Ten
Zayne found himself standing outside on the porch, his tall frame leaning up against one of the white pillars that aligned the brick building. He allowed his eyes to stare out into the clear blue sky as both his hands remained placed into the pockets of his khaki cargo shorts. He'd been outside for awhile attempting to clear his mind. His thoughts were still racing, confusion the highlight of his silent reeling. He was nowhere near close to figuring out what he wanted to do and that unknowingly forced him to keep to himself.
His gaze faltered, making him peruse the few giggling girls walking past the frat house. He nodded at them, deciding to do without a verbal acknowledgment. The loud laughter of his fraternity brothers then swept through the quiet air. "Sup Oz," They each greeted in passing. Zayne smirked, welcoming them all with their honorary handshake. Among the group were his two best friends, Major and Brian. He hadn't seen much of them lately, he knew he'd talk to them eventually. He couldn't purposely avoid them for too much longer.
The other men filed into the house, leaving behind his two friends. Unbeknownst to Zayne, this was about to become an intervention. They'd been able to tell something was heavy on his mind, he wasn't being his usual self. "Aight, so what's bothering you," Brian questioned, plopping down onto the stairs near him. Major settled into a chair, propping his feet upon the banister, "Yeah, you've been too quiet lately. I haven't seen much of you bro, besides in passing or when we're in class together." Zayne focused in on the busy campus, he shrugged his shoulders with a shake of his head. "I... well, damn. I don't even know where to start." He mumbles, quickly deciding against lying to them.
Brian sighed, "It's that serious?" He nodded, still unsure of himself, but more than ready to get it off his chest. Realization quickly settled on him when he remembered the small photo currently in his pocket. That picture stayed with him - every detail of it embedded within his memory now. He pulled it out and handed it over to Brian first. "An old childhood picture of you?"His hazel eyes begin to race over it. Zayne couldn't contain his small grin. It was crazy how much Zayvion resembled him. It had nearly thrown him off like that at first glance too.
"That's not me... that's Zayvion, my son."
He began to nod to reassure himself of his confession. He'd said it out loud to someone else for once - someone other than his reflection. He could feel their piercing stares in an instant. "Wait. Hol' up, hol' up...since when do you have a kid, Zay?"Major said, hopping up to retrieve the photo from Brian. Zayne tucked his hands into his pockets, clenching them tightly.
Brian broke out into quiet laughter, "Damn, I told you bruh. You see what playing around with all these girls gets you," He was always the one to chastise him and Major about entertaining more than one woman.
"You can't even deny him... that's alllllll you!"Major chortles before returning the picture to him.
"Yeah, yeah, I fucked up. I finally realize that I'm not invincible." Zayne smirked, earning more laughter from his friends.
Major nudged his shoulder, "So who's his mom?" He mentally flinched. He knew that question was coming and there was nothing he could do to avoid it. He heaved a deep sigh while rubbing one hand down his face. "Promise Taylor," He mumbled with a roll of his eyes. Brian seemed unfazed at his answer. "Damn, no wonder she showed up out of nowhere last week..." Zayne could see that Major wasn't sure how he should react. "Yeah, it took me by surprise too. I never saw it coming..." He hefted his chin towards the sky, his tongue tracing his bottom lip.
"So what are you going to do, you gonna be there for him?" Brian asked the question that'd been plaguing Zayne ever since he found out. He shrugged, wearing his honesty as if it were his heart. "I don't know. I've been trying to figure that out." There was no point in trying to hide how he was truly feeling.
Major began to shake his head, "It shouldn't be that hard."
"And you're right, but it is for me."
"Yeah, it's simple to decide you wanna be there for your kid."
Irritation started to creep into his demeanor at that. Could he have time to take it all in first? Was that really so wrong? "Aight, relax y'all. I think you should be there for him too, but at the end of the day it's your decision." Brian announced, trying to play mediator between them. He took heed to his words, because he really didn't want to turn their conversation into an argument.
"I remember when you first met Promise at that off-campus party back at the end of freshmen year."Major said while he decided to join Brian in sitting on the steps. Brian chortled a bit under his breath, probably recalling the memory in his mind as well,"You remember you didn't even wanna go, but once you saw her that all changed. We saw you one minute, and the next you were gone.."
Zayne chuckled, he too could remember what it was like when he first met Promise a little over three years ago. She'd always been able to start a fire within him.
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May 2014
The atmosphere was nothing short of muggy on that Saturday night. Stars were scattered aimlessly all over the onyx night sky. The moon sat high, shining down it's bright and bold light onto the large premises. The blatant music pierced the ears of many way before they'd even neared the mansion-like house.
He followed behind his two newly made friends, Major and Brian, as they excitedly shuffled towards the entrance of the party. He was reluctant to go that night, because he originally just wanted to stay home. His friends convinced him to go, assuring him that he could get into something - or someone. They'd held his love for the female anatomy over his head. "This shit bout to be wilddd!"Major exclaimed. Brian grinned at them both with a nod of his head as he rubbed his hands together in a devious way.
Zayne rolled his eyes with a smirk threatening to form at the creases of his full lips. He sauntered into the building, his eyes automatically scrutinizing the scene before him. He admired the many scantily clad young women that danced wildly with one another. It was a sight to see for his green orbs. He suddenly allowed his feet to move as he jostled through the sea of bodies. He couldn't keep standing in the middle of the crowd.
"My bad,"He found himself saying as his front collided with the back of someone. He looked down and instantly came into contact with a pair of green-blue irises. They took him by surprise as it wasn't a usual eye color combination. She grimaced at him with a roll of her eyes before allowing her golden blonde curls to nearly smack him in the face as she turned around rapidly. "Well damn,"He muttered under his breath.
He pushed past her and headed towards what he hoped to be the kitchen. His assumptions were right as his eyes slid over an island full of snacks and a couple of bowls of red punch. In the middle of the kitchen were two kegs, probably filled to the brim with beer. Zayne opted for a cup of some of what he figured was spiked punch. He didn't like the taste of beer.
He grabbed a plastic red cup and filled it up with some of the red liquid. He then sauntered back out into the party and found a wall to lean up against. He sipped away on the juice, still peering at all the swarming dancing bodies. "Damn. You just gon' stand here all night?"Brian asked, while joining him on the wall. Zayne glanced over at him with a smirk on his face, because Brian truly amused him at that moment. He'd just broken up with his girl for the second time that week and now he wanted to pretend like he was on the prowl.
"I might. And you might as well too. You already know Ashley is not dealing with you tryna play like you even gon' look at another female."Zayne chuckled. Brian sucked his teeth and hurriedly waved him off. "Man forget Ashley. Ain't nobody even checking for her."He said, trying to give off the vibe that he didn't care. He laughed again as he bobbed his head to the nearly deafening music. Major found his way over to the two momentarily with a couple of girls behind him. He smirked at his friends knowingly.
He turned towards the girls and began to introduce them. "This is Lisa, Meghan, and Nia."He pointed to each girl. Zayne smiled at them all, allowing his deep dimples to showcase themselves. His eyes started to lower, whatever in the juice intoxicating him a little bit. He glanced at the one that Major mentioned to be Nia with a smile. She returned it, her eyes gliding over him. "And you look like you're no good."She suddenly said, leaning up against him so that he could hear her over the music. The other girls were too busy engulfed with the others to pay them any mind.
Zayne took another swig of his drink before deciding that he would answer her. "I'm not."He shrugged honestly. He knew how much it attracted women whenever he was brutally honest. "Hm. Really now? Then I guess I shouldn't be over here with you since you're trouble."She smiled, showing off her straight teeth. Her long black tresses hung past her shoulders as her straight bangs remained dangerously low over her eyes. She had smooth unblemished mocha colored skin with a matching pair of chocolate brown eyes.
He couldn't help but peruse her frame once more, admiring the way her dress fit and the way her breast seemed to beg for his attention. He then leaned forward and sat his empty cup on the table behind her. His tongue glided over his bottom lip before he unfolded it into a smirk. "Well with this scenario trouble can be a good thing."He informed her. Nia chuckled under her breath and placed a loose strand of hair behind her ear.
"You are sexy, but I know your type."She pointed at him playfully. Zayne laughed, her unwillingness to "get to know him" amusing him. "It's all good beautiful. Not everyone can handle me."He added. She laughed again before grabbing one of the other girl's hands and whispering something in her ear. They waved goodbye to them before disappearing back into the crowd.
Major peered over at Zayne angrily,"The hell you do nigga?!" He full out laughed that time. He knew how Major was about getting some play with the ladies. Brian didn't seem to be bothered by there abrupt exit. He knew Ashley was probably somewhere near, and the last thing he really wanted was another confrontation."Nothing, we just had a conversation and that was that."He replied. Major rolled his eyes,"Man I was just about to get..." His words were cut short by the presence of another girl making her way over to their area.
Her wild blonde hair instantly caught Zayne's attention. She plopped down into a chair a couple of feet away from them. She rubbed her hand through her hair with a small smile on her face. He was kind of in awe now that he could finally see the girl that he'd bumped into not too long ago.
She was beyond beautiful.
It was as if she could feel his eyes on her that she glanced up at him with that same grin on her face. Her green-blue orbs seemed to twinkle despite the little amount of light there was. "Is there a reason your eyes are over here?"She inquired. Zayne couldn't hear her though because the music was still too loud.
"What,"He mouthed, finally catching himself. He pulled his eyes away from her and glanced to the left of him. Major and Brian both nodded their heads, signaling for him to go and talk to the girl. He turned away from them and settled his gaze on her again. She mouthed a come here to him and gestured him over with her hand. Zayne pushed himself off the wall quickly giving into her request.
He sat down on the arm of her seat and leaned down towards her ear. "Now what is it that you were saying?"She shivered from the way his breath tickled the side of her neck. "I said...is there a reason your eyes are over here?"She reiterated, confidence heavy in her tone. He picked up on her boldness and this piqued his interest even more with just the short period of time he'd been in her presence. "Saw something I like, obviously. You're breathtaking."The words flew out of his mouth, but he had never been so honest with a woman when it came to her looks. She giggled a little,"Thank you... And your name is?"
"Zayne, and you are?"
"Promise."
He smirked at that."Promise, huh?" She nodded her head and began to smooth down her dress. "You mind switching seats with me Zayne?"She asked, taking him by surprise. He then got up and plopped down into her seat. She caught him off guard when she decided to take a seat in his lap. He hadn't known that's what she'd meant. "Comfortable?"He chortled under his breath. Promise leaned into him, finding it much easier to talk since she wouldn't have to strain her neck. "Actually, yes. It's better this way. I hope you don't mind."She then pulled one leg over the other, giving him a peek at her lean legs. Her dress had risen a little bit as she leaned back against him. "Of course I don't mind. A beautiful woman in my lap. How could I?"He snickered. She laughed along with him.
The music in the room finally began to slow down some. Zayne allowed his hands to snake around her small waist before he rubbed a hand up the indention in her back. She quivered against his touch. It almost seemed as though he already knew her body. "What are you doing?"She said. He continued on up her back until he reached her neck, "Can't help it. I'm sorry, but then again I'm not sorry."Promise's body vibrated as her laughter shook through her. "I would say I minded, but since I don't..."Her voice trailed off. He smirked against her neck as he leaned in to catch a whiff of her perfume. "You wanna find somewhere to talk? There's way too much going on down here."
She stood to her feet and turned to outstretch her hand. He grabbed it and allowed her to lead them both through the swaying bodies. She glanced back at him with a smirk as they neared a set of stairs. He was sure they could find somewhere to be alone because there was bound to be a room free since the place reminded him of a mini-mansion. He followed her up the spiral staircase, his eyes latched onto the sway of her hips with each step she took.
They reached a long narrow hallway that was aligned with doors on either side. Promise and Zayne both glanced at one another for a few seconds. "Pick one." He demanded quietly with a devious grin. She turned to look at him as an impromptu giggle escaped her lips while still scrutinizing the hallway. She suddenly pulled him forward, heading for the fourth door on her left. She pulled at it, jostling it open.
The bedroom was nice with a large king sized bed in the middle accompanied by a red and black comforter set atop it. It invited you in with it's matching black carpet and equally dark walls. It had a masculine feel to it, and it instantly made Zayne feel at home. A gentle breeze blew in from the balcony that had been left opened by whoever occupied the room on a regular. Promise allowed her hand to slip out of his as she sauntered over towards the balcony. "You coming?"She tossed over her shoulder prior to going outside.
Zayne followed, joining her out in the cool of the night. Promise leaned against it, her hands grasping onto the ledge and her orbs fixed towards the sky. It was so much quieter and he was appreciative of that at the moment. He eased up behind her and wrapped his arms around her slender waist, something he found himself really liking to do since she'd sat in his lap. It made them appear to be old acquaintances that knew one another once before. She leaned into him and closed her eyes.
"This isn't normal for me Zayne."
"What do you mean?"
"I don't always go up to rooms with strangers when I'm at a party."
Zayne smiled a little, "Who says I have to be a stranger for much longer Promise?" His question enticed her as she turned around with a smile and suddenly got caught by those green eyes of his. The smile that once sat on her face began to dwindle while she took in his piercing stare. She hadn't realized how breathtakingly handsome he was because she really couldn't see much of him at first. The dark had only given away a few of his features. "What," He brushed a strand of hair from her face. She continued to peer at him with a certain gleam of mischievousness in her eyes. "You have some of the most gorgeous eyes and...lips..."
She pulled his face down towards hers and began to trace the outline of his mouth with her fingers. Zayne's lips thinned into a straight line as he pulled her body closer to his. "You know what I could do with these lips Promise?"He questioned, one eyebrow furrowed. She bit her bottom lip while taking a step back so she could catch a glimpse of his eyes again. The sexual tension that didn't seem to be there at first began to heighten at a rapid pace. She decided to leave his question unanswered. He smirked, "I'll tell you anyway..." Promise shook her head no,"Why don't you just show me?" He then pressed her back into the balcony.
Zayne leaned down towards her and entangled his hand in her dirty blonde curls. He clutched some into his hand and pulled so that he could have the perfect angle of her neck. He slowly flicked his tongue and nibbled on her neck as he allowed his other hand to ease down to her love cave. He roughly grabbed a hold of it causing a whimper to surpass her lips. "I can't help what I want to do to you right now."He told her truthfully. She moaned more as she felt him rubbing his hand over her moistened panties. He was making her wetter every time he smacked it. "Then do what you want..."She huffed, her breathing becoming low and shallow.
He pulled her dress up over her head and tossed it to the side. It was erotic how they were outside on the balcony and she was damn near naked. "Damn."He mumbled. He figured she had to be a little intoxicated, otherwise, she probably wouldn't want to be out in the open. He would take the opportunity though. Zayne allowed her to push him back and undress him. She pulled his shirt over his head and slid her hand down his sculpted chest. It then fell towards his pants and she pulled them loose. He watched her intensely as she backed away from him continuing to rid herself of her bra and panties.
His gaze never faltered as he took in her skin that glistened under the luminous glare of the moon. His eyes fell over her, fully taking her in for what she was. He sauntered forward and grabbed a hold of her breast, his thumb rubbing across her taut nipple. She sighed heavily, chills becoming evident all over her body. "I'm infatuated with you... and I don't even know you..."She voiced softly.
There was something about her too.
He used his other free hand and gripped her waist and roughly pulled her towards him. He placed one leg between hers and rubbed his erection up against her sopping clit. "Good. Now turn around and bend it all the way over..."He ordered no louder than a whisper.
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A grin somehow managed to dance across Zayne's face as he pulled himself out of his trek down memory lane. That was one wild night when he and Promise had damn near startled half of that neighborhood with her screams and his moans. He could see how their son was created now. "Damn. You good?"Major asked which suddenly brought him back again. He would never forget how they had come to know one another. "Yeah, I'm straight."He finally answered.
"Zay, you should have seen your face nigga. Whatever you were thinking about must've been good."Brian said as he stood to his feet. He pulled himself up from the pillar he was leaning on and folded his arms across his chest. "It was more than good, shit."His laughter starting to ring out loudly. Major catapulted himself upwards with a shake of his head. He never told either of his friends about the whole balcony situation and he didn't plan on it anytime soon. "You know we're always your brothers, right Zayne?"Brian placed his hand on his shoulder. He nodded his head,"Yeah. Wouldn't think anything different Bry."
"So do right by the kid."Major finished, obviously knowing where Brian was going with it. He allowed their words to settle into his mind. He knew that they only wanted him to do the right thing and apart of him wanted to do that as well. "I hear y'all. I'm going to get it together, but I just need a little more time first." Since they were both satisfied with his answer they nodded at him before disappearing into the house. He was gradually starting to feel a bit better about everything. All it had taken was the realization that he had to get a grip on his new reality.
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Long time no see, my loves! Y'all miss me?! Lol I know, I know. I been gone forevaaaaa, but I'm not trying to go anywhere again. I'll be back again to give y'all another update really soon...probably like tomorrow soon! Anyways, tell me what you think! Vote, share and comment!
And as always thank you for continuously supporting me, even when I go ghost! It means a lot to see this still getting reads!