Being Armani

Chapter 37 - Armani

*Pic of Dante*

Thursday, August 18th, 4:57 AM

We exited the back of Malika's Mercedes Benz GLE Coupe and took our stuff from the trunk of the car. It was quiet because we took the private entrance into the airport.

Dante was with Jaden and Jewel, he was driving an SUV with some of our luggage.

"Armani," Malika called my name, just as I was about to open the car door. "Yeah?" I said turning to her.

"Do you love Dante? Or is he just a rebound or somethin'? Because if he is you should not be leadin' the poor guy on and if you ain't feelin' him the way he's feelin' you, you need to tell him right now," she whispered.

I frown and looked back at the kids, they we're all asleep.

I thought about it. She was kind of right...I don't know if I'm feeling Dante the same way. Maybe I was just being desperate because of the divorce...

"If you don't like him like that and he ends up gettin' on that plane by himself, you know Jewel and I are here for you, you could stay with us in Chicago for awhile, if you want to or you can buy your own house in Chicago, because I don't want you by yourself, especially after what Marcell did to you. And I don't want to to hop on that plane, get to Miami, and regret it!"

I sighed, "You're right...I shouldn't be leading him on..."

Malika nodded her head, "Tell him the truth."

I opened the car door and Jewel and Dante were waiting by the door.

"Hey, Dante, um, can I talk to you? Alone?" I asked. "Yeah, I'll go wait in the car with Malika," Jewel said walking away.

"Hey, what's up?" Dante smiled at me.

"Um..." I took a deep breath and just spat the words out, "I'm so sorry Dante, but I think you should move in with a girl who really loves you and you love her, as in more than a friend, because I think we should just stay friends, I'm not sure if I'm ready to be in a relationship right now, I just need some time, please don't be mad," I said.

He sighed and smiled, "It's all good, I completely understand," I shook my head and let out a sigh of relief, "I always wonder why I didn't meet you first!" I gave him a hug and he hugged me back. She stood there for almost five minutes, just hugging, in silence.

Then I gave him a gentle kiss, and heard a camera shutter. Dante pulled away and turned his head. I put my hood over my head and prayed that they hadn't seen me yet, "Dante! Smile for the camera!"

"Who's that?" Another one said. "I should go now," Dante said smiling at me, he acted as if the paparazzi weren't a few feet away, "We'll come to some of your games and we'll come visit you!" I said giving him another hug and stood on my tiptoes to kiss his cheek.

"Bye Armani," he whispered. "Mommy can we say bye too?" I turned but made sure my face wasn't visible to the cameras. "Hey lil' man," Dante said picking up Elijah. "I'm gonna miss you Dante!" he cried.

"Imma miss you too Eli!" Dante angled his body so Elijah's face wasn't showing.

Chanel walks in wearing a red Nike tennis visor, the one with the hole on the top, which I'm guessing was Jewel's because he was wearing it early. "Mom, I thought Dante was gonna be my new daddy!" she cries. Dante smiles, puts Elijah down, and squats down, "You're gonna have a new daddy, but it isn't gonna be me, it's gonna be someone better than me, much better, and he'll protect and be there for you guys no matter what, he'll always make time for you and your mom, and he'll love you guys unconditionally, no matter what! He won't break your mom's heart, he'll fix it!"

"Will he play basketball with me?" Elijah asks, "Yes, he'll be one of the best pro ballers in the country!"

"What about my birthday?" Elijah asks again. His birthday is on December 31st. Dante laughs, "I'll be there!" Chanel frowns, "You promise?"

"I promise!" Dante pinky promised both of them.

"Aye, I'm gonna miss you man," Jewel says standing up. "Imma miss you too!" Dante stands up and they give each other a bro hug. He sighs. "I'm gonna miss my flight, "Group hug!" Malika says.

We pull each other close. "I love you guys!" He says. We let go and he walks through the sliding doors. We wave him off until he's out of sight.

We dash to the cars because the paparazzi was following us. Jewel stayed behind and helped Dante with his luggage.

:

Same Day, 1:32 PM. Malika's House.

"Jewel's bringin' Chick-fil-a for dinner because I ain't cookin'!" Malika said as she came down the stairs.

I was half asleep on Malika's couch, "Where's Chanel and Elijah?" I asked her groggily.

"Upstairs playin' 2k with Jaden," she replied. "And Johari is in her crib!" Jo was a pretty peaceful baby girl, she barely cried, but she smiled a lot.

She walked into the kitchen and opened the fridge. "You want some orange juice?"

I nodded my head and closed my eyes, then someone rapped on the door.

Maleeka looked through the peephole and started to panic. She stepped away from the door and tiptoed to me, "Go upstairs NOW, take Johari, tell Jaden to get his ass down here, and take Johari and lock yourself and the kids in the guest room," she whispered.

I didn't hesitate, I immediately knew who was at the door.