If Only You Knew

Fly Away

D'arrica's POV

I walked into my mother's cool home hearing the faint sound of Steve Harvey's voice coming from the TV in the living room. The house smelled of bleach and candles letting me know she had a deep cleaning day.

"I'm home!" I shouted listening to the light pitter-patter of my son's footsteps.

Elijah rounded the corner with a huge smile plastered across his small face. I bent down to his level noticing the blue ring around his mouth.

"Hi, son! What you eat?" I questioned picking him up and toying around his his hair. He needed a retwist.

"Gummy bears." He grinned trying to put on a cute face, knowing he wasn't supposed to have candy if I wasn't around.

"Why would your granny let you have gummy bears?"

"Because he wouldn't sit down while I clean unless he was eating or watching TV. His iPad died and we couldn't find the charger." My mom spoke as she emerged from around the same corner as E.

"Oh! Sorry that was me, I accidentally grabbed it this morning." I remarked pulling his charger from my pink Chanel bag.

"Mhmm, how was the job search?" She asked taking the charger from me and plugging it into the wall.

E wiggled his way from my arms, immediately going to grab his iPad so he could charge it. Poor thing had probably been bored all day without his mama or his YouTube.

I plopped onto the couch with a sigh, crossing one leg over the other as I tossed my crocs off my feet.

"Same shit, different day. I keep hearing 'Thanks, you should be hearing from us in a couple days' and nothing! I'm so tired of this." I huffed.

"Well did you call them back? Or go up there to ask for an update?" She took a seat next to me as she patted my knee.

"No."

"Well, that's why you still don't have a job D'arrica. You have to be the one to reach back out, you have to show them you want it."

"I don't want it!" I expressed getting frustrated.

"Of course you don't, but we all have to work. Bills need to be paid and you have a child to feed.  We can't all be a lazy drug dealer like your son's father."

"Please don't bring him up."

I held my hand up trying to stop the conversation before it even started. I didn't have the mental capacity to be talking about Landin right now.

"Have you two had the chance to speak?"

"You know we haven't, mama." I spoke rolling my neck a bit. "He can't speak to me even though he tries to."

"He does?"

"Yes. He wanted to talk to set up visitation for E."

"When was this? And why didn't you tell me?"

I shrugged. "Didn't think it was that important. Plus it doesn't matter, we can't come within one hundred feet of each other for another 17 days."

"So how was he asking about visitation?"

"He was calling me from Twin's phone the other day."

"Was he being disrespectful?"

"Surprisingly no. He just called to ask if we could talk and even after I told him no and hung up in his face he just called back and told me he had to pay a fine for his gun charge and that he was sorry for everything."