Edited
Kayla
"Mommy!" I cheered walking into the kitchen. I wrapped my arms around her waist. It feels like forever since I've been with her. School and work take up so much of my time that I can't even come home on the weekends.
"Girl when did you get here?" My mom said wrapping her arms around me. My mom and I were the exact same height so I'm sure I'm not growing anymore. She was a plump woman who was very outspoken. She had a kind face but fierce heart and attitude. People often say we could pass for sisters.
"Last night," I smiled as I saw she was making my favorite breakfast.
"Yeah but what time?"
I blushed. "Three," I mumbled.
"What the hell Kayla?"
"I lost track of time mom and left as soon as I could."
"Kayla you know I hate you driving late nights. If it was so late you could've just texted me and left in the morning."
"But I didn't want to miss your breakfast," I whined.
"Girl you're here for a week. You were going to have my breakfast eventually."
"And I want it every day for this week."
"Hard-headed behind child," she mumbled. I sat at the table as she made my plate. "I'm glad to have you home sweetie."
"I'm glad to be here," I smiled. I immediately dove into my food when she sat the plate down. My mom is a bomb a cook. Her food can lift anyone's spirits. I would blame her addictive recipes on my weight but I guess it's in our genes since her entire family is big like this.
"How's everything at school?" she sat across from me at the table.
"Good," I said. "I'm doing really well on all my classes. One of my professors even think I may be the best."
"That's good honey. What about the other stuff?"
"What other stuff?"
"Kayla," she gave me a look. "I'm your mother. I know when something's bothering you. You've been very withdrawn and I knew something had been bothering you for weeks."
"Well," I hesitated. "I was going through something. But I'm good now. April convinced me to talk to a counselor about my problems. After talking to her I felt so good. I'm finally healing. It took me a long time to figure out what happened with...him did a lot of damage to me. I thought if I didn't bring it up I wouldn't feel the pain. But I was just suffering these past years." She looked at me with sad eyes.
"I'm still so sorry about that baby. I shouldn't have signed that stupid contract in the first place. I thought of myself and the money. Not you. I should have known better then that. Money cannot take the place of a father. I shouldn't have let you suffered like that. I should've chosen someone so much better for you."
"I don't blame you mom. I never did. I always blamed myself. I thought there was something wrong with me. Something had to be wrong for him to go to such lengths to just stay away from me."
"Sweetheart. There's nothing wrong with you. Some people choose what they find most important. I chose wrong the first time and so did he. One day, he'll see that. And this time, you get to choose what'll happen okay? I won't hold your decision against you. I won't even question it. You're grown and you can make your own decisions."
"Thanks momma," I wiped my tears. "Sorry I never told you."
"It's okay baby. I know it was hard to open up your heart after having it broken so bad. I can see you're doing so much better. You're practically glowing. What else has been happening?"
"Well," I blushed. "I met this really nice guy."
"Oh," she perked up. "Tell me about him."
"His name is Andre and he was nice to me ever since he met me. He was the first person who made me feel so bright even on my darkest days. He didn't judge me and even protected me when I felt no one would. He's kind of crazy," I playfully rolled my eyes while my mom laughed a bit. "And possessive. He's so fine mom." I squeezed my thighs together just thinking about him.
She smiled. "He sounds perfect. What's his major?"
"Civil engineer and business."
"Oh really? That's impressive. I wish I could meet him."
"Well," I rubbed my neck. "You can. He's...here."
"Excuse me?" my mother raised her eyebrow. "And why is he here?"
"Well, he didn't want me driving so far so late. He basically forced me to let him come to drive me."
"Oh really?" she crossed her arms. "Well I'm going to see this young man for myself." She got up and headed to my room. Sorry Andre. My mother is a lot tougher than me so hopefully you'll survive.
****
I was in the living room flipping through channels. It had been almost two hours since my mother went to confront Andre. I'm a little bit more than anxious to know what happened. My mind has been racing ever since. I'm kind of convinced she killed him in there. I hope not because I really like Andre but if need be I'll hide a dead body for my mom, no questions asked. I would peak into the hall every once in a while. I didn't have the guts to actually go down the hall and eavesdrop or knock on the door.
I finally heard the door opening and hopped up quick. I met my mom and Andre in the hall. At least he was alive. Him and my mom seemed to have become pretty close since they were laughing about something. I narrowed my eyes at them. "What happened?" I crossed my arms.
"Dang short stuff," Andre chuckled. "No 'good morning' or nothing huh?"
"Good morning," I said cheerily. "Now what happened?" I got serious.
He threw his head back and laughed. I glared at him until he stopped. "Ya mom interrogated me and then we got to talking. Don't worry yourself short stuff."
"He's a really nice young man," my mother smiled. "And you were so right. He is quite a fine young man indeed. You have good taste."
"Mom," I whined feeling a little bit embarrassed.
"She would have great taste if she wasn't playing Mrs. Gathers," Andre said.
"Shut up," I mumbled hitting him.
"Give her some time son. She'll come around. I have to go to work so you two behave yourselves. I want grandkids but not this soon."
"Mommy!" I whined. Andre laughed. I hid out in the kitchen as my mom left. I knew it was a bad idea to bring him.
"Ya mom is cool," he grinned. "And y'all the exact same height. So damn short."
"Not all of us can be part oak tree," I mumbled sarcastically.
"Someone's a very grumpy shrub," he chuckled wrapping his arms around me. Since he was so warm and inviting I melted right into him. "She knows about what happened? With Chris and those guys who's name you never mentioned. What are their names anyway? Out of curiosity." He tried to make it sound innocent but I knew better.
I chuckled. "Nice try but I don't know their names. I honestly don't think they even still attend that school."
"Damn," he muttered. I chuckled and shook my head. "Well, does your mom know?"
"Not the extent of it," I sighed. "I was afraid she'd want me to change schools and I couldn't do that. I'm on scholarship there and if I switch they may not accept some of the ones I'm getting. As you can see we're not rolling in money. She has her own bills to pay. I can't afford my apartment and tuition fees. I thought it would've been best to just...suck it up."
"And look what happened when you sucked it up. You lost a lot from that night. Security, happiness, peace of mind. You put too much on yourself. You don't have to carry this burden by yourself anymore. I can carry it for the both of us."
"Thanks," I smiled. I turned to face him. "But there's something that's been bothering me a bit."
"What is it?"
"Who exactly are you? What's your history with your cousins? I feel like I know nothing about you."
He was quiet for a bit. "I guess you're right. All this time I've preoccupied myself with what's been going on with you. I guess I never thought to stop and let you get to know me." He sighed. "That or I'm scared."
"You? Scared? You took on your cousins and looked ready to crack knuckles with the deen and disciplinary board. Not to mention you faced off with my mother and lived. What do you have to be scared of?" I raised my brow.
He chuckled a bit. "I'm not superman. Well, maybe I am a little bit. What you see every day is my Clark Kent. I'm as strong as I can be. You're like my Lois Lane and kryptonite. You make me stronger and weaker at the same time. I want to be strong in order to protect you from your enemies. But I get weak when I have to show you my scars. Makes me feel, you know, ashamed."
I touched his face gently. "I'm the last person who would judge you. You've been nothing but nice to me. You became the key to my freedom and I'm grateful to you. There were plenty of times I was terrified to show my scars. And you helped me pass that. I want to help you."
He looked at me for a very long time. Like he was reading my face and eyes. I guess looking if I was being truthful. "Alright," he said pecking my lips. "I'll tell you. On one condition."
"What is it?"
"I don't care if it hurts me or you, I want you to be one hundred with me. Even if you're scared of me. Just let me know what's up."
"Okay," I said without hesitating. I was anxious to know more about him but also scared. I've been curious about him for a long time. His background, motives, everything. What makes Andre...Andre? What happened between him and his cousins? There's a vibe that Andre gives off. Like he's gone through the deepest trenches and saw things he shouldn't have ever seen. I don't know if it's just me but I really want to know more about him.
We moved to the living room area and turned off the TV. I gave him my full undivided attention. He sighed and glanced over at me. "I've kept all this buried inside of me for a long time. My mood swings might get worst so just...bear with me. You can leave if you get scared."
"You're not going to scare me off," I said confidently. I wasn't planning on leaving Andre's side during this. I asked for this so I'm going to stay for it. I'm ready to hear about Andre.
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