The Misunderstood Black Woman

Solicitude XXVIII

"Geia that stuff is cold. I came to see my baby, not freeze to death." I snapped, causing Geia and Isabel to roll their eyes.

Geia moved the ultrasound wand over my belly and I stared at the screen in amazement. The baby grew so much since my last visit, I just wanted to meet him or her already. We listened to the strong rhythmic heartbeat like it was music to our ears. I was currently twenty weeks along, so I would be six months in two weeks. It felt like I was pregnant for years and I was exhausted. Bryson smiled at me and looked at me in amazement. I couldn't believe that we created a life together, this was something that I wanted for a while now.

"What are your plans for Valentine's day?" Isabel asked while staring at us with a curious expression

"We're doing it right now. I wanted to come to see our child, that's the best way to celebrate." Bryson replied.

I hoped that he was joking, I wanted to celebrate our first valentines day today. I didn't want to seem ungrateful, because this was truly a blessing. I narrowed my eyes at him, then asked Geia for some copies of my ultrasound.

Geia was off work now, so we decided to check out the Art Institute. They always had unique Valentine's day exhibits and reasonable group discounts. I typically didn't like art exhibits but the Art Institute did have some unique pieces. We all decided to take separate cars since they had other plans after this.

Once we arrived, we waited by the gift shop for the rest of our group arrive. Isabel's husband, Ahmed was the first the arrive, and Yvette came shortly after with Tyler. Although I wasn't fond of Tyler, it was still good to see him trying for Yvette. I was also surprised to see that Bryson invited his brother Davion. After the group got aquatinted, we decided to check out the contemporary art exhibit first.

The Art Institute of Chicago was massive. There was a substantial amount of artwork included at each exhibit, and there was a unique variety of artwork. My high-heeled boots clicked against the polished floors as we walked towards the stairs. I looked amongst the crowd of people and saw excited and curious faces. Once we reached the top of the stairs, we made our way to the contemporary art exhibit.

I first observed the variety of paintings and felt intrigued by the unique art. I noticed a few famous paintings that I studied in my previous art classes. Some of the paintings looked so old, that a slight bump would disintegrate them within seconds. I took a few pictures for my personal memories and read about the history of the artist and their work. After I finished reading, I glanced around my surroundings and saw that the men wandered off to another exhibit.

"Girl stop pretending like you're into this stuff," Yvette whispered from behind me.

I let out a shocked gasp from her sneaking up on me. I had to warn everyone not to scare me since my bladder was so weak. I came close to having an accident in public a couple of times, but today would not be the day.

"Girl first off, why are you creeping up on people like that, you almost made me have an accident. And secondly, I may not be into this but the baby needs some exposure." I jokingly replied.

"The only things I need to be exposed to are, a meal from the cafe and Bryson's brother," Geia said while approaching us to join the conversation.

I rolled my eyes at her usual sexual comments. I wouldn't be surprised if she hooked up with Davion, then left him on reading the next day. Geia was a player and she had no plans of settling down soon. But I did agree with her about getting food, I was starving and tired already.

"Well let's ditch the guys and go have lunch then," Isabel suggested while chiming in on the conversation.

We all agreed in unison, then headed downstairs towards the cafe. The institute had a fine dining restaurant and two other casual spots. We chose the place that had better burgers and that was cheaper. I no longer had to worry about finances since I made great money at work, and Bryson also gave me access to his bank account and credit cards.