My fingers traveled over the buttons as I dialed Dalvin's phone number, a towel wrapped around my body from the shower I had just taken and my hair dripping wet.
"Hello?"
"Hey, you."
"What's up, girl?" He asked.
I laid down on my bed, holding the phone up to my ear.
"Nothing much, I was just naked and wanted to see what you were doing," I said, waiting to see what his reaction would be.
"Nothing, I'm just - do what?"
"I said I was naked, I just got out the shower," I replied, giggling at his obviously taken aback reaction.
"....that's nice. Like I was sayin' though, I was just uh - waiting for Puff to come get me. Dre's having a cookout today."
"For the 4th of July, huh? That sounds like it's gonna be fun," I replied.
"It's gonna be fun, his cookouts always are. Why don't you come with us?"
"Me? I don't know, I wouldn't wanna intrude on anything," I said, unsure.
"No, it's all good. They ain't gonna mind, I promise. I can get Puff to swing by there."
"Hm," I thought for a second, "Okay, I'll go."
"Trust me, you good. I'll see you when we get there."
"Alright, I'll see you," I said, and then we said our goodbyes. I smiled as I hung up the phone and I hopped to see what I could wear today from my closet.
I chose a pair of shorts and a gray t-shirt to pull on along with a black jacket and matching shoes. As I did my hair, I couldn't help but think about how awkward this might be if I'm just sitting there, acting as out of place as I probably will be. That, and the fact that my hair needed a touch up, but mostly that first part.
I did my makeup and grabbed my key, getting outside and locking the door only to hear the faint sound of moaning coming from next door.
....was Mrs. Johnson having a heart attack or something? My fist hovered over the door before I put my ear up to the door, my hoop earring clicking against the wood softly.
There was still moaning, followed by a few grunts. I pulled my head back in shock.
"Okay, Mrs. Johnson," I said, stuffing my key in pocket before walking down the steps, shaking my head.
So 70-year old Mrs. Johnson was getting her back blown out meanwhile I was just sitting here, collecting dust. I wouldn't say I was heavily experienced or anything, but between the two people I had done it with, I had done it a lot. I'd even say I was pretty good at it. I think.
The thought of Mrs. Johnson getting some, which by the way, I cringed at as I sat patiently on the stoop outside, made me start to think.
Would Dalvin and I end up....having sex?
That was a dumb question, of course we were. He was a boy who obviously choked at the thought of me naked and I was a girl who wondered what he was packing down there. It'd have to be a step-by-step kinda thing, it would feel weird if we just skipped straight to the sex with nothing in between. So maybe, we could get a lot of in between within the next couple of weeks....
Suddenly, the honking of car horn filled my ears and I snapped out of my own thoughts to see Dalvin hanging out the side of Puff's car, waving me over.
"What's up?" I greeted as I opened up the backseat, "Hey, Puffy."
"What's up, girl?"
"Nothin' much," I replied before turning to Dalvin, "Hey." I leaned in to give him a quick peck on the lips, that seemed to have happened just a little too fast for him.
"Let's lay down some ground rules while y'all are in my car," Puff said, making us pull away from each other, "Y'all ain't about to make out, touch, talk dirty or any of that up in this vehicle. Not in my car on these brand new leather seats."
"How we finna do all that when I'm in the front seat and she's in the back? You trippin'. And you know good and well these seats are pleather and not leather."
"It don't matter, they look clean enough to be leather," Puffy said, and I shook my head.
"Y'all are a mess," I said.
"You best get used to it, homegirl," he said, pulling off, "We ain't the only messes in the family. You haven't met Mary yet."
"Mary?"
"Another artist, she just got signed in December," Dalvin explained, "She's wild."
"Wild how?"
"You'll see. You ready for some good ass barbecue? Andre knows how to throw down on the pit," he said.
"I'll be the judge of that, ain't nobody can barbecue like niggas in Texas," I bragged, Puffy wagged his finger.
"I heard that before. One of my homeboys is from Austin and he be talkin' about that shit all the time," he said, making a left, "I heard y'all got some good ass Mexican food too."
"Not as good as Taco Bell, I bet."
"Word."
I stared at them before scoffing, "I'ma pretend like y'all didn't just say that. Taco Bell? Y'all think that's Mexican food?"
"Yeah, it got tacos and quesadillas and shit like that, right?"
"Yeah, but that's like....white people's Mexican food. Y'all ain't never been to no taqueria before? Never had carne asada? No sopapillas?"
"Sopa-what?" Puffy asked, confused like it was the first time he'd ever heard the word in his life, and I bet it was.
"Oh my God. You know what - I'ma have to take y'all somewhere one of these days, y'all cannot be living like this no more."
"Hold on, why you saying this like you the one that's Mexican?" Dalvin asked, laughing a bit.
"I mean, I'm not Mexican but 50% of my neighborhood is Mexicans. Two of my road dogs from back home were Mexican girls," I said, shrugging.
"Road dogs?" Dalvin asked.
"You know, road dog. Like your partners. Your homies."
"....you weird as hell, Bianca."
"No weirder than you, baby," I winked, and Puff snickered right as he put his eyes back on the road.
Another 40 minutes of us going back and forth and talking shit to each other went by before entered somebody's lavish neighborhood, expensive upper-middle class houses spanning for blocks. We pulled up outside someone's polished and pristine house, double white pillars on opposing sides. Several cars were parked in the driveway and on the street, and the gate on the side of the house was wide open.
As we got out of the car, I inhaled the familiar scent of seasoned meat roasting on a barbecue pit and Bobby Brown's song Roni blasted out of a speaker, and I could hear the chatter beneath it.
I took a deep breath as the butterflies in my stomach refused to calm down, and I found myself slipping my hand into Dalvin's as we approached the gate, voices getting louder.
I pulled him to the side before we walked in, Puff strolling right past us to large crowd of people greeting him with open arms and glee.
"What if they don't like me?" I asked, a worried frown on my face as I eyed the open gate.
"B, I'm telling you - you're good. They'll like you," he assured me, hands on my shoulders.
"Okay, but how do you know for sure?"
"Because they're like my family and I know them well enough. Besides - it's just common sense. If I like you, my brothers like you - Puff and Sybil both like you - the rest of them will too. You worryin' too much."
I looked back at the gate.
"....and you're sure?"
"I'm sure. I would never lie to you. Well - " he paused, "I did that one time, about the whole speaker thing - but other than that, I wouldn't lie to you. And I want you know to that now, before we go any further with whatever this is or whatever it's gonna be. I promise you."
I leaned in to him, our faces close together.
"You promise?" He grabbed my chin and brought my lips to his, kissing me softly.
"I promise."
"Okay, I believe you," I said, breaking out into a bright grin before squeezing him with one arm.
"I'm glad you do, now bring your fine ass back here and lemme introduce you to some folks," he said, taking me by the hand and leading me to the back.
Faces - some familiar and some unfamiliar - were spread around the backyard and in the pool, and I stared wide-eyed at some of the attendees.
My kinda boyfriend was really signed to Uptown Records.
"What's up, Dalvin?" A dark skinned man holding a bottle of half-drank Corona came up to us, shaking Dalvin's hand.
He pulled down his round sunglasses to look at me.
"Well hey," he said, "What's your name, sugar?"
"Bianca," I answered as he grabbed my hand.
"That's a pretty name. I'm Timothy," he said, bringing my hand up to his lips, "Timothy Brown."
"Also known as Father MC, the rapper we been workin' with," Dalvin said, pulling my hand away.
Tim's eyebrows raised, eyes flickering between us. There was an unspoken discussion between the two by just using their eyes and subtle facial expression, and I watched in wonder. What kinda friendship was this?
"My bad, g. I didn't mean no disrespect," Tim said before turning back to me, "I apologize for my rude behavior, I didn't realize you and Dalvin were rollin' together like that."
"It's fine, but it's nice to meet you! I heard your song on the radio a few weeks ago and I lost my mind," I said, smiling politely.
"Really now? Just wait until the video comes out, it's gonna be hot," he said, before looking back towards the pit, where a man wiped his prescription glasses with his shirt, "Dre just put the brisket on but we got sausage and ribs ready to eat."
"Alright, cool," Dalvin said before spotting a group of people sitting down at a table, playing bones and yelling at each other.
"Y'all playin' already?" Dalvin asked, as my breath hitched.
"You know it, my brother," The big man said, standing up to give Dalvin a dap.
Who was at the table, exactly? Let's see.
Heavy D. Eddie F. G-Whiz. T Roy. And Teddy fucking Riley.
You're dreaming, Bianca, I thought to myself. Like, it was one thing to see the entirety of Heavy D and the Boyz sitting at one table, this close - and that was a pretty big deal itself. But to have Teddy Riley, the guy who been making all the hit records lately, this was just a whole different level. The only thing that could make it any better is if Aaron and Damion Hall were sitting here. Or better yet, if Al B. Sure just randomly walked by.
"What's up, Dal?"
"Hey, Al."
My jaw dropped. I'm a psychic, y'all.
"Wait a minute, is this ol' girl?" Eddie pointed towards me, and Dalvin put an arm around my shoulders.
"Yep," he replied, nodding his head. "Bianca, this is Eddie, G, Hev, Troy and Ted."
"Hi," I waved shyly, unsure of what to say. Suddenly, Heavy D wrapped his arms around me and squeezed me into a hug, and I reluctantly returned the gesture, not really knowing if I should or not.
"Nice meeting you, sweetheart," he said, and I couldn't help but squeal on the inside as everyone said their hellos.
Who was next?
"Bianca!" I heard, and whirled around to see Sybil coming straight at me and damn near tackling me with a hug like she hadn't seen me in awhile.
"Hey, Syb," I greeted as I patted her back, "What you up to, girl?"
"Nothin' much! Wait, hold up - Mary!" She motioned for a girl to come over, "Mary get your ass over here!"
The girl who approached us with a piece of sausage in her hand was a few inches taller than me, with a bit of darker complexion and blonde hair. I noticed the little dark scar by her eye as she came closer.
"Who this?" She asked, taking a bite of sausage, looking at me up and down like she was judging me immediately.
"This Bianca, the girl I said help me take care of Puff a while back," she said.
"Hi, it's nice to meet you," I said, sticking my hand out for her to shake, and she shook it half-heartedly, almost like she was disinterested.
"Nice to meet you too, girl."
"Why don't you come sit with us? We were wonderin' if Dalvin was gonna bring you. And hey, I can introduce you to Dre, too," she said, before pulling an arm around my neck as we walked to their table, Dalvin following right behind us.
"I know she seems mean but she's just tryin' to feel you out, she'll warm up to you in a few minutes."
And Sybil wasn't lying to me. The next thing I knew, it was an hour later and Sybil, Mary and I were talking each other's ears off about anything and everything, while Dalvin, DeVante, JoJo and K-Ci were shooting dice with a few other people and cussing each other out.
A new song came on and a light suddenly went off in Sybil's head as she start digging around in her pockets.
"Speaking of Mary Jane," she said, "Not counting the one already at this table, we need to light up. You ever smoked before, B?"
"I mean, I had a cigarette because of a certain somebody," I said, eyes on K-Ci as he shouted in frustration, "But that's about it."
"Well, today is your lucky day because this is the good shit," she said, pulling out a small baggie and some papers. She began rolling up and I could see Mary start to rub her hands together.
"You smoke this and then you really gone be cool with me, sis," Mary said, and I waited anxiously. I had some bad influences around me in Houston, but I ain't never gotten this far before.
Sybil finished rolling it and suddenly put it to her lips before lighting it up, inhaling before passing it over to Mary, who took two puffs.
"Mary taking an extra hit, per usual," she said, rolling her eyes before Mary passed it over to me. I held it in between my fingers before putting it to my lips and inhaling deeply, coughing hard when I tried to exhaled.
"Bitch, don't hit it that motherfuckin' hard," Mary said, slapping me on the back and taking it away from me, "You gotta take your time with this shit."
I nodded my head wiping my eyes quickly as they began watering.
"Alright," I choked out, "I got it."
She started touching my hair, digging her fingernails around a little.
"Girl, you know you a need a touch-up on that relaxer, right?"
"Oh, I know," I assured her, "I was just thinking that today."
"Oooh, I could help you with that," Sybil said, puffing, and suddenly another lightbulb went off in her head, "You guys. We should have a sleepover!"
"Sybil. First of all, we not 8 year old girls, so we wouldn't be callin' it no damn sleepover. Second, at who house? You know damn well my momma ain't lettin' nobody stay over at mines."
"We can do it at mine," I offered, "I just gotta ask my Auntie first but she'd be cool with it, I think."
"The hell are y'all up to?" K-Ci asked as he snatched the blunt out of Mary's hand, who slapped him in the stomach.
"We're bonding, Cedric," Sybil said, "Our girl here is startin' to fit in with us."
"Run," JoJo commented and Mary kissed her teeth as she reached over to grab a beer out the ice chest.
"You want one?" She asked me, and I nodded my head.
She handed me a beer - not before opening it for me - and I knew right then and there that I had Mary's seal of approval.
I took a sip and then got it taken out of my hand by Dalvin, who took it upon himself to take a sip himself. I narrowed my eyes at him, an she just smiled down at me endearingly, so I couldn't be mad about it.
"Yo K, that Vanessa girl is looking for you," Tim said as he made his presence known, nodding his head towards the gate.
My eyes followed K-Ci as he hustled over, where a female was standing with an oversized jacket on and her arms crossed over her chest. She was shifty-eyed even after K-Ci came to her, but she was very pretty - and looked very familiar.
I got out my seat and stepped forward a bit, trying to place her face somewhere with my eyebrows knitted together in deep concentration.
Who the fuck is that....?
She and K-Ci were in deep conversation, it seemed like, their lips moving fast and her hands moved around frantically like she was trying desperately to get her point across. Suddenly, her eyes flickered over to us and right as she was about to look away, she did a double-take. Her big, brown doe eyes locked on to me and my face softened, blinking back at her while her eyes widened.
And that's when it hit me. The night of the party. Nate's car.
Nate's sister.
She turned back to K-Ci, saying something quickly before hurrying away. I looked around to see DeVante's eyes on me, and we were staring at each other for a hot second before K-Ci came storming back and right past us.
"Hold on, K. Wait up!" Dalvin shouted after him, putting my drink down before jogging inside the house.
"Y'all know each other," DeVante questioned, but his cadence made it sound like a statement more than anything.
"Kinda."
DALVIN'S POV
"K, hold up, man," I said, catching up with him and he immediately shrugged me off as I touched his shoulder. "K, what's goin' on? What's up?"
"She's pregnant with my baby, Dalvin."
I stepped back.
"What?"
"Vanessa's pregnant. And I'm the father."
"How do you know - "
"She said it was me and I believe her, Dal. You know good and well she wouldn't be tryin' to trap me, of all people, with a kid," he shook his head, eyes still wide with shock, "A fuckin' kid."
"That don't mean a damn thing, man. You know how she gets down, that could be anybody's baby - hell, that could be De's 3rd, or JoJo's 2nd for all we know - "
"Dalvin. You don't understand. She's 6 weeks. Remember that night she came over when De and JoJo were in the studio late? Guess who didn't wear a jimmy."
I tried to think back to that night.
Shit. That actually made a lot of sense.
"You were right, Dal. The pull-out method don't work."
"So....what you gone do now?"
He shrugged, licking his lips nervously. "I don't know. But I'ma take care of it, I do know that."
He looked up at me, urgency and passion in his eyes like I'd never seen from him before.
"This album's gotta be the shit, b."
"I know."
"We have to make it now. Failure ain't no motherfuckin' option."
// oop, shit's about to go down soon. Sorry it took me so long, I've been sleeping/vacationing recently, but I should be back on schedule a little more here soon. Also, in the meantime, go check on my new DeVante story, I'm gonna be working really hard on it so please show it some love!