A Mother's Bond

32

Beyoncé August 5, 2016
I woke up feeling both excited and nervous. Today would be the first time in a while that Sarayah and I would be spending time together without buffers. There would be no Kelly or Michelle, no Solange or Mama to hold us together. We would have to do it ourselves. Today would be the start of our journey towards a real relationship. I was scared out of my mind, but I couldn't stop smiling. Something inside was telling me things would be alright.

I skipped downstairs, feeling light as a feather. Sarayah was sitting at the kitchen table with Blue. They appeared to be having a very serious discussion. I grabbed a muffin out of the cupboard and walked over to my daughters. I pulled up a chair beside Blue and sat down, tuning into their conversation.

"The Backyardigans would NEVER fight." Blue said, folding her arms.

Sarayah stroked her chin theatrically. "Okaaay...but say they did."

Blue groaned loudly. "BUT THEY WOULDN'T!"

Sarayah fought back a smile, narrowing her eyes. "But what if...they DID?"

Blue rested her head on the table, exhausted. I shook my head as Sarayah snickered quietly.

"Stop bothering your sister," I admonished as I stroked Blue's head soothingly.

Sarayah giggled. "I'm sorry. I can't help myself sometimes. It's just so easy. It's like she short circuits or something. Look at her."

I looked down at Blue who looked like she had completely given up on life. It took everything in me not to laugh.

"I swear, you are just like Solo sometimes."

She shrugged. "Can't be helped. Anyway, what are we doing today? Dad said he would take me driving like last month, but I don't know if he wants to do that anymore–"

"Of course I do. I can't wait to be an annoying backseat driver," Jay said, walking into the kitchen, evilly rubbing his hands together.

"Good morning, Jay." I greeted him, waiting for a kiss.

He gladly obliged, lingering for a second before turning to Blue. He picked her up and tickled her, showering her with kisses as she giggled.

"So, what do you say, Angel?" He asked, placing Blue back in her chair before walking to stand behind Sarayah's chair.

"Uh," I interrupted. "I was already planning on spending the day with her."

Jay looked over at me, shrugging. "Yeah, but we don't need the day. Just a couple hours."

He turned back to Sarayah. "So, wanna spend some time with your dad?" He squeezed her shoulders.

She leaned her head back and made crazy face at him. "Maaaybe."

Jay scrunched up his face. "Maybe? Maybe? I think the answer was, 'of course, dad. I would love to spend time with you'."

"Yeah yeah yeah," she muttered, rolling her eyes playfully. He kissed her forehead, and she grinned.

Jay sat down beside her, and they did a little handshake, laughing together. I pursed my lips. Everything was so natural with them. I wasn't proud of it, but I was a little jealous. Jay had a huge head start in his relationship with Sarayah, and I was getting left behind.

I cleared my throat. "Yeah, that's not happening."

Sarayah raised an eyebrow. "Why not?"

Jay wrapped an arm around her shoulders. "Yeah, why not? If I didn't know any better, I'd think you were tryna keep me away from my daughter."