PRIDE.

CHAPTER SEVEN

[back to nevaeh]
Harmony was already a month old, no sign of devanté. I'd moved in with tisha, I didn't even know my mom and dad had moved cribs. According to tisha they left town just a few weeks after I'd left.

"Your pops was heartbroken." Tisha said softly behind me as I bottle fed harmony.

"And momma?"
"She looked terrible." A storm of regret and sadness flew over my head, my body felt cold. "I guess that's why when I called there wasn't no pick up."

That month turned into five, harmony had learned to crawl and walk by then, she was such a fast learner. My baby was beautiful, she had eyes like her father, the most beautiful eyes, and the cutest smile. Dalvin came around every now and then to see her, k-ci and jojo too, but not her father.

One day, it was raining, harmony loved to watch the rain but this particular day she was laughing, loud, and saying something even louder.

"Harmony girl what the hell is so funny?" I looked up from the pot I was stirring.
"Dada!"

I dropped my spoon and tisha rushed over to the window looking out then looking back at harmony.

"Harmony tell auntie what you said now, what you was laughing at out there?"
Tisha urged, I looked out the door and saw a teddy bear sitting on the porch, the smell..out here smelled so familiar.

"HELLO??" No reply, but the sound of the rain. I rushed back with the wet bear and harmony practically yanked it out my hand.

"Silly dada." She hugged the bear and laughed waddling off to the corner to play.

"Trinity, you see him?"
"Nah, Harmony must be trippin she don't know Donald, one of the boys musta left that here, she must be thinking Dalvin her daddy." I picked up the phone and dialed Dalvin it took him a while before picking up.

"Yo."
"Dal, you left something here?"
"No?"
"Some teddy bear was on the porch. Had harmony cracking up..she kept saying dada."
I heard him shuffle around as if he was sitting up and covered the phone to speak to someone in the room.
"Trinity? You still there?"
"Yes."
"What time this all happen?"
"A few minutes Dal."
"My brother in Virginia."
"WHAT?"
Tisha ran up to me and took the phone.
"Dalvin what she over here yelling for?"
"Devanté is in Virginia."
I took the phone back and started pacing around the floor.
"Now Dalvin my baby don't know Donald, why she saying dada?"
"Ion know. Imma page his ass."
I hung up the phone and looked back out the window, there was nothing out there, I looked down at harmony and she was sound asleep hugging that damn bear.

A few days went by, and the same thing happened twice, Harmony yelling dada and laughing but each time there was nobody there no matter how fast we ran.
Eventually I decided to sit and wait, in a ducked off corner and sure enough, there he was, limping his way to the window with a head band going over his head i watched as he kneeled down tapping the window.

"Hi mini mama."
I heard harmony giggle from the inside as she stared back at him, he knew I was there and motioned for me to keep quiet.
"Dada gotta talk to mommy aight?"
He stood up and slid down on the porch bench staring at me.

"Nevaeh."
"My name is Trinity."
He shook his head and held it wincing in pain.
"You still in pain ?" I questioned still crouched behind the wall.
"Nun a lil liquor can't fix." He groaned.
"That's your problem."
He looked back at me and sighed.
"Ion need your smart ass mouth girl, my skull cracked ain't it? Shit still gone hurt."
I got up to walk inside but he grabbed my arm.
"Don't go. Let's go for a ride, I wanna talk." He stood up and we made our way to his red sports car speeding off into the night.

The talk lasted for hours, there was yelling, screaming, crying, and kissing. I ended up with him in the back of his car, him staring into his eyes as he did mine, caressing my face.

"I ain't mean to hurt you nevaeh."
"Devanté."
"Let me talk girl, I love you aight? I'm tired of seein my seed through a damn window and I'm tired of you lookin this fine and I can't touch you." His words slid from his lips like velvet and child was I even listening? I looked into his eyes but the healing gash in his head caught me up. I started to tear up all over again.

"I almost lost you..you were dying in my arms..and I sat with you every single day for you to cheat on me at my baby shower.."
He shook his head and kissed my jaw guiding my hand to his erected manhood, I took my hand away and he roughly put it back.
"Nevaeh touch me.." he asked softly while sucking on my neck, I tried to hold in my moan and moved my hand again.
"Nevaeh..touch me." My hand found its way back to his buldge, he unbuckled his pants and slid it from his boxers stroking it while staring at me.
"Put your lips around it baby, I missed you, come on. Kiss it."
I wanted to fight it, but I followed his commands what started off as a simple blowjob turned into me being fucked on top of his car screaming.

"I missed this, I missed you princess, you feel how deep daddy is girl? Y'all coming home with me you hear? I want this forever." His groans in my ear didn't make shit no better, before I knew it I was being taken away from my home again. He drove me back and sat in the car as I grabbed up me and harmony's things.

"Trinity you sure?"
I hugged tisha goodbye and whispered in her ear.
"I love you sis."
I grabbed our bags and he took them away, soon we were  on a plane back to North Carolina, the whole plane ride I watched Donald and harmony talk and play like they've known each other forever.

I thought things were changed, I thought once we got back things would be better.
I was wrong.