Crossroads

Ch. 43: Teenage Fever

Kain walked me to the front door and I thanked him. I fumbled in my purse looking for my keys but the door swung open.

John stood at the door with a tight lipped smile and nodded at Kain to greet him. "Thanks for protecting her."

Daniel was quite open with John about his area of business and John understood since Deuce was a close friend of his. He always knew that's what Daniel would eventually do. So Daniel kept him in the loop about everything. That was their relationship. Open and honest.

"Of course." Kain waved us goodbye and walked away to his car.

"I don't like that boy. Looking like damn coloring book with all those tattoos." John stated as I stepped in and he closed the door behind me.

I laughed out loud as I kicked off my shoes by the door. "He does look like that, doesn't he? Where's mom?"

"She's upstairs in the nursery." He replied.

"Wow, it's official. We have a nursery." I joked as I used the railing to help me climb the stairs. I huffed by the time I got to the top of the stairs. I was out of breath. I placed my purse on the console table in the hallway and walked to the end of the hall towards the nursery. "Mom! Look what I got for the baby!" I said excitedly.

I walked into the room where the door was wide open. I paused when I saw her laughing with Daniel who was by the window tightening screws on an acrylic clear crib that would make it easy to monitor the baby through. I cleared my throat and looked away from him awkwardly and he chose to do the same. He stopped smiling and focused on his task at hand. My heart began beating rapidly and I was feeling uncomfortable in his presence. He looked good. He had a crisp line up which meant he recently got a haircut. His tiny curls were shiny and moisturized. He wore a black Nike sweatsuit and only had his socks on to prevent messing up the plush grey carpet my mother chose to layout.

"Oh, hey mija." My mom smiled and put down the teddy bear she was playing with. "What did you get? Let me see." She held her hand out towards the little rectangular box I held in my hand.

"It's fine. I'll show you later." I began walking backwards to retreat from the room.

"Ah ah ah. Come back here."

I rolled my eyes and took steps forward to stand in front of her. I handed her the box and glanced at Daniel again. He seemed to be trying his best to pretend like I wasn't there. He was now laying under the crib fiddling with screws like he was a mechanic fixing under a car.

"Ayayi. This is so adorable. It's so tiny." My mother exclaimed. She studied the silver Cuban link bracelet with diamonds I had Maggy customize for my son. "I love it. You know silver is for protection. It keeps all those bad spirits and negative energies away. This is exactly what my nieto needs."

I giggled at her superstitious remark. "Sí mama. I remember I had one just like it when I was little. So I figured I'd get him one too."

"Yes. I'm so happy you learned that from me." She put the little lid back on the box and handed it back to me. "You like what I've done with the place?"

I smiled slightly so only one half of my mouth was elevated. I looked around the room at the blue and grey decor. The furthest wall where his changing table was had a blue sky wallpaper with clouds. There was a soft grey rocking chair in the corner with a blue cushion and a white bookcase filled with childrens' books next to it. The closet doors were open so I could see an array of clothing hung up and diapers and other necessities neatly organized in shelves.

"It's beautiful. Thank you." I approached her and kissed her cheek.

"You're welcome. Thank Daniel as well. I couldn't have done it without him." My mother motioned towards him. She wanted for us to speak so badly because she took it upon herself to forgive him. I wouldn't though. And she couldn't force me to. He obviously didn't want to speak to me either. He probably got sick of me ignoring all his calls and texts.