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The gentle weight of Haven's head falling onto his left shoulder drew Cairo's attention away from his phone. He glanced at her with a faint smile, only to realize she was leaning in, her curious gaze fixed on his phone screen.
"You eating good in there," Cairo joked, shifting his focus back to Mari.
Mari laughed, the sound a mix of humor and resignation. "What you consider good? If you mean commissary, hell yeah. Thanks to y'all."
"That wasn't a question," Cairo chuckled. "More like a statement. Your cheeks getting full from all those survival meals."
Mari smirked, turning his face side to side as if inspecting himself in the camera. "I'mma turn it into muscle soon." His tone switched as he added, "I miss y'all though. I really do."
"We miss you too," Haven replied, leaning in further until her face appeared on the screen. She smiled and waved. "Are you doing okay?"
Mari had been gone for nearly a year now. He'd gotten himself wrapped up in a fifteen-year bid—multiple charges, the fact that he was already a felon, and more, all contributing to the heavy sentence. For Cairo, the disappointment ran deep. He had thought he and his friends were done with that life, that Mari was on a better path, running his father's autobody shop, making good money.
Cairo couldn't understand it. He couldn't imagine going back to that life, especially with a whole family at home. But it wasn't for him to understand; he wasn't Mari. Out of their whole friend group, Mari was the only one without a family. He hadn't settled down, didn't have kids, and seemed to be bouncing from one woman to another.
Cairo could only guess that the adrenaline rush of that old life was what drew him back in.
"I'm doing the best I can," Mari said with a shrug. "You alright? My niece not whooping you, right?"
"She is," Haven laughed, resting a hand on her belly. "I'm very tired, and everything hurts, but it'll all be worth it in a few months."
The phone call lasted another minute or so before the time ran out. Cairo set the phone down and made his way downstairs to grab the charger he'd left earlier. On his way back up, his gaze caught the familiar brown box sitting near the steps.
In the mood to watch something, Cairo decided to sift through the box. He was now deep into his second box of tapes, for all three of her boys, his mother ensured that they all had plenty of memories to hold on to for the future. It had taken him time, but he had worked his way through them.
His fingers flipped through the tapes, the familiar handwriting of titles on each one. As his eyes skimmed, one title caught his attention—My Goodbye to My Boys. He paused the words repeating in his mind. His hands stilled as he pulled the tape out, turning it over in his grasp. My goodbye to my boys. His heartbeat quickened as he read it again.
