Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
Rap music blasted loudly as I drove through the busy streets of Memphis. The bright sun shone in the sky, casting a warm glow down on the screaming kids playing gleefully in the freezing white snow. A smile crept across my face; I grew up in the hood, where I had to constantly look over my shoulder due to my heavy influence in street life. As I approached my destination, I looked at the nicely built house that stood tall in front of me; the person inside was in for a surprise.
As I grabbed the key from my pocket, I unlocked the door, and the smell of cooked food filled my nostrils. I could hear the TV playing, and my kids were sitting in a trance while they watched the show. Only when they saw my tall figure enter the house did they look up; their small feet tapped against the floor as they ran up to each of my legs, hugging them tightly.
"Daddy," the two kids screamed loudly, both excited to see their father.
"Wassup, my seeds?" I said, picking the two identical twins up to shower them with kisses.
"What I tell you about calling them that?" Kye asked.
As I looked at the short male in front of me, his long hair was pinned up, and he wore an apron that hugged his body. I licked my lips at the sight of him; all these years later, he still had the same effect on me as when I first laid eyes on his smaller figure. Our relationship was complicated; I wasn't faithful to say the least. He put up with my cheating until his broken heart had had enough. Once he had my kids, I half-expected him to take me back. We have a good co-parent relationship, but my heart still beats for the shorter male.
"Wassup, baby mama?" I said to the male, causing a frown to form on his face; he hated when I referred to him as that.
"Ew, I wish your tall, lanky ass would stop calling me that. Anyway, what are you doing here?" he said, going back to the kitchen.
"I can't pop up on my baby mama; you don't have any nigga on the way here, do you?" I asked.
"You know I don't bring any man around my babies; don't play," he said with venom laced in his soft voice.
"Papa, why are you and Daddy not together? We see him with that lady; we don't like her," their daughter Kira asked in her broken English.
"You know I don't like to lie to y'all, but when you get older, you'll understand: no matter how good something may seem, some things just aren't meant to be," Kye answered.
The curious girl was smart for her age; she understood what her papa said. She responded with a nod, running back to the TV.
"Don't be lying to her, baby. When are you gonna give me a chance?" I asked, looking down at his backside.
Instead of answering, he continued to work his way around the kitchen.
I didn't like that at all, so I walked closer to him, and his candy-like scent filled my nose.
"Are you hearing me talking to you?" I asked, my voice low enough for only his ears to hear.
"You think everything is a game, Tyrell? My heart isn't some toy you can play with whenever you feel like it. I gave you way too many chances. I don't want or need a relationship; the only thing that you need to focus on is our kids, like you told me years ago: life ain't no fairy tale," Kye said.
Hearing his lover say that caused the man to think about all the things he put him through. When it came to sex, no one compared to Kye; yet that didn't stop him from pursuing any woman who would bat her eyelashes at him. He hated to admit that Kye was done with him, but he still had hope that someday the shorter male would forgive him and take him back.
"I have something to tell you, Kye. I didn't want you to hear it from anybody else," I said, pausing for a few seconds. "Okay, I have a baby on the way," I stated, getting straight to the point.
I was met with pin-dropping silence; Kye sat unmoving, with his back turned towards me.
It felt like an eternity before he finally decided to speak.
"Okay, congratulations, I guess," he said, uncertainly.
"You aren't mad or anything?" I asked.
"Why would I be mad, Tyrell? You and I are not together," Kye replied.
Now, here was the moment of truth; he didn't know that the woman in question was his ex-best friend. I had been involved with her in secret for quite some time. What started off as a harmless kiss turned into something much deeper; I couldn't get enough of her. I know it's messed up, given that she was one of the few I cheated on him with, but clearly, he didn't know.
I silently prayed he wouldn't slap me after I was about to tell him this. "The baby mama is Nikki," I rushed out.
In all my twenty-five years of living, I had never seen somebody turn around so fast. Kye looked at me, his brown eyes wide, and it didn't take long before he burst into laughter.
"You know, you've done some pretty messed up things to me, but this one takes the cake," he paused before continuing. "You could have had any woman in the world because I know you had PLENTY, but you picked the very girl who betrayed me. How long has it been going on?" he asked, closing his eyes, trying to contain his anger.
When I didn't respond, Kye raised his voice, thick with emotion, and demanded, "HOW LONG?"
"I didn't mean for things to get that far, but we first had sex the night I found out you were pregnant," I confessed.
Kye didn't respond as quickly as I thought he would. He began to pace the kitchen floor, and I could clearly see he was trying his best not to physically retaliate.
"I want you out of my house. Now," he stated, moving toward the door.
"Come on, man, can we talk?" I pleaded.
"Tyrell, I'm not a violent person; you and I both know that. But with the kids being in the next room, it's saving your ass. I don't want to talk; I want you out of my house," he spoke calmly.
"Are you going to let me say goodbye to my kids?" I asked.
He let out an annoyed huff before nodding his head.
After saying my goodbyes, I was thankful the two were there. I think I really messed up this time, and I had done nothing but dig a deeper hole for myself.
