[part two]
Cecil's presence was not acknowledged when he entered Cole's bedroom. He sat on the edge of the bed and looked at the photo of Colin and Cecil Sr. hanging on the wall. "Yo homeboy 'bout to burn this place down tryna cook out there." He chuckled at his own joke.
He still didn't acknowledge his big brother's presence. "Can you just tell me what's the matter." Cecil demanded, trying out a newly acclaimed brotherly tone.
"Why you in my business? Matter fact, why you in my room?" Cole squinted his eyes at the older man who was unbothered by the dismissive tone Cole was using. "Well... I heard that that's what big brothers do." He watched Cole's face noticing it's change from defensive to something a little softer yet heavier in a matter of seconds.
"I don't want to talk about it."
"When you do, can you let me know?"
"I'm prolly never gonna wanna talk about it. With anybody." Cole dejected, but Cecil knew that nobody only meant him.
"Sounds serious." Cecil scooted off the bed, brushing off his pants. "Is it a STD?" He joked, attempting to lighten the mood.
He and Cole have always had this heaviness between them. Cole never understood it, but he felt it and he always acted accordingly. Cecil always retreats when things get too heavy, which was often. He smiled, preparing himself to walk out of the room.
"Fuck you." Cole retorted, almost cracking a smirk.
"Let me know when that shit heals up, bro. 'Til then, imma leave yo ass alone to burn in peace." Cecil snickered, walking towards the door. Cole threw a pillow at him, catching him in the back of his head. Cecil laughed picking the pillow up from the floor tossing it back onto the bed. When he opened the door, Cobe was standing there.
Cole watched Cobe as he approached the bed. He sat on the edge, laying back looking at Cole. "You know you can talk to me, nigga." He mumbled.
"Yeah, the same way you know you can talk to me." He retorted. "Don't ask me shit until you decide you can trust me enough to open up."
"I did. That's all I been doing since Lonnie got shot."
"That was out of necessity. You don't actually trust me."
Cole grabbed his car keys from the kitchen and announced that he would be back soon.
Cobe continued to lay on the bed thinking for a second before texting Cole to wait. He caught up with the darker skinned man in the hallway of the apartment building. Cole stopped, leaning up against the wall waiting for Cobe to speak. "You first." Cobe suggested standing beside Cole up against the wall. Cobe hesitated but proceeded anyway.
"Okay." He huffed out. "Jill told me that she was pregnant with my kid and got an abortion." He said simply, noticing that the sentence had come out easier than he's anticipated. Maybe it wasn't that big of a deal then, he thought to himself.
"When?"
Cole shrugged his shoulders. "You didn't ask any questions?" Cobe asked, looking at Cole sideways with confusion.
"Only thing I asked was for her to leave."
"You didn't wanna know?"
"What's the point? She already did the shit. It's not like I can make her go back and change her mind." Cole snapped, feeling as though Cobe wasn't understanding why this would have an effect on him.
"And you're mad? You don't wanna be a dad, look at Cecil. You really want what he got?" Cobe added, dismissing any reasons for Cole to even be considering having a child at this point in life. Cole was offended, not only does Jill think he wouldn't be able to handle being a father, but now Cobe believe's he'd be just as bad as Cecil. He turned to face Cobe head on before defending himself. "That's cuz he don't know shit about family. He don't know what it's like to not have one. And I can bet his little boy knows he don't want his ass and that shit is fucked up. I'd never do no shit like that."
"So now you want a kid."
"Your turn."
"So, you just gone ignore my question?"
He gave Cobe a look then proceeded to walk away but Cobe grabbed his arm. He turned back around. "Who is it?" Cole asked, impatiently referring to the text messages that he'd already gone through and taken care of.
"You already know."
"What they blowing you up for?"
"It's all about that stupid shit with Mo. But it don't even matter cuz they not gone do shit."
"Oh hell nah. Gimme his number." Cole demanded overly exaggerating his protective stunt.
"Huh?" Cobe jerked his head back, giving Cole a confused yet amused half smile. Cole pulled out his phone, pushing it in Cobe's direction. "Nigga, gimme me Lonnie number." He repeated himself assuring Cobe that he was not joking.
"Why?"
"Because you trust me." Cobe looked at him, irritated. "You do trust me, don't chu?" The conversation that played before this one was in Cobe's head. He remembered how Cole found out about all of his personal life, it was by chance, Cobe had never voluntarily given up information unless there was no other option. He hesitantly unlocked his phone, showing Cole Lonnie's contact.
"And what you gone do with this?" Cobe asked, jovial undertones present in his voice that didn't phase Cole at all since he wasn't planning on using the number for Cobe's benefit anyway. Little did Cobe know, all of this was old news to Cole, he was just dotting his i's and crossing his t's to cover himself.
"Don't worry 'bout it, I gotchu." Cole said, walking away from Cobe once he got what he wanted. He left the building and got into his car. He drove down Woodward looking for the red storefront Dame had been describing to him for months. Finally clocking Dame's pickup in front of the red storefront, he pulled into an empty parking space near the strip.
Cole looked in the window seeing him sitting with a girl, painting. He knocked on the glass to catch Dame's attention and he came to open the door.
"Well damn, look who finally came to see my shit." Dame said, pulling Cole in by his hand into a hug.
He locked the door back behind him and they both walked over to where Dame was painting at. "Whatupdoe?" Cole greeted the stranger. "Hey." She said, looking him up and down before looking over at Dame. "Oh, my bad. This is my brother, Cole. Cole, this is Ranesha, but she go by Rane. She my partner in crime... we been hustling together since YouthVille days." He cheesed, looking at her before dragging Cole behind him for a tour of his building.
Ranesha Cosby, 23
Portrayed by Lauren 'keke' Palmer
Cole watched Dame's excitement as he went from room to room and showed him everything from workshop space to gallery space to studio space and so on and so forth.
"So, Rane?" Cole hesitantly asked when he figured they were far enough away from her.
Dame looked up from the box he was rummaging through. "What about her?"
"Y'all a thing?"
"Don't do that. I know you not judging."
"Nigga you kicked me out your car for doing the same thing." He defended, referring to Dame having two women at the same time. One of them being pregnant with his child.
"It's different."
"How." Cole asked, hopping up to sit on the bar behind Dame.
Dame inhaled and sighed, taking a seat in a nearby chair. "It's complicated." He looked into the box again. "I" he sighed again. "I don't gotta explain it to you."
"You a fucking hypocrite nigga. The only difference between me and you is that I -"
"The only difference? Nigga, Rane knows about Sadé. I keep it real, my nigga. While you on the other hand is fucking your best friend's ex." Dame rebutted.
"OHHHH" Cole shouted, putting his fist up to his mouth." I already told you that I'm not. You swear I'm a liar but I'm the realest nigga you know."
"The realest nigga. You sound bout dumb as hell." Dame laughed. Cole laughed back at him mockingly. "How about you tell me why you here with her instead of takin care of your pregnant girlfriend who ain't seen you in about three days. I bet a hunnid dollas that Sadé don't know about Rane." Cole said, eyes bugging at Dame with a childish smile on his face because he knew he had one up'd his brother.
"Yeah, nigga. Bitches talk. So try coming at me again on some loyalty shit, dog ass nigga." He retorted when Dame had nothing to say.
Dame laughed, looking at Cole pointing his finger at his face saying, "Imma beat yo ass."
Cole smirked, "Man, shut up. You ain't gone do shit. Anyway, how is Reece doing now that his parents know about the baby?" Dame's smile faded for the slightest second, but Cole caught it.
"Ion know. I ain't spoke to him."
"You ain't spoke to him?" Cole asked only for the subject to be changed by Dame.
"Did I show you this new logo my homie worked up for me? It's fye." He said, pulling a hoodie out of the box he was rummaging through. "This stitching, right here? Quality, ain't nobody doing this shit out here man." Dame said, changing the subject back to the original reason he and Cole were even in this room.
Cole looked at him for a moment before engaging in Dame's diversion tactic. He took the hoodie in his hands fingering the stitching Dame was excited about while examining the logo. "Yeah." He mumbled. "This is dope. How much you selling these for?"
"Eighty. But, I got some things in mind for you, bro. How you feel about being a brand ambassador?" Cole nodded his head. He watched his brother as he began going into detail about some items he designed just for him, but his mind was elsewhere. While it was a very new thing for Dame to be open about his feelings, even when he didn't speak, Cole could always tell when Dame was really bad. Cecil was right. He hadn't been paying attention to Dame and everything he missed was now clear as day in Dame's eyes.
Dame, Rane, and Cole we're seated in a new restaurant in the slowly changing midtwon area. Rane was looking at Cole's attire. "So... Cole, why are you wearing Timbs and a hoodie in 90 degree weather?"
"But I have on the shorts which balances it out, right?" Cole smirked. "What type of place is this anyway?"
"It's called classy." Rane said, looking around, smiling:
"It's called... gentrification." Cole rebutted.
"What else did you expect to see around here? It's literally mostly white people in this neighborhood now." Rane said, looking out the window at the Caucasians roaming the streets.
"Exactly. Gentrification. And we supporting it by being here." Cole said.
" Nigga, just look at the damn menu." Dame instructed the younger man.
"I come here with my mom all the time. You'll like it, just give it a try." Rane chimed, getting up to go to the restroom to wash her hands. As soon as she left, Cole began to talk. "Look, Jill came over the other night. Just out the blue. She had a lot to say. Shit I wasn't ready to hear."
"Forreal? I ain't heard about her in a minute. What she want?"
"She told me that she had an ab-" Cole was cut off by an exaggerated gasp coming from a young white woman with an apron on and a tablet tucked between her arms and her chest. "Wow! Welcome to our little hole in the wall Mr. Luke James!" She almost squealed, gawking at the up-and-coming celebrity at the table. People all over the otherwise quiet and calm restaurant looked in their direction, some only then noticing who he was. "I'm a huge fan of your music." She started when an older white woman walked by giving her a stern look. Her demeanor quickly changed from fangirl to professional in a millisecond. "How may I help you gentlemen? I can start you off with drinks." She said before continuing to list off the best items in the menu. The two thanked her as she left the table.
"So what was you saying?" Dame asked, but before Cole could respond, Rane returned to the table. Dame leaned back attempting to hide his irritation with the interruptions. "Did I miss something?" Dame opened his mouth to say something, but Cole beat him letting her know that she was fine. "So what y'all order?" She asked, looking between the two.
When the thrupple got back to the studio, Rane left giving Dame another opportunity to ask about Jill.
"Apparently I'm old shit so everything she was keeping in about me had to go, including her guilt for getting an-" Dame cut him off with a loud gasp and pulling of Cole's jacket. Cole just looked at him, half irritation half curiosity. "Have you heard from your manager recently?"
Cole chuckled, "nah. I blocked his ass. He just be asking for too damn much.."
"What the fuck is wrong with you?"
"What? I'm on vacation." He smiled his cocky grin, pulling a bag of gummy bears from his hoodie pocket.
"Yo...call him. Right now! He prolly been blowing you up."
"Why?"
"Nigga. You ain't been on social media?"
"Hell no. I just said I'm on vacation. My socials and line are closed until August." He said nonchalantly, examining the faces on the gummies.
"You make shit so fucking hard, dumbass. Look!" He practically threw Cole his phone. "You trending right now. Your new album is every fucking where. My Nigga... Lenny Kravitz mentioned you. Aint that'cha idol, man?!" Cole was dumbfounded, he only glared at the screen while his thumb haphazardly scrolled through Black Twitter which was oozing with love for him.
Dame read over Cole's shoulder... "somebody find out where #LukeJames is hiding" he read the Erykah Badu's tweet out loud. Dame's mouth fell open after he read the tweet. "Nigga, you gotta say something! Where is yo phone?" Cole shrugged his shoulders, "inna car."
Dame rolled his eyes at Cole's easiness with the situation. "Go get the shit, re-re."
Cole handed Dame his phone back and casually sat focusing hard on this one blue gummy bear in his hand. "Nigga, this is the shit I'm talking about. You can't even be present cuz you prolly high as a kite right now."
"B'cuz that's all I do?" Cole asked, sheer curiosity on his face. "I just sit around getting high off my ass all day everyday?" Cole said, seemingly calm until Dame opened his mouth to respond, that shit sent Cole off, but instead of going off like he wanted, he got up from his seat and started towards the door until he realized it was locked. He fumbled with it making him angrier by the second. "Muthafucka." He grumbled smacking the glass door with is palm, prompting Dame to walk over and unlock the door without a problem. The setback didn't stop Cole from pushing the door ass hard as he could. "Damn, you ain't gotta be breaking my shit though." Dame said, watching his brother walk away from his shop. He let out a heavy sigh then continued looking at Cole's trending hashtag on Twitter. "Toni Braxton?!" Dame shouted, palming the top of his dome in excitement.
Cole rummaged through his glove compartment and the inside of the arm rest not sure exactly what he was looking for until he felt a buzzing on his thigh. He felt around the seat until he found the phone that had been in the pocket of his shorts the entire time.
[tbc]
|02/15/2021|