(NOT) Another Hood Love Story

Ten

Bronx | New York
Mulani
11:00 AM

Today was Saturday, and for once, the house was quiet. The girls were with their grandma, which meant I finally got to sleep in. Kay had been in and out lately, coming home late, leaving early and it's always because of work.

This should've been the perfect chance for us to spend real time together. No kids, no noise, no distractions. And I understood that he had responsibilities, that his work demanded a lot from him. That wasn't the issue.

The issue was communication.

He wasn't telling me when he'd be leaving early or coming back late, and that bothered me more than I wanted to admit. It made me feel out of the loop, like I was an afterthought instead of his partner.

I wasn't going to do what I did a few weeks ago and storm out and go to the club without telling him. That was petty, and I knew it. I'd promised myself I'd handle things better this time.

Let me just call him, I thought.

I dialed his number. Straight to voicemail.

Okay... weird.

I tried again. Voicemail.

Now I was annoyed, but I forced myself to breathe. Let me not jump to conclusions. I decided I'd wait until he got home so we could talk face-to-face.

By noon, I got dressed and left the house. I went to Walmart, then Whole Foods, stocking up on groceries—enough for the next two weeks. I even got my nails done. Kay usually hated when I paid for things myself, always insisting he handle it, but lately it felt like he wasn't paying attention to much of anything I was doing.

By the time I unpacked the car and put everything away, it was 4:30.

I texted him.

Kay 🔐💗:
Hey babe, what's going on? I called mad times and it went straight to voicemail.

Read.

That was it. No reply. No call back.

Now I was officially irritated.

I tried to cool off by binge-watching Psych, one of my comfort shows. I told myself not to spiral, not to assume the worst. Somewhere between episodes, time completely slipped away.

The next thing I knew, I heard the front door open.

I glanced at the clock. 3:00 a.m.

Kay walked in like nothing was wrong.

"What's going on with you, Kay?" I asked immediately.

He sucked his teeth and walked straight past me toward the kitchen, completely ignoring me.

"Don't you hear me talking to you?"

Still nothing.

"Kayshawn Smith, I am not playing with you right now," I said, standing up and following him. I grabbed his arm to turn him toward me.

"Bro, back up," he snapped.

"I'm not your bro. Andd now you can speak?"

"There's nothing wrong," he yelled, pulling his arm away. "And I would appreciate it if you backed the hell up and stopped talking to me!"

Oh. So that's how it was.

"Alright then," I said calmly, even though my chest was tight.

I walked upstairs, packed a bag, and came back down. I handed it to him.

"Here."

"What are you on, bruh?" he said, staring at me.

"You're not staying here tonight. Go to your mom's—or one of the other houses."

"You're not serious right now, Mulani."

"I'm dead serious. Bye. Find someone else to play with, Kayshawn."

The moment he realized I wasn't bluffing, he grabbed the bag and left without another word.

As soon as the door shut, everything I'd been holding in collapsed. I cried harder than I meant to, the kind of crying that leaves your chest aching. This wasn't how we handled problems. This wasn't us.

I cried myself to sleep.

Mulani
Sunday – 12:00 p.m.

I woke up with a pounding headache. I took some Motrin and laid there for a minute, staring at the ceiling. I checked my phone—no missed calls, no texts from Kay.

Nothing.

I turned the TV on for background noise when I heard keys jangling at the door.

Kay walked in.

"What are you doing here?" I asked sharply.

"Baby, can we talk?"

"I'm straight," I said, standing up.

He walked over anyway and pulled me down into his lap.

"Babe, I'm sorry," he said softly. "You know how this business is. It's stressful and I'm not saying that as an excuse."

I stayed quiet.

"I've been overworking myself the past few days. I wasn't communicating, and I know we said we would. I shouldn't have ignored you, and I definitely shouldn't have yelled at you. Mulani... I'm really sorry. I should've done better."

"Yeah," I said. "You should have."

He sighed. "So... do you forgive me?"

"You've lost bed privileges for three days," I replied. "Get comfortable on the couch."

He laughed lightly. "Alright. But do you forgive me, Lani?"

"We'll see."

I knew Kay. I knew he was about to be on his best behavior, trying everything to make me fold and I hoped I stayed strong.

I was at the sink, rinsing the last plate, when I felt him before I saw him. The air behind me shifted, warm, familiar.

Then his arms wrapped around my waist.

I stiffened instantly, my grip tightening on the dish in my hands. His chest pressed against my back, solid and unapologetic, like he hadn't spent the night on the couch at all. His chin hovered near my shoulder, close enough that I could feel his breath against my skin.

"Kay," I warned softly.

He didn't answer. Instead, his lips brushed my neck—slow, intentional, like he was testing me. Once. Twice. My breath hitched before I could stop it.

"Don't," I said, but my voice wasn't as strong as I wanted it to be.

He kissed my neck again, lingering this time, then sucked gently at my skin. Heat rushed through me so fast it made my knees weak. A quiet sound slipped out of my mouth before I could catch it.

That was all the encouragement he needed.

I turned quickly, pushing my hands against his chest, forcing space between us. "Back up," I said, breathless. "We're not friends right now."

His hands stayed on my waist, not pulling me back in, but not letting go either. His eyes dropped to my lips for half a second before lifting back to my face.

"That's okay," he said calmly. Too calmly. "I'm still gonna make you forgive me, Lani."

The way he said my name: low, confident, certain—sent a chill straight through me. Like he already knew how this would end.

I stepped away before my resolve cracked, turning back to the sink even though my heart was racing.

Behind me, I felt his smile more than I saw it.

And that scared me...
because part of me knew he was right.

It's been forever I'm so sorry I hope you
enjoyed this chapter. There's many more to come. Made it to 1,339 words were. Love yall bye! ✌🏾❤️