Seeds of Tomorrow

40

Victor trimmed his mustache, fighting the last of his hangover. That time Menudo hadnt don't much to help it neither did ibuprofen, water, and Pedialyte. He'd always been a drinker but his drinking had gotten a little out of hand since his breakup. Pops said he should put down the bottle and pick up the blunt but his work piss-tested and even though weed was legal on a state level, it wasn't on the federal. Besides, he had never been much of a weed smoker, even when he was an unruly youngster tryna run in the streets.

Raquel had been causing him grief, frantic about the looming eviction day and that she didn't want to have to move back in with her mother but because Victor was bitter that she'd moved on, looked like she had to. Madison groaned, snatching his phone from his hand and powering it off.

"If it's an emergency, she can call one of us, she doesn't get to play victim," his stepmom said flatly.

"All them brains and that booty, that's why I married yo' ass," Pops told her with a lustful grin on his face. Victor shook his head pretending to be disgusted but he low-key hoped for a relationship like theirs.

Pops had one time confessed that getting shot was the best thing that happened to him, he said it was God forcing him to literally sit the fuck down and knock his shit off. He had no desire to be out in the streets no more, not out of fear because Pops wasn't afraid of no-mother fucking-body, but what he was scared of was leaving his kids alone knowing they had a piece of shit for a father. And on top of that, being paralyzed made his dick stop working the way it once had. He wasn't always horny, in fact, he wasn't horny at all and it taught him that mental and emotional intimacy was far superior to straight-up fucking.

"I still be fucking though, believe that," Fernando had added in his overly blunt way of speaking.

"I know, we all hear your ass," Victor told him. Pops just gave him a gold-toothed grin and picked at his teeth.

Victor didn't even know what this Ashley looked like or how old she was. Nothing. Just that she was also single and owned a business. He felt like Gladys and Gloria were already planning some wedding behind their backs and they hadn't even met. Maybe they could just introduce her to Junior, he was forever single and needed to find a woman to settle down with, not that it would ever happen.

Rocco had told him maybe they could just be fuck buddies if they didn't feel a strong connection. Which...didn't sound bad considering it had been pushing three months since he'd actually had sex and not much less time since he'd even gotten himself off. That's right, Victor had fallen into such a funk that even a good old jerk session wasn't appealing. Of course, he had given a few half-ass attempts in the shower but his mind wasn't in it.

Fucking Rocco. He swore since Rocco lost his virginity he tried to talk like he was some expert on sex. Not that Victor himself had any more partners than his little cousin but he at least had seven years to learn.

That brought Victor to another thought. Twenty-three years old with one partner. What if when the time came to finally be with another woman, he didn't know what to do? He knew Raquel's body but it had taken time and practice.

He told himself to stop thinking about sex and the what-ifs, this granddaughter of Gloria' wasn't going to be for him, and his anxiety was getting the best of him.

"I hope Victor don't cry today," Serafin told nobody in particular when Victor stepped into the front room.

"Boy, shut your little ass up," Fernando snapped, reaching for his belt but knowing damn well he wasn't gonna use it.

Serafin straightened up real good, "I'm sorry, Pops."

"You need to be saying you're sorry to Victor, not me."