Falling for Stupid

Day 79 - Monday

Candice

I smile as I lay in the center of my bed
dreaming about Mario. I find myself with my AirPods in, immersed in the smooth melodies of R&B. In moments of solitude, my mind drifts to delightful daydreams of him and the beautiful life we could share. I love how he loves me and is so patient with me. He has me in my feelings for him.

He keeps saying he has plans for us, which warms my heart. I love it when he puts effort into me and us. Although we've never said it, he's my man. The thought of being his woman and having him to myself for days on end excites me.

He has me in my room belting the words 'Flaws and All.' by Sonta. "I'm so fucked up about you. Don't wanna live without you. I don't wanna be without you. I love you. I love you flaws and all. I ain't never going let this go. Show me what love is. Show me what trust is. Now I ain't letting up, so tell them all you're spoken for." I belt the song out, feeling my heart beat like crazy.

My thoughts linger to the day Mario and I first made the deal to pretend to love one another and were forced to get to know one another. I close my eyes vividly, remembering the day he gave me the nickname Firecracker. A bright smile lightens my face as I think about how we went from barely being able to tolerate one another to falling in love with one another. He makes me so blissfully happy. My heart yearns Mario something profound.

I move my shoulders to the sound of the beat, nod, and let my head fill with the many images of Mario—his kindness, gentlemanly qualities, and charming ways. There are so many reasons why I fell for him. When I feel vibrations from the bracelet, I smile and place my hand on it.

I love how he bought me this gift and uses it. I love how he loves me and puts me first. It's funny how the whole thing started to win Elliot's heart, and Mario and I fell in love with one another. It's a beautiful accident.

My phone rings, pulling me from my thoughts on Mario. I glance at the screen and see Kerri calling. I haven't heard from her since I left her place. I wanted to give her and Terrance some time to themselves. I hope that by leaving them, they had a chance to work on their relationship.

"Hello?" I answer Kerri's call cautiously.

"Do you ever plan to come over and visit me?" Kerri asks, laughing. "Did you elope or something?"

I notice her joy and relax my muscles, leaning against my headboard. "No. There's a lot going on. I think I may have a real boyfriend. I think Mario and I are going to be official." I squeal after saying the words.

"Yeah, I can see that. I'm glad you guys worked everything out. I knew you guys would. How he looks at you tells me all I need to know." She says, clearing her throat. "Terrance and I are expanding our family." She lets out a scream. "I don't have to drug him!"

I laugh at her silliness. "What? Explain further. What happened?"

She breathes heavily, still coming down from sharing her exciting news. "I don't have to drug him. Because girl, I would have put him to sleep and take my kids."

"Kerri, really?" I shake my head. "Where do you get this stuff?"

"Well, now I don't have to do that. We have started going to counseling and working through our feelings. I love that man, and he gets me riled up sometimes. I love him with passion." She chuckles a little. "He's been saying we're passionate since high school."

"So, you guys are having a baby?" I ask, my eyes widening in excitement.

"Yes." She exclaims. She takes a deep breath. "But first, we will go to a few more counseling sessions. I feel good about this. Last night, he told me to go ahead and throw my birth control away. This morning was the first time we had sex without me taking the pill. I'm about to have gorgeous chocolate babies with my hubby!" She yells out.

"Kerri, that is too much information. I do not want to hear about you and Terrance doing the nasty." I say, smiling and happy for her.

"Girl, I'm so happy. I'm going to suck the skin off that man's dick tonight. I just won't be swallowing his kids this time." She laughs hilariously.

I end the call with her, shaking my head.
I'm so happy that she and Terrance came to a solution. I knew they would if I got out of their space. Thinking about her and Terrance becoming parents, a smile graces my lips.

My phone beeps with a message from an unknown number. My eyebrows furrow together as I hesitate to open the message. I have a strict policy of not opening messages from numbers I don't recognize.

THIS YA MAN???

I suck in a deep breath, my stomach tightening as I purse my lips together. Fuck it. I quickly put my passcode into the phone, my adrenaline rushing at what I may see. Whoever sent me this must know something I don't know about my man.

I go to the message, and it's a frozen video clip of Mario sitting on a couch with Angela sitting in his lap. Against my better judgment, I push for the video to play. My lips twist as I watch every frame, my heart breaking every second the video plays, capturing the very last moment with one of his hand planted firmly on her ass and the other hiked up her dress, locked in an embrace and kissing with his hips moving beneath her.

I exit the forty-three-second video and inhale a sharp breath, blinking back tears. He has hurt me. Confusion sits in my heart as I replay everything we've become, all our promises, and the one he broke. He cheated. And he had me believe that we stood a chance. I feel stupid. I replay my words about telling him I fell for stupid.

As tears slip from the corner of my eyes, I swiftly yank my AirPods out of my ear in an attempt to block out the sound of yet another soft, sweet song about love, the gentle melody lyrics piercing through my soul.