Between the Raindrops

9) Lead The Way

"WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT YELLOW?" Stella asked Markyse as she rummaged through her closet trying to find something to wear. In hopes to get their relationship back on track, Markyse planned a date night for the two of them. He got a hotel in Manhattan that overlooked the city. It was the least he could do for the woman he loved. Lately their relationship had been extremely rocky due to life's worries. He hoped that tonight would be a good opportunity to let her relieve her mind of the stresses and let him explain a couple of things.

"I like it, mama," he replied, barely looking up from his phone. He didn't have to though, it was his favorite dress that she owned.

"I like it, mama," she mocked. "You didn't even look, Markyse."

"Baby I already know which one you're talking about. You look beautiful in it."

Stella smiled to herself, deciding to pack it in her bag. The dress would be perfect for whatever tomorrow's outing would consist of. She had no idea what he planned, but she knew her man. Whenever he has something up his sleeve, it was always amazing.

"How's class?" He asked her.

"It's fine. I have an exam coming up in Personalities. I feel pretty good about it, but I'm ready for it to be over already. Gives me one less thing to worry about. You feeling okay?"

He nodded. "All good. But, Im glad to hear you're feeling okay about it. I know midterms had you stressed. I shouldn't be adding on to that."

"Markyse, please," she smiled. "I'm not even worried about it. I'm doing the studying that I need to do alright. I'm concerned about how you feel about your showcase. It's important that you're in a good headspace. It hasn't been easy for you either, so I understand."

"I'm good, baby," he rose from his seat and walked over to her. She froze in time as he approached her. She still felt the swarm of butterflies in her stomach each time that they made eye contact. It still amazed her that someone could be this good looking. It shocked her even more that someone of his caliber could love her. Unconditionally. It all seemed too good to be true and she was doing her best to learn how to just live in the moment.

He wrapped his arms around her, planting kisses on her head, bringing a huge smile to her face. "I love you," he said.

"I love you back."

Markyse phone began to buzz, it was Tahiry. The look that he gave her, created the impression that he needed to leave the room. "Go ahead," she urged. "I'm fine."

He kissed her once more before leaving and answered the call. "Ayoo!"

"There he is," a small grin crept onto Tahiry's face. She was getting ready to head back to DC. Her break was over and she needed to get back in the swing of things. She'd spent the last few weekends home and being out of the loop was disconnecting her from campus. She was afraid to leave New York behind, but everything that made her was here at home. As her mother always told her, all good things must come to an end. "You good?"

"Wassup," a small smile appeared on his face too. "I'm good, you good?"

"Don't worry about if I'm good, I need to know you good."

Laughing, he inhaled deeply. "I'm good goofy, me and Stella bouta head out. Got a lil something planned this weekend."

"That's, dope," she responded, scratching the back of her head. She didn't know why this phone call was driving her nerves up a wall. These were childhood friends after all; this should've been easy. "Uh, I was just callin' to let you know I'm stepping back the DC way. It's about time I get back to the same old same. Didn't wanna burn rubber without letting you know though."