Forever Isn't Long Enough

Chapter 14

Chapter 14

Wally
October 2018

"Happy birthday to you. Happy birthday to you. Happy birthday, dear Raleigh. Happy birthday to you." The entire family sings to Raleigh for her first birthday. Everyone except for Lucy, Luke, and Lola who were still in New Orleans and Tre and Alexus who were in Boston. The two super pregnant women couldn't travel so they're all on FaceTime watching the event take place.

"Blow out the candles, Rizzo." Kat says to her baby girl who laughs and blows nothing but spit onto the baby cake. Kat actually blows out the candles and Raleigh claps.

"Take!" Charlie and Raleigh squeal, causing all of us to laugh.

"You heard them: cut the cake, Ma!" RJ smiles.

"Don't rush me, boy." Auntie Cassie plucks the back of her son's head. She cuts the baby cake for the babies then the other cake for us adults who don't want a waxy, spit-filled cake.

"Mommy, cake?" Jasmine tugs on Yasmine's sleeve. She quickly turns to me before Yasmine could answer. "Steph, cake?"

I smile at her. "Yes, you'll get some cake. Just wait on Auntie Cassie to cut it." I pinch her cheeks and she smiles.

Charlie walks over to us and smiles at Jasmine. "Take! Come." She holds her hand out to Jasmine who apprehensively takes it and let's the one-year-old lead her away from us.

The three girls sit and smash cake onto their faces. Smiles take hold of their little, cubby faces as the sugar kicks in.

"They'll be up for hours." JJ shakes her head.

"They'll run around and then pass out. It's fine," Mom waves her hand. "It's what we did to Tre when he would annoy us. Pump him with sugar and watch the crash happen."

"I remember that," I smile as I lean back next to Yasmine with my cake. "He would run in circles until he ran into the wall or just got tired. It used be so much fun watching his dumb ass."

"And you never stopped me!" Tre says over the phone.

"Nope." I shake my head and we all laugh. Yasmine shakes her head with a smile before she curls into my side.

"You want some cake, baby?" Mom asks Yasmine who shakes her head.

"I don't like cake." She says sheepishly, knowing that somebody is gonna yell—

"You no like take?!" Charlie and Raleigh look offended and hurt by Yasmine's words.

"Do you like ice cream?" Auntie Jacque asks as she brings a tub of vanilla Blue Bell ice cream from Auntie Steph's kitchen. The family has Blue Bell ice cream shipped from Louisiana to wherever we're staying. There's no ice cream as good as Blue Bell.

"Yes, ma'am." Yasmine smiles as Auntie Jacque scoops get a bowlfull.

"I like carmel and crunchy stuff!" Lucy shouts from the other side. I look at my phone to see the three (and a half) Boyds looking at me with sad faces.

"Tell me you bought my goddaughter some cake and ice cream." I glare at Lucy and Luke.

"Of course we did. Bunny didn't want it. She said it wouldn't be the same without eating it with everybody else." Luke says and I frown. It's hard to miss stuff.

Just as I'm about to respond, everyone's phone starts blowing up with notifications.

"That nigga Lil Hundo back at it." Ben says while staring at his phone.

"Let's light his ass up. Send all of our fans after him." Q says as this time Lil Hundo starts talking shit about Lucy's miscarriage and overdose.