Jaded

11. Quality Time.

It was one of those rare days where Chanel felt like cooking. Usually she would order food or make a trip back to her parent's house. Today specifically was different.

She'd just left her appointed OBGYN and received the best news ever. She was definitely pregnant. The little human growing inside of her had her walking different.

As she entered the parking lot of her high rise apartments her hand absentmindedly found its way to her stomach. She couldn't wait until she shared the news with Elijah. And she couldn't wait to shop online for cute maternity clothes. Chanel exited her car and trekked up the flight of stairs until she reached her door. Kicking off her shoes as soon as she entered she went around her apartment and lit a few candles. Eli always commented on the smell of her apartment.

After resting her feet she decided to get up and put her plan in motion. She decided to cook his favorites: fried chicken, macaroni, collard greens, and yams. She picked up a raspberry cheesecake from Kroger on the way home. Dessert was never something she was good at.

Once everything was done she took the time to change into something more comfortable. He had seen her inside and out and she didn't find the need to get cute for him. She would leave that to Zhuri. She heard her front door open and close signaling Eli's arrival. He came earlier than expected.

"Chanel?" He called out as he walked through the front door. "What I tell you about having this door unlocked? Anybody could have came in here." She was hardheaded and wouldn't listen to him until somebody kicked her door down and stole all her shit.

She rolled her eyes in response. She had yet to make her presence known, but he knew she wasn't too far from him. "Girl you don't hear me calling you?" His voice and footsteps got closer.

As she exited the bathroom he entered her bedroom almost knocking her down. "I was in the bathroom." He met her halfway for a quick peck.

"What I tell you about that door?" Brows raised as he entered her living room space.

"I cooked and you worried about a door being unlocked?" She shuffled towards the kitchen in order to fix their plates. She wasn't about to argue with him about a door. She lived in the whitest neighborhood in all of Georgia and didn't fear anybody breaking in.

Grabbing the remote he turned on the TV and surfed through the channels before he got to ESPN. The rockets were playing the warriors and it was Kevin Durant's first game back. "A hard head make a soft ass and ima let you learn the hard way."

"Yeah yeah yeah." She carried a full plate in her right hand and a few napkins in her left. She knew he would want to wash it down with a coke. After handing him his plate she made the short commute back to the kitchen to grab her food and drink before taking her place next to him on the couch.

Eli ate as fast as he usually did, Chanel ate slowly just enjoying his company. They talked here and there, but for the most part his attention was on the game. Several minutes went by and they were officially done. She grabbed the dishes and placed them in the sink.

"That was good baby." Eli said as he craned his neck to follow her body into the kitchen.

"Thank you. You want some to take home?" She questioned with her back turned to him.

"Nah. Ima be back tomorrow." He assured her. She came back into his view with a slice of cheesecake. She blocked his view of the TV by straddling his lap. Chanel started to feed him the pie. He was getting skeptical about her behavior.

"What you want? You ain't been this nice to me since you fucking met me." He accepted another forkful of pie as she wiped the side of his mouth with her thumb.