𝐎𝐜𝐞𝐚𝐧 𝐁𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐢𝐫𝐞

Chapter Thirty- Six

......................................................................

"Imani," Jamie called; he was seated on the floor playing with a track toy which was one of the gifts from Matthew.

"Yes, honey." he didn't say anything at first; he just sat there staring at Imani, his small face puckered like he had forgotten what he wanted to say and was thinking hard to remember. Imani turned her face towards him with a concerned look.

"Are you okay?"

Jamie nodded, then turned back to play, but she could tell something was bothering him.

"You know you can tell me anything, remember?"

He pushed his head up and gave her a toothless grin. She smiled back, staring at him with eyes full of love. Some people might think her life may have been easier if she didn't have him, but Jamie saved her from dying of grief and loneliness. While she wasn't as close to her mother as most children are to theirs, Imani had loved her mom, and mourning her would have brought a desolation that would have been unbearable if not for Jamie.

She liked to imagine Jamie was God's way of ensuring she survived. Imani laughed at this thought any time it went through her mind, and more often than not, she called herself out at the arrogance of thinking Jamie's sole purpose was for her benefit.

He was an intelligent boy with potential. She knew he was going to take the world by storm one day.

"Talk to me, baby."

Jamie looked at her again, feeling shy and unsure. "Our teacher asked us to bring our daddies to school on Thursday." Imani's heart constricted as she looked at his face. Her beautiful baby brother.

"What did you tell your teacher."

He lifted his right shoulder, "I said I don't have a dad." he stated as if it wasn't a big deal. Looking at him at that moment, with his head bent down as if he was hiding his eyes, Imani knew it was beginning to bother him.

He was hiding because he did not want her to see how troubled and bothered he was that he didn't have a father or a mother.

"I'm sorry, sweetheart," she said, feeling like someone was cutting her heart into two.

"It's not your fault," Jamie responded. She swipped a tear from her eye. He was growing up. Imani thought, getting up to scooch beside him.

"Can I come instead?"

He lifted his eyes to look at her, "can Matthew come?"

Imani immediately dropped down on the floor at the shook.

"No." although she whispered, the tone was harsh enough for Jamie to understand the finality of it.

"Matthew is a busy man, remember?" Jamie nodded, looking forlorn. "I know you like him, but he cannot be part of our lives." she continued, her heart racing as she tried to explain why Matthew didn't fit into their lives.

"Did you tell anyone about him?"

He threw her a look of irritation, shaking his head.

"You can never tell anyone we know him." he nodded. Imani felt guilty for telling him to keep a secret at his age, but this was important. It would be catastrophic for anyone to find out the connection between her and Matt.

"Tell your teacher I will come instead." He didn't respond or acknowledge he had heard her, but Imani knew he had. It was not a secret that most people at Jamie's school believed she was his mother other than a brother. They weave conspiracy theories about how she ran away from home because of early pregnancy, pointing fingers at how she raised him, giving unsolicited advice, and patronizing her when she tried to give her opinion