Belated Blessings

Chapter 2: First Things First

Zachery

I waved goodbye to the receptionist as I headed out of the office to pick up Elise for our first doctor's appointment. She worked as a school counselor at a high school about 20 minutes from my job so I dropped her off this morning so that we could ride together. In classic Elise fashion, she was giving me the silent treatment. She even went as far as sleeping on the couch stating that the bed was no longer comfortable, which I knew was a lie because she never even took a nap on the couch.

I called up my brother, Jayme, as I made my way to pick up Elise. " Whats up, bro?", Jayme's voice, followed by some shuffling, came through the speakers in my car.

"Nothing much bro, just stressed the fuck out is all" I replied.

" Why so glum, chum?" only Jayme's goofy ass would say some shit like that.

I took a deep breath before I began to speak, " Man El's pissed at me because I told her that we should wait until she was further along to tell the kids. Her exact response, and I quote, " you don't want your first baby mama to be mad but fuck it, you and her. Those were the last words that she had spoken to me in five days." All I heard was a loud hyena-like cackle coming through my speakers.

After he calmed down, he spoke very seriously, " Let me ask you a question bro, are you mad because she spoke the truth or...." he allowed the question to linger.

I scoffed immediately, " The fuck you mean she speaking the truth... I could care less about how Jhene feels".

Jayme whistled, " Brother the first step to getting over your problem is admitting that you have one. Jhene has always talked shit and been in her bag about you and El, and what does El do, she sucks it up and takes one for the team. Meanwhile, Jhene feels like she won while your WIFE feels defeated. Don't believe me ask ma".

I sat there allowing Jayme's words to sink in. It wasn't that I was concerned about Jhene's response, she and I had been over long before El and I started, so it was no need to be bitter. I didn't want my kids to feel slighted or deal with the feeling that the new baby would take precedence over them. But after El's blow up and Jayme's confession, I know I needed to talk to my mother and have a long overdue conversation with Jhene.

"Hey, baby bro I got to get back in the gym but think on what I said. Elise is pregnant now, so she needs as less stress as possible on her. Don't let Jhene be the reason your ass is single; she ain't worth it. I love you, dude. We'll talk later." Jayme hung up before I could respond.

I took a deep breath and tried to exhale my frustrations. Seeing El standing under the awning outside the school immediately pulled me out my thoughts. My wife was beautiful! The wind was blowing her now curled hair to and fro, and she was beaming. Even with an apparent scowl on her face, she was still gorgeous. When the car came to a complete stop, I put the car in park and hopped out to open the door for her. By the time I got around to her side, she had gotten in and was reaching for her seatbelt. I sighed in defeat.