Black Love Short Stories

The Polariod (I)

Hello everyone! Let me say that I have missed you. And I hope that you have missed me too! Ok, here's a story for you. Read and enjoy!!!

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        Marlee Johnson  smiled as she looked at the Polaroid picture from a three years ago. In it she gazed into the eyes of the man she had fallen in love with.
       Rubbing her hand over the picture in nostalgia, she bit her lip and shook her head. Thoughts filled her mind of how so much had changed in that time.
       Her ears perked up when she heard the unmistakable sound her her son crying. She, still holding the photograph in her hand, traveled to her sons room. Upon seeing the 6 month old, Marlee instantly went into mommy mode.
       Picking her son up, his cries were soothed for only a moment. He was hungry, and he needed his mother to feed him.
       Marlee rocked him as she went into the kitchen to fix his bottle. Once it was fixed, Marlee went The living room of her apartment and sat in her recliner. Holding him, Marlee began to hum Daniel Caesar's Best Part to him. The six month old looked up at his mother with his big and bright eyes. His mother singing to him always made him happy....and sleepy.
       Soon the bottle was finished and after Marlee had burped him, she looked at her son.
       "Ok, Elijah. It's only two in the afternoon. And you know mommy has some things to take care of." Marlee spoke. It was true, she did have some things to handle. She needed to finish up her paper work for her boss. But, having a baby wasn't easy, especially with her being a fresh college graduate.
       Yet, Marlee wouldn't trade motherhood for the world. Elijah was her world and she loved watching him grow.
       Elijah smiled at his mother and Marlee couldn't  help but grin back at him. "Ok, so I see you're not going to sleep. That's fine too. Mommy's got a trick for that."
       Marlee seated her son in his rocking seat and watched as he became interested in the animals that were hanging down.
       Marlee retreated to the room and grabbed the papers she needed. Coming back into the living room, she sat down on the couch and began doing her paper work.

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      Several days later, Marlee walked into her office building. She was a business major in college and when she graduated, she was blessed to have a job already lined up.
       She waved to several of her colleagues and walked to her cubicle. She felt good and hummed the gospel song that she had stuck in her head. Once she put her things down, she walked to her boss' office and softly knocked on the door. He yelled for her to come in and she did.
       She walked in but stopped when she noticed that he had some company.
       "Oh I'm so sorry, Mr. Knicks. I didn't know you had company."  Marlee spoke as she reached for the door handle.
       "No, Marlee. You're right on time. I was just about to call you in." Mr. Knicks waved her over and she walked to the side of his desk.
        "You see, you've been working really hard and I see that. So, I wanted to promote you to sophomore level." Mr. Knicks paused and Marlee's eyes went wide. Sophomore level was a great thing. Technically, she should've been getting that three or four years down the road. But for her to be only eight months into the job, she knew that it was only God who had allowed her to get this job. And she thanked him for that.
       She hugged her boss and then backed away once she realized what she had done. He laughed and told her it was fine once he realized that she had gotten embarrassed.
        Marlee looked at the papers in her hand and then back at him. "Thank you, Mr. Knicks. You don't understand how much this means to me."
       He only smiled at her and then began speaking. "I expect great things for you. And to start your promotion, I have your first project for you." He waved his hand at her, making her aware of the company that she had forgotten.
       "Hello." She spoke to the people around the room.  They wore smiles on their faces and that made Marlee feel more at ease.
       They all introduced themselves and Marlee was ready to get to business. She was beyond excited to have a project in her hands. And she knew that with God's help she'd be able to handle it.
       "Marlee," Mr. Okshana spoke. He was a man with an Asian ethnicity and was very sweet. "We were wondering if you could start today. We already have a potential client coming over today to discuss some things. And we'd like you to be apart of the meeting. He deserves to know the entire team."
        "Oh yes, Mr. Okshana. That's perfectly fine." Marlee smiled and nodded her head yes.
       
        An hour later, Marlee sat with her newfound coworkers, ready to being their meeting. She was excited, yet nervous. She wanted to make a good impression on the client because she knew it was her make or break moment.
         The door opened and in walked the client. They locked eyes with one another and Marlee's breath hitched.
        It had been a year since they'd seen one another and all she could think about was the Polaroid picture that was in her drawer. It was from three years ago yet everything was the same about him. His light skin glowed and his deep dimples made her heart leap. She could tell that he had gained more muscle, and it looked really good on him.
        He shook hands with the others before he shook her hand. And when he did, he made sure to lock eyes with hers.
       "Marlee- this is our client, Mr. Isaiah Washington III. I'm sure you've heard of him. He's one of the best players in the league." Mrs. Robinson spoke.
       "Yes, I've heard." Marlee replied with a smile, yet deep down she was extremely nervous to see him.
       The meeting began and Marlee did her best to keep her composure. They discussed many ideas and other things that Isaiah wanted. Marlee felt as though it was easy to accomplish and made sure to take down thorough notes.
        When the meeting was over, everyone stood and Isaiah began speaking.
        "It was an honor working with you all. As I've stated before, I am a pro football player. And sometimes I can't be hands on like I want to with so many people behind me. But, when it comes to my separate business ventures I like to be hands on. I am very excited to work with you. And I understand that I will be working one on one with only one of you?" Isaiah spoke. He looked at all of them, yet his hazel eyes lingered on Marlee for just a little while longer.
        "Yes, that is correct." Mr. Okshana spoke. "And you'll be working with Miss Marlee Johnson. She's just been promoted to sophomore level here. And she's very talented."
        Isaiah arched his eyebrow at her and smiled. He walked towards her and extended his hand. She took it and shook it. "Miss. Johnson I am very excited to be working with you."
        "As I am with you." Marlee spoke as she and he looked at one another.
        "Why don't we give you two more time to get acquainted?" Mrs. Robinson spoke and Mr. Okshana agreed. They exited the room and left Marlee and Isaiah alone.
        "It's nice to see you Marlee." Isaiah smiled as he gazed at her. No matter how long he hadn't seen her, it always felt like the first time he'd laid eyes on her when they were both freshman in college. Her chocolate skin and deep brown eyes always had a hold on him. He noticed that her hips and backside were more filled out, but he thought it complimented her extremely well.
        "It's nice to see you too, Isaiah." Marlee spoke.
        "How have you been? I haven't seen you in almost a year."
        In that moment Marlee's mind flashed back to the last time she'd saw him. And that last moments they spent together- in her apartment...in her bed.
       She looked down then back at him. "Isaiah, I would rather not talk about that here. We're just here for work, right?" Marlee spoke.
        Isaiah nodded his head in understanding. He could tell Marlee wasn't ready to see him. Shoot, he didn't think he would ever see her again. Yet they had crossed paths and there was no going back from that.
       They sat across from one another and Marlee began to speak. "So, I was thinking about your proposition. About creating a charity. I understand that you would like all proceeds to go to the Alzheimer's Foundation?"
        "Yes, that's correct. I would like that. It would be in honor of my grandfather, Daniel  Washington I." Isaiah spoke.
        Marlee nodded her head and took down some notes. She could feel his gaze fixiated on her and she was getting extremely anxious.
       "Ok, we can start there. I'll draw up some figures for your brand and you tell me some more things that you'd like from us." Marlee spoke giving him her full attention.
       And Isaiah did. They collaborated with one another and made much progress on their work. Soon, the meeting was over and it was time for them to part ways.
       Both stood up and looked at one another for a few seconds before he began speaking.
        "Marlee, I'm excited to be working with you." Isaiah spoke as he looked into her eyes.
        "Same here." Marlee replied.
        The two parted ways and Marlee went and got into her car. As soon as she made it home, she went next door to grab Elijah from Mrs. Jenkins. Mrs. Jenkins was an older lady who was retired. She didn't mind keeping Elijah for Marlee. She could see that Marlee was hard working and admired her determination.
         Once she had gotten Elijah and herself back into her home, she called her mother.
         "Hey Mama." Marlee spoke into the phone.
        "Hey boo. What's going on?" Her mother asked.
        "Nothing too major. I'm just about to change your grandson."
        "Aw, tell my boo butt I said hello."
        Marlee looked at her son and began to speak to him just as her mother instructed. Elijah immediately began smiling and kicking.
        Marlee smiled and put the phone back to her ear.
        "Mama, I have something I'd like to discuss with you." Marlee spoke as she put the new diaper on her son.
       "Is everything ok?"
        "Yeah....I mean I hope so."
         "Marlee what's going on?" Her mother spoke, her voice suddenly becoming serious.
        Marlee grabbed Elijah and sat down on the couch. "So today at work I got a promotion. And to get started I got a new project, which I began working on today. And guess who I'm working with?"
        "Your favorite singer?"
        "No mama, it's Isaiah."
        Her mother was quiet before speaking. "Well it's about to hit the fan now."
        "Mama!"
        "Don't mama me girl. Now, listen. I told you to tell him when you first found out you were pregnant. But you didn't. Baby girl, Elijah is his son too. And he looks just like him."
        Marlee listened to her mother and silently agreed. Elijah looked more and more like his father each day.
        "....you gotta tell him Marlee. You can't hide a child."
       Marlee sighed and silently agreed with her mother.
        "You're right mama. Im gonna tell him. I just don't know how."
        "Baby girl you'll find the words to say. Pray for strength and guidance." She spoke.
        "Ok, I will." She spoke into the phone. Marlee and her mother conversed on the phone before she they hung up.
       She kissed her son on his forehead and looked down at him. He giggled as her and smiled, showing his dimples.
        "Elijah, mama loves you. And because I do, I gotta set some things straight for you." She spoke, saying a silent prayer that everything was of work out all right.
       

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       A week had passed and Marlee was meeting with Isaiah for the first time since they'd began working with one another.
        She walked up the steps to his mansion. Marlee admired how beautiful it was as she waited for someone to open the door.
        The door flew open and she was met with the hazel eyes of Isaiah. He smiled widely seeing her and allowed her to step in.
        "Your home is lovely." Marlee spoke as she stepped in and looked around. "It's decorated in your favorite color, blue."
        "That it is." Isaiah spoke looking at her.
          Marlee looked down under his intense gaze and then she looked back up at his hazel eyes. "Are you sure it's fine for me to be here? We could've met somewhere else."
       "No, this is perfect. I bought you here because I wanted you to get a feel of me. And what better place to do that than in my home. Besides, I've known you since we were freshman. And I know you wouldn't do anything crazy."
        Marlee smirked. "Yeah. But you haven't seen me in some months. And people change."
        "You're right. People do." Isaiah spoke as he stepped closer to her. "But to me you're still the same woman I knew back then."
        Marlee was unable to say anything. She cleared her throat and allowed him to lead her into his office. After they walked in. They sat down and began to work.

        Hours later, Marlee and Isaiah were done. She had gotten a deeper understanding of his brand and He walked her to her car and she waved goodbye as she left.
        When she made it home, it was past 7:00 pm and she missed her baby. She stopped next door and got him from Mrs. Jenkins.
       "Mrs. Jenkins, thank you so much for this. Here's some money for keeping him extra." Marlee spoke as she adjusted the diaper bag on her shoulder and tried to hand the older lady the money. 
        Mrs. Jenkins swatted Marlee away. "Girl, you're fine. I don't want it. You're a good mama to that boy. And besides, he's my boo." Mrs. Jenkins winked at Elijah. As if Elijah knew what the older lady was talking about he began to giggle.
       Marlee thanked the older woman and leaned down to hug her. Marlee turned and left, but not before leaving the money on Mrs. Jenkins coffee table.
       Marlee walked back inside of her apartment and shut her door. She was exhausted and all she wanted to do was sleep.
        She fixed Elijah's bottle and pretty soon he had drifted off to sleep. As soon as she had lay him down, her doorbell rang.
        Walking to the door, Marlee opened it without checking to see who it was. "Mrs. Jenkins I am not tak-"
       Marlee stopped in mid sentence once she saw that it was not her neighbor who stood in-front of her, but Isaiah.
        "I-Isaiah? What are you doing here?" Marlee questioned as she instinctively looked back to her sons room.
        "I'm here because your work bag at my home. I wanted to return it too you." He said as he handed it too her.
       Thanking him she grabbed it from him, but it slipped from her hands and fell causing a loud thud to echo.
        Instantly, Elijah began to cry and Marlee went into the back room to check on him.
        Isaiah was curious. And he followed Marlee to the room she disappeared into. He stood at the door and watched as she catered to the baby only as a mother would. The baby instantly calmed down as he watched Marlee rub it's back.
        "Marlee." She heard Isaiah call her and she turned around.
        "Isaiah, I-"
        "So you had a baby?" He questioned.
        Upon hearing the strangers voice, Elijah popped his head up and looked at the unfamiliar man.
        "Marlee, how old is the baby?" Elijah asked. By now his heart was racing. The baby looked to be old enough to be.....but maybe it wasn't. Besides, he knew Marlee wouldn't hide anything from him.
       Marlee could feel the tears stinging in her eyes. "He's.....He's 6 months old. And his name is Elijah Daniel Washington."
        At that moment Isaiah's breath seemed to be knocked out of his body. And tears clouded his vision as he turned and left Marlee holding his son.
      
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Well, all I can say it that part two is on its way. Marlee and Isaiah...I like them, don't you?

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With love,
Malaysia.