All Grown Up |Sequel To His Block|

|1.Epilogue|

"I know you ain't out here by yo' self again." Lamont stood a few feet behind Jhenea as she enjoyed the beauty of her backyard. The sun was just beginning to set so the sky swirled in a soothing pink and yellow color. The trees in the backyard pulled the scenery all together giving Jhenea a relaxing feeling.

"Just trying to get a peace of mind," She sighed as she set her eyes onto the sky. "It's beautiful out here."

Lamont agreed as he stood beside her leaning against the wooden railing. "It's LA, wasn't really expecting anything besides this."

Silence rendered the two as the wind circled around them smoothly. The branches swayed giving a peaceful sound to the ears. The air was crisp and the smell of the freshly cut grass was somewhat intoxicating to Jhenea. She had gotten a lot into nature lately and it really helped her relax and unwind. "You alright?" Lamont asked glancing at her for a moment.

Jhenea tucked some of her hair behind her ear. Lamont could see the profile view of her bare face. Her skin grew golden underneath the lighting the sky was projecting. "You always ask me that Lamont, I'm fine." She let out a light smile assuring him with a head nod.

"Just making sure. I'm tryna keep you happy at all times. I know you under a lot of stress with doin' all this alone with baby boy, but if everything else fails just know Lammie is always around." He pulled her into a swaying hug causing her to chortle lightly at the use of the nickname she appointed him.

Staying in the hug gave her a sense of security, something she had been missing for a few months now. "I can always count on you."

"Always."Lamont smiled as they let each other go.

"I'm gonna head inside and check on Artist, if you need me I'm in my room ."Jhenea told him once the sun had finally set and darkness plunged down onto the backyard. Nodding in response, Jhenea entered the home and headed upstairs.

As she said, she checked on Artist who was passed out asleep in his crib still clenching his night bottle in hand. His hair had grown out into curls just as his father's would. He was a spitting image of Anthony and that bothered Jhenea so much now that he was gone. Applying a subtle kiss onto Artist's forehead, Jhenea exited the nursery and went into her bedroom that was right next to it.

Upon stepping into the bedroom, her eyes glanced at the shirts that she had placed onto the bed. They all belonged to Anthony. She bit down on her bottom lip as she shuffled her feet towards them. Once she grew close enough, she gently brushed the her hand against them. Rising them up to her chest , she clung onto them letting his scent invade her nostrils. This had been a habit of hers for the past few months and it kept her sane.

She had to have something to give her the impression that he was still around. She knew she was driving herself deep into insanity but this was how she coped. "You're gone," She murmured out holding back the tears she wanted to desperately let fall.

Separating the shirts from her chest, Jhenea slowly made her way towards the closet and hung the shirt up. It had been the same process for months now and she knew the next morning she would be taking the shirts out of the closet to aid with her grieving.

She sulked her way towards the bed slipping right underneath the duvet. Her phone laid next to her which she used to occupy herself now that she didn't have her husband around.

She was going through the withdrawals of being without him and it was exceptionally hard. She hadn't laughed the same, talked the same, slept the same, or been the same. She was missing a part of herself.

Grabbing her phone, she unlocked it. The opening screen was of her gallery. She had been in it all day swiping through all the videos and pictures she had of him.

Swiping her thumb to the right of the screen, a picture of the two of them caught her eye. She subconsciously bit down on her bottom lip, keeping herself from crying. He seemed so infatuated with her in the photo. Staring at her like he was in a trance while she stood beside him smiling her contagious smile that was now broken.

She just wanted to have another moment like that. Where she could hold his hand, kiss his lips, admire his face.

She needed one more "I love you,"

She wanted to hear him call her, mamas or baybeh' one more time.

She needed one more notion of appreciation from him.

She wanted to hear his smooth chuckle, spine rattling voice, and his silly jokes.

She needed one more hug, one more kiss and one more promise.

Swiping to the left she began to reminisce when a video of him started to play. The video captured him talking on the phone as he drove his Range Rover with one hand. The conversation seemed to be very serious, however once he noticed Jhenea with her phone's camera pointed at him, he smiled. He showcased his glistening gold bottom slugs before resuming to the conversation.

No longer being able to hold back the tears, she let them stream out carelessly. Her cries were muffled by the pillow as it began to grow damp from soaking in all of the tears.

Her life was beginning to seem repetitive; she woke up, she cried, tended to her son, swiped through videos and pictures of Anthony, then she finally ended her day with crying.

Since Lamont had gotten to LA two weeks ago, she must admit that he was able to cut the crying down to minimum, but that didn't mean she didn't end up crying when she was alone.

She knew Anthony had been preparing her for this the entire time, but now that it finally happened— it felt like she just got the wind knocked out of her.

She was now in charge of everything. It was extremely overwhelming, but she knew she couldn't screw up.

Her cries lasted for a little over fifteen minutes before her breathing retraced to its normal pace and her tears had stopped.

She sat up in bed and pressed her back against the headboard. "He's gone,"She bluntly stated to herself. "You need to get over it."

She realized she needed to give herself the same tough love Anthony would be giving her if he was around. She wouldn't have been sulking for months if she kept it real with herself from. She held a lot of pity for herself which resulted in her overthinking and dragging herself down.

If she wanted to get over it she needed to accept her fate.

Anthony was gone.

She was alone.

Instead of crying herself into vulnerability, she needed to be figuring out how she would be handling all of the issues Anthony left behind on her own.

Everything was all on her— the pressure and the targets.

____________________________________

Lasting should be posted within the next two weeks or so.

I hope you guys enjoyed this sequel.❤️