Secondhand Girlfriend

.24

Today's the day. I'm finally going to ask Porcelain to be my girlfriend, and I'm nervous as fuck. They don't teach you things like this in school, you're just supposed to know. I'm new to the dating game, and I didn't even ask Lisanna to go out with me, it just happened. But now I'm actually asking, and I have no idea what I'm going to say.

"Why are you so nervous," Landon asks as we step inside the bakery.

"Because I have to get this right," I reply, running my fingers through my hair as we sit at the counter.

"Look little nigga, if you don't ask her out, I know another motherfucker that will."

"Who, I'ma beat they ass if they try, and you're just fucking with me."

I realise this as Landon begins to double over in laughter, and I punch him in the shoulder. This doesn't sway his laughter at all, and I roll my eyes as I pull out my phone. This thing never seems to stop ringing, so when I see that I have several missed calls from my mother I curse under my breath. When I call her back, I am definitely going to be in deep shit.

Pressing the call button, I put the phone to my ear and my mother answers on the first ring. Her voice is frantic and I can't make sense of what she's saying, so I tell her to slow down.

"Your sister is in labour," she tells me, breathing deeply.

"Oh, well tell me how it goes," I laugh, because it isn't as urgent as I thought it to be.

"You aren't coming?"

"No, I have no reason to. I don't care."

"Okay, see you here in twenty minutes."

She hangs up after that, stating the finality of her words with the dial tone of the phone. Rolling my eyes, I sigh heavily as I shove my phone back in my pocket. I turn to Landon, telling him I have to go, and to tell Wyatt I'll be back later. Our cupcake war will have to wait until later.

$ $ $ $ $

"What are you doing here," we snap at the same time.

"My sister's having a baby," I spit.

"My brother's kid is being born," Chandler quips.

And then we stare each other for a second. Oh no. The next instant, both of us are sprinting down the hospital hallway toward the delivery room. Nurses tell us to slow down, but we ignore them as we reach our destination. Bursting into the room, everyone looks up as we enter breathing erratically and glaring at each other.

"He's your brother," we say together, as both point at the other.

Malcolm and Fiona just stare at each other as my nephew is cradled in his mother's arms. When they look at us, all they do is nod their heads slowly. Chandler and I groan as we realise we are now technically related to each other. Sliding my hand down my face, I throw my head back as the low sound continues to emit from my mouth. Frank tells me to quite down, and I just flip him off as I sit in a chair across from the bed. He looks just about ready to rip my head off, and I smirk as I cross my arms over my chest.

My hand grazes a bruise on my arm, and I wince as I remember what happened last night. Narrowing my eyes to slits, I glare at Frank with anger boiling in my veins; changed man my ass, old habits must truly die hard. Closing my eyes completely, I take a deep breath as I will the memories away while rubbing my necklace. The sound of the door clicking open catches my attention, and a woman and a girl walk in. A smile instantly makes it's way onto my face as I recognise the girl, but she looks down at the ground when her eyes connect with mine. The slight grip I have on my necklace tightens at this, but I don't speak directly on it.