and Drake developed a system, a routine for making sure that they were both consistently working while spending appropriate time with each other and enjoying what life had to offer. It was after one of those comfy, romantic nights that Mia was startled awake by the vibration of her phone and high-pitched wail of his cell phone's ringer.

    Both of their phones going off at the same time. There was no way that could be good. Instead of facing reality right away, she burrowed further into his embrace, as if his strong arms could protect her from whatever drama they'd have to face next.

    Their phones went silent, but then started buzzing and blaring again.

    With a frustrated groan, she turned around in his arms and pressed her forehead to his chest.

    "I need to remember to turn that damned thing off," Drake croaked, shifting while keeping one arm around her.

    "Don't," she protested.

    He didn't respond, but further evidence that the news wasn't good was his entire body growing tense. Even the chest muscles currently cushioning her forehead grew more rigid. She might as well have been resting her head on a brick wall.

    Sighing and sitting up, she grumbled, "What is it this time? Nicki talking more shit? Zach talking crazier shit? What?" She reached for her phone, vaguely felt his arms circle around her again. "What?"

    Text messages upon text messages from friends and people whose phone numbers she didn't recognize, along with DMs, entertainment news push notifications, and every other type of update you can think of, all blasting the same message:

"IS CHAMPAGNEPAPI REALLY A PAPI NOW? PORN STAR ALLEGES THAT THE RAP STAR GOT HER PREGNANT AND HAS TEXT MESSAGE CONVERSATIONS TO PROVE IT."

    Mia's brows drew together. Rolling her eyes, she dropped her phone back on the nightstand and collapsed back into bed. "They should try harder next time."

    "You're not even going to read the article?" he asked her.

    "For what?" She stifled a yawn before stretching her arms towards him.

    He pressed a button on the side of his phone before carefully placing it on the nightstand near him. Then he settled back in bed and wrapped his arms around her.

    It was the funniest thing. Even with the time they'd spent apart, even with knowing who he was and just how many other women desired him, the text messages and news stories didn't bother her one bit. After all, wasn't this a part of living the life of a superstar? Dealing with false stories spread about you or the person you loved? She was proud of herself for the way that she was handling this...at least until she realized that Drake was wide awake, but completely silent, lost in his own thoughts. She was completely confident in their relationship, until she realized that his body was growing even more tense, instead of less tense.

    And even then, she told herself that he was just stressing himself out because yet another false story was being spun around him. She told herself that knowing that half the time he reveled in the fact that people were wagging their tongues about him and giving him free press over trivial matters. She told herself that knowing that a matter like this wasn't even trivial.

    But what is there to worry about? He set it up so that he can't have children until he wants to be able to have them again. So if a(nother) porn star comes out claiming he got her pregnant, I know up front that it's a lie. I don't have to click on an article and read it. I don't have to comb the internet checking for her interviews with TMZ. I don't have to have a conversation with her. Aubrey getting her pregnant is...not quite impossible, but pretty frigging close to impossible. She glanced up at him and the worry crease he had in his thick brows. I mean...isn't it?

~~~~~~

    "You ignored all of my text messages, bitch? You tryna catch a case?"

    "I was in bed with Aubrey."

    "Mmm."

    Mia watched Drake and his crew packing up the Suburban parked in front of the door.

    "So...how are things?" Bri asked.

    "Things are..." Mia didn't even know how to finish the sentence.

    "Whenever you two are together, hunkered down at the crib, you're always minding your own business," Bri said. "It's like drama has a way of sniffing you two out. I've never seen anything like it...well, except on Love & Hip Hop but supposedly most of that shit is scripted."

    "I'm not even viewing it as drama," Mia insisted. "The story can't even be true."

    "Mia..."

    "He had a vasectomy, Bri. For the story to be true, he would've had to reverse it. He would have told me about something like that." Mia frowned and waved a hand around in the air. "And that's ignoring the fact that he wouldn't have slept with this girl in the first place. Even though we've had some shaky times recently, we've been pretty solid."

    Bri was quiet for a minute. Then she asked, "Did you read the story?"

    "Why would I?" Mia asked, her heart twisting while she watched Drake heft a large case into the back of the Suburban. "That shit is poison."

    "I get where you're coming from...I just..." Bri was quiet for another minute. "I don't know. Something about the timeline and the way she tells the story and how she's not really trying to be extra with it-"

    "Showing text conversations that are supposedly private isn't being extra?" Mia interjected.

    Drake finished loading the back of the SUV with his boys, then turned to face the front door. He stared at Mia for a long moment before moving towards the door.

    "There is a reason why she showed the text messages - according to her."

    "I can't entertain her BS and Aubrey is coming back, Bri. I have to go."

    "Wait, Mia. Before you hang up..."

    "Yeah?"

    "According to her, the reason why she showed the text messages is because in them - allegedly, of course - Aubrey is demanding her to get an abortion."