Strength

19

"Yea. I love you and I want you back. I'm doin' this for all of us. I fucked up, I kno' that. I swea' I won't ever hurt you like that again, Rayne."

Rayne can hear the sincereness in his voice and knows that he mean it. He also had a few tears in his eyes and they eventually landed onto his cheek.

She has seen him cry, but it was really rare. She knew them being apart was hurting him and it may not seem like it to him, but she was hurting as well.

Rayne walks over to him, and grabs his face to kiss him slow and passionately. He immediately kisses her back and pulls her into his lap.

She allows him to do so, but slowly pulls away when he touches the hem of her shirt.

"I love you too." She looks into his eyes. "But, I love me a little bit more. Lock the door on your way out, please." She pecks his lips once more before removing herself off of his lap.

Amir watches her walk away, feeling defeated. He knew things just weren't going to be the same.

—

Later that afternoon

It was all too fast.

Celebrities were in and out of venues, conversing with other important people and taking pictures. Shiloh never imagined himself being in New York.

Let alone Fashion Week.

He was tagging along with Naomi because Nia was in the back, prepping for the Iman fashion show along with Adrian and Roman.

Naomi introduced him to so many people, it was hard for him to even keep count. He was dressed in a Gucci suit and many thought that he'd be the perfect model for their respective brands.

However, Naomi just wanted him to enjoy himself. She pulled him away whenever they start discussing business. She knew it was too much for him right off.

Doesn't mean that she didn't take their business cards.

"Fashion industry is cutthroat." Naomi speaks into his ear as they move along. She smiles at a few faces then looks at him. "If it is something you're interested in, we'll have to ease you in."

Shiloh just nods, knowing that Naomi has his best interest at heart. He wasn't too sure if he walk a runway.

When they arrived at their seats, he notices that there's a seat reserved for him on the second row.

"Wow." He mumbles to himself.

Zeke is already at his seat, dressed in a simple black two piece Tom Ford suit. Naomi pulls Shiloh to sit in her seat while she sits in his.

"That suede Gucci suit is made for the first row." She winks at him.

"Now people are going to be asking who are you?" Zeke speaks up as Shiloh turns back around. "A black boy from Compton who wanted better for himself. Sounds.... radical in an anti black world." He smiles.

Before Shiloh could say anything, the lights dimmed which meant that the show was starting. The host came out and talked about what to expect during the show.