Unintentional

Nirvana

Nyree

Jacey and I sat in the hospital with Jr and Lacey sound asleep between us. Mrs. Juanita's message was what stopped Jacey from kissing me again. It had been 4 hours since then, but for some reason I was scared to leave. My biggest fear was of leaving someone and have something happen before knowing they were okay. Mrs. J reappeared from Courtney's room, making me aware of how close me and Jacey were. I adjusted my posture before anyone noticed. "You guys look tired. You should go on and head home". Before either of us could object, our attention was now facing the hospital entrance. My eyes lit up seeing Ray and Monty; two of Jacey's many nephews. The 4 of us were all close in age, which gave both boys a chance to get to know me when I first got with Jacey.

The one thing I loved about Jacey's family was how cool and accepting they were. I knew no matter how much time would pass, I would still be acknowledged as family, and as I stood being smothered with hugs; Iknew that fact was still true. "How's the homie?" Ray asked. "He's better now. The doctors want to monitor him overnight so he can't have any visitors yet", Mrs. J announced. Everyone exhaled in unison, thankful for the good news. "Well in that case Nyree, you should come chill with us tonight".

As good as the offer sounded, I knew I had to get Lacey in bed as soon as possible. "I would love to, but I have my baby girl with me, and I don't want to keep her out all night". The two brothers looked at each other in confusion. "Baby Girl?", Monty reiterated. I smiled, turning to reveal Lacey next to Jr, bundled in blankets. Monty cooed over her while Ray assessed her features. "Damn 'Ree, them genes strong as hell; freckles and all. She's beautiful". " Thanks", I blushed. "So what's her name?", Monty pitched in. "Lacey". Instantly, Ray turned to Jacey with a smirk as they exchanged eye contact. "Well you and little Miss Lacey are coming over to our place for some fun tonight. Y'all are family too, so I'm not taking no for an answer". I held up myhands in defeat, "You got it, boss". I gathered Lacey, Jacey grabbed Jr., and we followed the boys to their home.

...

After checking on Lacey one more time, I made my way out to the deck they had built in their backyard. I was proud to see them all grown up and doing so well. There were smiles all around as Ray revealed his marijuana stash. It had been so long for me, I had to remind myself to not overdo anything. The joint had finally reached me, and I inhaled deeply letting the smoke sit before exhaling. A few more tugs and I passed it on, waiting for the wavy effect. Ray began rolling a second joint as the first continued its rotation. "So how you been, sis?", Monty asked.

I shrugged, "I've been good, mainly just been trying to branch out and open my own office". "You still doin that Sonogram stuff, huh?". I nodded; I had another 10 years left in the Radiology field before I would be forced to retire. "Yea, I'm just trying to get everything together before I retire". Ray scrunched up his face, "Retire? You nowhere near even 40". "It's Radiology fool, you don't know what that means?", Monty commented. Ray just simply shrugged his shoulders, waiting for an answer.

"In my field, you only get like 15 years because you're being exposed to radiation which can cause things like cancer. That's why I'm looking in to opening my own office just to keep the money rolling in". They all smiled in unison, "That's the 'Ree I remember; always hustling", Monty smiled as we pounded fists. By this time, the second joint had gone into rotation and my buzz began to kick in. I looked over at Jacey who had been quiet since we left the hospital. "You good?", I whispered. He simply nodded, remaining quiet. I had no idea what had changed his mood so suddenly, but I wasn't about to let him ruin the fun. I realized that this was the first time in a while since I had just been out with friends; back home it was strictly work and parenting.