Breathe.

7

Toni Braxton

It was Saturday and when I glanced at my clock I saw it was 7 am. Nafessa had been avoiding me since I kissed her on Thursday. I didn't regret anything though, I had chosen to do it and now I had to deal with the consequences.

I had made a choice because I felt more than I should for Nafessa. It had been like that since we had first met eye contact. I didn't know what it was totally but that kiss told me everything. She was the first girl I'd ever been attracted to, let alone kissed.

A knock on my room door caused me to break out of my thoughts and yell out. "Come in!"

My mom appeared on the other side of it and motioned outside. "Janila is outside. Pack a bag for the weekend. You're going to stay with her and Nafessa."

I stilled as my heart dropped. Did Nafessa know what the hell was going on? "What? Mom why?" I asked in disbelief.

Her face furrowed. "Well, Janila has to work grave yards at the hospital and she doesn't want Nafessa at home alone and I have to go in at the office. I told her it would be okay if you stayed with her this weekend. I thought you and Nafessa were best friends, I didn't think it'd be a problem. You don't wanna go?"

My mind tossed for a moment. I couldn't tell my mom that I had kissed Nafessa and now we weren't talking. The first fact alone would cause her to flip a script and don't even get me started on my fathers reaction.

Shaking my head, I got up and grabbed my duffel bag. "No, it's not that. Tell Momma J to give me 5 and I'll be out."

"Okay sweetie. By the way, I like Janila, you stay friends with Nafessa, you hear? Her and Janet would get along great."

I nodded as I smiled a faint smile. "Yeah... they would."

My mom didn't know that Janet had declared damn near a nuclear war against me. It would break her heart. Her and Momma Kat were close, but after Kenny died, my mom started to see less of Janet, which of course led to less of Katherine. She wouldn't be able to handle all the shit her 'best friends' daughter was putting me through.

Plus, I didn't want to unleash a beast because hell hath no fury like Evelyn Braxton's wrath.

I began packing, throwing random shit in. I'm pretty sure this weekend wouldn't be one that was enjoyable anyways. When I packed everything I needed, I went to the car and got in.

My mom was talking to Nafessa's mom when I did get in the car and soon she pulled off and towards her house. It was silent at first before Momma J asked. "Toni, you would tell me if my daughter was... getting on the wrong path. Right?"

Looking over at her, I slowly nodded. "Yes ma'am."

"Good. I like you Toni. I think you'll be good for Nafessa. Sometimes she gets this kick and gets angry and almost resentful towards life. I think you'll stop her from doing that. You seem to balance her out. Bring a sense of calmness. Thank you."

I only nodded back at her as I thought over what she had said. Nafessa had only gotten angry when she was sticking up for me. Really, that was all I'd witnessed.

We pulled up to her house and her mom kept the car running as she told me. "I have to go to the hospital, I think Fes is still sleep. The keypad code is 0562. It'll unlock the door. Tell Nafessa to call me when she gets up."

"I will. Bye Momma J." I got out the car after grabbing my bag. Going to the door, I typed in the code and the door opened. I came face to face with Nafessa at the door.

Her hair was in a messy space bun and she had on spandex and a sports bra. She blinked blankly at me before moving to the side and letting me in. When I stepped in, I turned and looked at her as she closed the door and locked it back.

She looked as if she was still tired and she spoke groggily. "Hey T."

"Hey." I mumbled back. "Can we—."

"I'm tired. We can talk after I get a few more hours of sleep. Come on." She walked down a hallway and towards her room and when we entered, I realized Nafessa kept most things simple. Her walls had nothing on them, it was a tan color. It seemed she decorated mostly with her covers and furniture which were all a deep red. She slid back under her covers as she spoke. "You can get on the other side if you want."

I crawled on the other side of her bed and crawled under her covers as I mumbled. "Are you mad at me?"

Nafessa took a breath before turning back and looking at me. "No."

"But you've been avoiding me and I understand that I crossed a line. It's on me. My bad."

"You caught me off guard Toni." Nafessa replied. "It's not your fault, I was just shocked. That's really all. I actually liked it..."

She trailed off and I looked at her. "You did?"

"Yeah. I did." She admitted softly. Her hand found mines slowly as our fingers interlaced. Our eyes traced each other's before she began leaning in. I wasted no time meeting her half way as our lips met again. It was just a quick kiss, something to secure our feelings and tell each other we felt the same way. Once we pulled away she mumbled. "Now, can we go to sleep?" I nodded back as she pulled me into her. Something I was thankful for because it was freezing in her room. "Good."

I wasn't really sleepy but I didn't want to move either. So, I stayed in her embrace as I studied her. She had a light mole on the side of her nose. It almost wasn't noticeable but I noticed it. Her eyebrows seemed to have a perfect shape, lucky. Realizing that she was sleep, I noted that she was an angel when she slept, just to wake up and be a goddess.

This was something I was obsessed with.