The Surgeon. |✔️|

XXII.

Later on in the day around 5pm, Aaliyah and I got ready and left the house for her championship basketball game. En route, we took a small detour to my mother's residence and waited in the driveway until she was ready to go.

"Hi my baby!, .. Beyoncé." She said in her sweet tone. Aaliyah happily responded to her grandmother's love while I playfully rolled my eyes.

"Hey ma, it's so lovely to see you too." I spoke with pure sarcasm. She lightly slapped my shoulder and warned me about my attitude; I swear there was no winning with this lady.

Soon after, we arrived to the gymnasium and managed to find a spot not too far from the entrance. As we got out of the car one by one, a group of girls approached Aaliyah while she grabbed her gym bag from the trunk.

"Hey Lauren and Nia.." She greeted in a calm tone; the girls waved back and waited for her to get situated so that could walk in together.

"Um excuse me, miss?!" I called out to stop her. Aaliyah turned on her heels and came running into my arms. "Good luck out there. I know you're stressed and a bit nervous but you've been working so hard for this. I love you, okay?"

She smiled wide, "Love you too, Mom. Make sure you and gran get a good seat." I nodded my head, understanding her message, then lagged behind her with my mom by my side.

"You're mom is nice .. and beautiful!" I overheard one of her friends say but Aaliyah played it off and kept it moving; this wasn't the first time she's heard a comment of that nature.

While the players bypassed the mass gathering of people in line to get entry tickets, my mom and I sparked conversation as we waited to pay our fee.

"You're still taking me to that seafood place, right?"

"Yes ma.." I said with a laugh. "Do I not give you everything you want?"

"Yes but that's because I deserve it! Putting your behind through med school was not that easy. Now, you make more than enough to treat me good!" She exclaimed while all I could continued to do was laugh.

"I'm going to tell Aaliyah at dinner tonight about Jay." I spoke once my laughter died down.

"And you feel that this is best option?" She questioned.

"Why wouldn't it be? The Knicks game is next weekend. If I don't tell her now, she'll be even more upset that I didn't say something sooner." .. "Which is why I'm also choosing to tell her with you by my side." I added.

My mom let out a sigh, "Beyoncé I-"

"Momma please?! Aaliyah for some reason is more receptive to your teachings than mine!"

"But I'm not the one dating him, Beyoncé!"

"And I understand that, believe me I don't want to share my man, but I also know that you would be able to explain my reasoning to her more clearly. If I do it alone, there's a higher chance of us getting into an argument instead of talking things out; you know we're both hot heads."

"This is true.." My mom mumbled under her breath. "I'll help because you're my daughter and I want you to be happy. But just know that this could all go left very fast." She preached.

"Right, but let's just pray for a good outcome."

Finally, we were next in line to pay for our tickets. I handed the young gentlemen enough cash for two tickets then we walked inside and found our seats reserved for family only. Right away, I spotted Aaliyah warming up on the court. She looked so stylist in her warm up gear and her curly hair done up in two, large space buns. When we briefly locked eyes, she gave me a wave while my mom and I replied back with a thumbs up. At the start of the first quarter, Aaliyah started out slow. I knew right away that this tactic was implemented to reserve her energy for when things started to go crazy, so she seemed satisfied with the small amount of points accumulating right away.