Here's to You, Zephaniah.

Zephaniah(9)

Zephaniah

A/n: there's going to be a small recap and then we get right into it.

Months passed, they did move out and they did get their ass whooped every time they came to visit." My uncle started bursting out laughing and I and my brother just smiled, we rarely heard uncle juju laugh but it was such a hearty but beautiful one.

Uncle juju stops laughing and Anandi continues. "You're father and I reconnected and reconcile our differences, plus my visions didn't come true yet so it wasn't anything hindering our relationship. You're father and I was super close before that incident and afterward since that distance made me recognize a lot. I truly love all my brothers and sisters but that was my boy you know. It's like how close you and you're sister are. My brother looked at me and I looked at him and smiled. My uncle juju cleared his throat and Anandi smiled and rest her head on uncle juju's shoulder and continued. "A year went by and you're dad introduced us to your mother, he said they had been dating for a while and he was ready to get serious with her, she left a good impression on all of us, and we loved her, within the second year they were dating. They were such a cute couple."

"Your mother was amazing, she stood by you're dad through everything too. Fast forward to the third year of them dating, you're dad was getting deeper into the lifestyle of drugs and the police were catching on deeper into the case between him and a few others who worked for him." Anandi took a deep breath and removed her head from my uncle's shoulder and look at me, I found it strange because this whole time she was looking at my brother, and completely altered her focus to me is crazy. "I saw another vision, I saw you." right then and there I wanted to walk away. This lady is crazy and the fact I heard her through for this long, and my uncle didn't stop her, not once, I couldn't doubt her credibility necessarily but I don't understand her obsession with me like girl. "I told you're father and he called me a liar and that my other vision didn't come true, so how can he believe this one? I was fed up at this point. I was being heard by nobody, not even my brother. The one I relied upon the most."

"I told my mama and everybody else too, they also called me a liar and that need to grow up. I moved out and disconnected myself from them. The same year, but later that year, my brother got shot. Javi"—— her hands started shaking and my uncle rub her back and she started crying. "Javi got shot, you're mom- she help, she helped him. Javi survived, and Your mother, believed me the whole time, but since her loyalty stayed with your father, she cut ties with me. It went down exactly how I said it was going to go. When I found out, that Javi got shot, I told every single one of my siblings to go to hell, never talk to me again, and if Javi die, they should die with him. I told you're father I hope his future babies die, the second they are born, so he understands the importance of life cause Javi not dying ain't teach him shit and if his children don't die, I hope he does." and amongst us, nobody said anything, the only noise was her crying and a few kids who were still here playing.

Eventually, my uncle said "Javi was in recovery, he was sitting in that bed watching all this play out, what she saying is true, and we were all there beside her at first. When she entered that room, it was this unsettling pit in my stomach. We haven't seen her for 7 months at that point. I was mostly confused. We grew up in a household where family was the most important thing and we couldn't be more divided that day. The look on you're daddy's face still hunts me sometimes. We started arguing and security kicked us out. You're aunt jalina and anandi started fighting outside the hospital and they both went to jail for a night. My parents bounded them out and beat they asses." Anandi started laughing and wiped her tears and looked at my bother. "it was an ass whooping that we deserved too, I was 20 at the time and I couldn't believe my mama beat my ass and my dad beat jalina's. I swear they always tagged team us."

Anandi took a deep breath and looked at her hands and continued. "I spent a night at your grandparent's house and I walked in on you're dad in the bathroom which was cracked and I peeped through, of him saying those things, to which I sent into you guy's dreams. I-I am sorry. Anyways that day, when he turned around and he saw me, he said that Im as dead to him as he is to me. I bet not come around his future kids, him or his girlfriend and he would kill me if he see my ass, and I knew he wasn't playing so I said okay and walked away. I said goodbye to your grandparents and that was the last time I saw you're daddy. A little after that, I got into some trouble myself and started fucking with the oops. Since I was practically dead to all my siblings as they were at the time to me, I didn't care for the consequences or why they had enemies in the first place, I just wanted to fuck and keep it moving. Until I couldn't. I meet a man I couldn't trick, and him being pussy wiped to me didn't help either. I became a pimp baby, I was so ashamed and degraded and used. I lost 3 kids cause he beaten my ass so bad I miscarried every time. I didn't have anywhere to go either, I practically sold my life to that man, and although family Is important, at the time, I rather lived in my guilt than cause more troubles in their lives."

"So in conclusion this is why I was never in your lives. I didn't have access to it and I deserve that, I cursed you're lives cause of my selfishness and being so inconsiderate. I'm not here to ask for your forgiveness and I'm not expecting any either, I had my share of karma and I got more coming too." then she stood up. "I hope you guys, find acceptance within yourselves, I didn't have when I was you're age, I wasn't the cause of your dad's death but I probably contribute to the conscience of it. When the time comes, I hope your dad forgives me. I don't need your acceptance through him. I needed him, I abused the fact I had it, I served the time and I'm about to continue to pay for that too. I am sorry though, this is why I asked you're uncle for me to meet you guys through him, I realized my approach was the same mistake I did many years ago. I can't keep making the same mistake and wondering why I keep making it. You have to stop searching for why at some point, shit, and realize you have to leave it alone."

Then Anandi walks away. I was expecting her to walk to the blue Cadillac but she didn't. Anandi kept walking forward. My uncle was now looking at his hands and I looked at my brother and he was looking at my uncle. My uncle looked at my brother and said "don't be like us, y'all all you each other got, you'll meet your uncles and other aunties in a few days, they just found out you're dad dead too" My jaw dropped a little and I now started rubbing my temples. This fucking family is ridiculous. My brother said, "man don't worry uncle juju, we were raised right, y'all call me when the rest of the fam come over, I love y'all fr." He stood up and walked away to his car. The park was now empty and it was nothing but me and my uncle now. I stared him down and he shook his head, then he stood up. "I think I answered all the questions, you needed to be answered, and like your brother said I'll contact you when you're aunties and uncle landed here for us to have a family meeting, there's more y'all have to learn about, and know." I stood up and hugged him. We went our separate ways and he drove off and when I was for certain he was gone, I shed a few tears. I can't catch a break. I'm so mentally tired. I prayed and started walking home, truly regretting why I didn't drive here.

I hope this clears up a lot of confusion.
Xoxox Cece :)