Nayeli Santiago
"Relax your hand." I chuckled at my client as I did their nails. This was probably the most annoying part of my job, if the hand isn't relaxed the placement and shape isn't gon come out the way it needs to be. "Don't think about it, picture yourself somewhere relaxing." I looked at her, they nodded and sipped from their iced tea.
Our session continued, us both having good conversation as I did her nails. She talked about her aspirations in wanting to get into the nail industry and I gave her some tips. That's what I loved to do, I had my own craft that separated me from most nail techs. You couldn't be in a box in this shit.
"These are flyyyy!" The client exclaimed, just as I finished putting the cuticle oil on. "I'm gon be sending some friends your way." She chuckled, all seriousness behind her tone.
"Thanks babes." I smiled, looking at her as I finished taking pictures for my portfolio. I was appreciative of all the clients I serviced, my bookings were always filled and a few would be sad cause they missed out. But I always direct them to Nette because she's just as a great, and we were the only two nail techs here who worked on acrylics. "Just let them know to be on the lookout for when I open the next books."
"Oh, I'll let them know." She chuckled, giving me a tip in the process. "It was hard to get this appointment, but I'm thankful I got it." She cheesed, causing me to smile bright.
Bidding each other a bye, I made my way to the back. I had a break, and it was much needed. My next appointment wasn't until another thirty minutes, and that gave me enough time to get myself together. Eat a snack, converse with other employees who were on a break as well.
"Hey Nel." Janelle smiled, moving a straight strand of hair back. "What you got planned tonight, mamas?" She stirred her noodles around in the cup, Zyla on the side of her as she drank her brisk.
"Shit, I was supposed to spend time with Liv, but she's going on a date." I chuckled, biting into the granola bar I had. A chewy bar. "What's the moves?"
"Happy hour at Cascades. Let's hit it, scout some niggas out or sumn." Janelle lifted a shoulder. I chuckled shaking my head. "What?"
"You know she's with Cassius, Cash. Cash, the nigga that will murk any nigga that looks her way." Zyla spoke, laughing lowly. I playfully rolled my eyes. "Ny, stop...you know you luhhh that man."
"I mean it ain't a lie." I bit the corner of my lip, looking down at my feet to hide my flushed cheeks. "That's my baby. But you bitches ain't gon let me live with this, so I'm out. Byeeee!" I dragged out, walking out the break room as they laughed loud.
I didn't speak much on Cassius and I's status, because it wasn't really anybodies business but ours. The feelings we have are real, we know that it's gon be us at the end of the day. I was learning to trust him again, and he was showing me. That's what mattered to me.
Stopping in my tracks, I twisted my mouth to the side as I looked at the person who stood before me. "What you doing here, Chelsea?" I quizzed, shifting in my stance.
After Kadeem and I broke up, I had to cut off his friends. Don't get me wrong, Chelsea was cool to be around, but I couldn't keep a friend who was involved with my ex. Chelsea's loyalty lies with Kadeem, they've been friends since youngins.
"I'm sorry for what happened between you and KC." She started off. I just looked at her blankly because I didn't need no apologies or pity. "Listen, I didn't come here to stir up any shit. But I want to apologize for not speaking on what he was doing." She bit the corner of her lip, I felt my brows furrow to the middle.
"Chelsea." I breathed out, feeling my eyes get watery. I was about to blow a fuse. This bitch had me fucked up! "Out of respect from one woman to another, I would've appreciated you to inform me...instead you had me out here lookin stupid with your friend." I let out a bitter chuckle.
She's real lucky it ain't too packed, only a few regulars but they weren't paying us any mind.
"What's going on?" I heard Anahi, her presence coming up behind me. I looked back at her, and she took note of the expression on my face. "Let's take this upstairs. Com'on." She hooked her arm with mine and led us upstairs.
Taking in a few deep breaths and blowing out, I didn't need my sister in the middle of this shit. She's pregnant, she didn't need this damn stress. My sisters health was top priority, and I'll be damned if something like this disrupts her peace. She's came so far. The feeling of being nudged, I looked between them both, blowing out a breath.
"She knew what Kadeem was doing and is just now speaking on it." I folded my arms over my chest, sitting against the desk. I looked to Chelsea, letting out a bitter chuckle. "You should've kept that shit to yourself, cause I was good."
"Why didn't you speak on the matter beforehand?" Anahi asked, her tone losing its softness. She was irked. "I know you go through your shit, Chelsea. I've heard it from you, so why would you let someone you consider a friend look like a fool?"
"I didn't know how to bring it up! I didn't want to get involved because Nel probably wouldn't have believed me." She bit her lip, furrowing her brows.
"Even when they say pay the business that minds you, that would've been a time you didn't..I was walking around lookin stupid behind that nigga!" I fumed, bringing my hands up and rubbing at my temples. "We can't take shit back though, can we? The shit happened, I ended the relationship, this was honestly some shit I was better off not knowing."
"I'm sorry, I just thought you should've known..." Chelsea trailed off, looking down at her feet. I rolled my eyes. "We don't gotta stay in contact after this."
"You right, we don't." I licked my lips, pushing myself up off the table. "I'm not about negativity, so I wish you the best in life." I walked out the room and back downstairs.
—————
"You gon speak what's on your mind, or have me figure out what you mad about?" Cassius' voice came off hard, a slight rasp to it. You know how niggas are mad, and there's just that certain tone they hold? It was that. "Nayeli, fuck is up with you shorty?"
As you can see, I ain't go to no happy hour. I didn't really wanna be around anybody tonight.
"I'm tired of fake bitches." I stated, lifting a shoulder. "Chelsea, Kadeem's friend, came in today and told me she knew about his indiscretions." I shook my head, moving from under Cassius as he had a hold around my waist. "I'm not as bothered, but that shit pissed me off."
Cassius looked at me blankly, a low chuckle parting his lips. "Nah baby, you still bothered. If you wasn't you wouldn't be this timid around me." He pulled me back into him, kissing my shoulder. "Tryna move away from me. I ain't like that." He frowned, causing me to flick his ear. The sound of his teeth smacking filled our space, causing me to chuckle. "But to be real with you NyNy, you ever thought that Chelsea may have been that niggas ex?"
I twisted my mouth to the side, my eyes narrowing. Could they really have been? Bruh! I hope it ain't true, cause wowwwww! I'm mind blown right now.
"You might be onto sumn, Cassy." I frowned gently, shaking my head as I thought about it. "I'm disgusted." I rolled my eyes at him as he busted up laughing, which had me mush him in the head.
"You ain't had to put ya hands on me." He frowned, licking his bottom lip. I tightened my legs together. "But listen, it's a theory. I might be reachin, might not. That's between them, and you don't need to know that answer."
I nodded my head slowly, I didn't want to know. That would be more embarrassing. But to be real, we all ain't perfect. Cassius and I went our separate ways as friends and dated outside of our friend group and we considered our ex's as friends or was it associates...now look at Cassius and I, not together, but damn near.
Shit was hard to explain, but what's understood doesn't need to be explained.
- a couple days later | Dec. 20, 2019 -
Cairo "East" Brewster
"This ain't my holiday." I muttered, scratching the back of my neck. "But for y'all I'll do whatever it is to see the smiles on y'all faces." I stood behind Anahi, wrapping my arms around her waist as I tucked my head into her neck. We stood in front of the Christmas tree, the gifts slowly piling under the tree. "You smell good, Lola." I smirked, placing a gentle kiss against her neck, a bite following after.
She was wearing a long blue silk robe I had bought her, nothing on underneath as I slid my hand into the slit of where the robe was overlapped and tied, my hand rubbing against her stomach. Her little bump was forming, and I was excited to be home this time around.
"Stop." She giggled, bumping her butt into me and pushing me back as she got out of my hold. I playfully smacked my teeth as I towered over her small frame. "We appreciate you for that. We respect each other's beliefs and I think that's important in our relationship." She smiled up at me, standing on her tiptoes to place a kiss against my lips. "Big poppa." She nudged my chin as she turned on her feet, walking towards the Christmas tree to fix a few ornaments.
"You better stop." I chuckled an airy chuckle, my hand coming in contact with her ass. I bit my lip as I watched it jiggle like jello. "'Fore I fuck ya shit up."
"You already rearranged my insides." She looked back at me, her eyes scanning over me. "You need an intervention baby, you a sex addict."
"No the fuck I ain't." I mugged her, licking my lips and following behind her into the kitchen. "It ain't my fault yo pussy got a hold on me. I can admit that cause I'm a real nigga, shit I know where home is."
"You better." She mumbled, opening the fridge and taking out makings to make breakfast. "I'll give you a gift later." She looked to me, a smirk gracing her lips.
"See nah, you just as bad as me! The fuck?!" I laughed loud, holding my stomach. Lil baby really was bout to make it seem that I had a problem, but I don't. When you with someone that you truly love, intimacy happening at any level. "The amount of sex we have is healthy, if I say so myself."
"Mhmm." She hummed, waving her hand as her back was to me. "Oop, here comes pretty mamas." She turned her head over her shoulder as the light sound of feet pitter pattered against the tiled floor.
"Morning lil butt." I smiled at Kairi as she rubbed her little fists against her eyes. Her curly hair all over the place, as she wore a Disney pajama dress shirt. "Why you frownin?"
"You woke me." She continued to frown, which made me raise my brows at her and pick her up, throwing her little body over my shoulder as I spun her around, tickling her. "Dadaaaa! Noooo, I sowwwyyyy!" Her laugh came out, as her little hands hit against my back.
A laugh parted my lips as I put Kairi down, her losing balance as she tripped over her feet. Anahi sent a glare my way as she walked over to Kairi, and picked her head up.
"I dizzy mama." Kairi giggled, her head tilted to the side. "We get dada back later?" She tried to whisper.
"Y'all not gettin shit." I retorted, I winced as I felt a slap to the head. "Mama, you can't be sneakin up on me like that."
"You need to stop cussin in front of Kai. She gon repeat them words and you gon blow a fuse." She rolled her eyes, I smacked my teeth. "You don't believe me? Okay, see for yourself Cairo David."
I rolled my eyes, frowning.
"Nana mad, mama." Kairi giggled, which had Anahi follow suit and stand up with Kairi on her hip. "You think dada gon get a boo boo?"
"Maybe, if he don't be nice to nana." Anahi looked to me, and I sucked my teeth. "Fix your face baby. This is why the kids keep muggin you, they learn from you." She stood in front of me, cupping my chin.
"Whatever." I muttered, the women in the kitchen laughing. "Where my son at?" I looked to my mama, I needed to see little man cause they were all against me right now.
"Sleep, so don't even try waking him up." My mother spoke, I nodded and walked out the kitchen going upstairs. "Don't do it!" She shouted loud enough for me to hear, but I ignored her and continued on my way.
—————
Lighting up a blunt, I took a long pull, inhaling as I felt the smoke burn my lungs. This shit was exactly what I needed, my niggas with me as we sat in the man cave of the house. One of my sanctuaries.
"It's crazy, man." Shooter spoke, shaking his head as he rubbed the back of his neck. "The streets was wild without y'all home. Niggas gettin reckless, tryna make moves. But we held it down. Ion care how many times I say it, I'm happy to have my brothers back home."
Kareem and Malik co-signing, causing us to all laugh.
"We appreciate y'all for taking care of shit, making sure our families was good while we was locked. Shit was hard not seein em everyday." I licked my lips, shaking my head. No one really wanted to talk about this shit, it was a dark time. "Enough of this sap shit. We out and making better moves than ever." I grinned, picking up the glass off the table that held my favorite brown liquor. "Just 11 days left till opening night."
"Bigger things happening in 2020." Cassius raised his glass, us holding ours up. "We was just some youngins tryna make it out, and look at us now, getting to the bag with the real behind us."
We saluted and downed our drinks. I sometimes wondered what would've happened if I ain't get involved in the streets. I prolly would've went to college, get into business and run a legitimate company. Met a college girl and wife her up, have a family and live in the suburbs. But that ain't how life went. The first time I picked up a dime and sold was the start of quick money. I loved that shit, the feel of money and to take care of myself. The start of selling meant I had to watch my back 24/7, there wasn't an escape once you're in.
"Do y'all decide on stayin down here all night?" Ava's voice interrupted my thoughts. I was thankful, my thoughts were going all over the place. "It would be common courtesy to invite y'all sisters." She chuckled, Jada behind her.
"You ain't my sister." Kareem spoke up, licking his lips. Ava rolled her eyes, her top lip scrunching up. "You keep playin me, but I'm serious girl."
"Shut up, Kareem!" Ava threw her hand up, Jada chuckling as her head shook sitting on Shooter's lap. "Tap me in." Ava sat next to Malik, taking the blunt from him as she sat down. "Big guy, Cai. What you think y'all having?" She looked to me, blowing smoke out the side of her mouth.
I scratched the back of my ear, furrowing my brows together. "Prolly a girl, but ion know." I licked my lips. To have another daughter would be wild, but shit I'd be blessed with either or. "Y'all gon throw a gender reveal?"
"Yeah, we were talking about it with NyNy." Jada nodded, sipping from her cooler. "Shes gon go to the next appointment with y'all and get the sex of the baby. Nini wants her to, too."
"Bet." I nodded off, a smile on my face. "Y'all gon spit sumn on the mic at the opening?"
"Hell yeah!" Ava and Jada laughed, slapping hands. "It's an opportunity, everybody gon be lit."
We chuckled at their excitement. It was good to see us all get this far, we've watched them grow into successful women. Our little sisters. We all helped each other grow in a sense, we made money the we knew how to, only to flip it years later. It was a process, but we finally got to it.
As they continued to talk and laugh, I excused myself and made my way upstairs. Looking back as I saw Cassius getting up and doing the same. I chuckled lowly, that's really my brother. We've been through some shit, what most don't know is that we did have our little falling outs back then, but we always bounced back. It was petty bullshit to get over.
"What you bout to get into?" I asked him as we stepped out the room, walking down the hall as laughter filled the room and music playing.
"I'm hungry. Munchies kickin in, and I know the food is done cause what other reason would J and Ava come down for?" Cass chuckled, making his point as we entered the kitchen. "It wasn't to be nosy."
I nodded my head, licking my lips as my eyes landed on the fried chicken. I was bout to fuck this food up! Just looking at the sight of it all made my stomach growl. My high was fasho settling in, and needed to be tamed.
"Aht! Aht! Wash your hands." My mama slapped my hand. Where the fuck she come from? "Y'all know better."
"Mama stop hittin me like I'm a child." I chuckled lowly, but was deadass. "Ion deserve the abuse."
"Cairo, it was a little tap." She rolled her eyes, waving me off. "Where's my other kids?"
I muttered downstairs, and she nodded before walking out to get them. Shaking my head, I went to wash my hands Cassius following after before we went to prepare our plates. I piled the food on, nodding in satisfaction at the different aromas filling my nose.
As I went to sit down and eat, that's when I noticed Anahi had sat next to me, laying her head on my shoulder. I turned my head and kissed the top of her head.
"You aight?" I quizzed, breaking a piece of cornbread off and stuffing it into my mouth. She shook her head gently, placing her hand on my lap. I cleared my throat, and patted at my chest. "What's wrong Lola?"
"I'm tired, and I feel really nauseas." She spoke lowly, I could tell she was frowning. "Can you let everybody know that I'll be upstairs, napping." She sat up, pushing the seat back to stand. I nodded and she bent down to kiss my cheek. "Thanks." She mumbled, excusing herself.
Letting out a heavy breath, I was hoping she didn't fall back into her depression, but then again it might just be pregnancy symptoms. I'm just gon let her get the rest she needs, because carrying another being in you takes a toll on the woman body. I salute women for that alone, they go through so many changes as my mama would say, during pregnancy.
Anahi Santiago
I slept through the laughter and joy being passed through my friends and family. I didn't mean to isolate myself, but I really wasn't feeling all that well. I had threw up, so I knew there was something that the baby didn't like.
The house has quieted down, Cairo was laying next to me his arm draped over me as his hand rested on my stomach. It made me smile, just the feeling of being wrapped in his warmth always brought comfort. Him actually being home this time around would have him build a bond with the new baby. Of course he spoke to Kion while I was pregnant with him, but it wasn't everyday.
"What you doin awake?" Cairo's deep voice filled my ears, as he kissed the back of my neck. "Hmm?"
"I couldn't sleep no more." I chuckled, bringing a hand up and rubbing under my eye, adjusting to the tv light, the noise minimal. "Why are you awake?" I asked, placing my hand on top of his, and interlacing them.
"I wasn't sleep. I was just enjoying our silence, hearing you breathe and the soft snores that came from you." He stated, causing me to blush and stuff my face into the pillow. "You ain't gotta hide, baby." He chuckled, tightening his hold around me before laying between my legs, my right leg hoisted up as it hooked over his back. "I heard you wanna go through with a gender reveal."
I nodded slowly, biting the corner of my lip. "I do. I wanted to do everything with you for the first pregnancy, but couldn't...so why not this one?" I lifted a shoulder, placing a hand on the back of his neck, my fingers trailing against his neckline.
"I feel it, baby." He nodded, as his head laid against my chest. "I ain't goin nowhere, so we gon have a lot of experiences here on out."
I smiled, kissing the top of his head. We laid in each other's company as a comfortable silence filled our space. I rubbed his back as his breaths got heavy, I knew he was tired. He had a lot going on between the tattoo shop and the club, keeping him constantly busy. And as much as he wanted me to slow down, he needed to too. We were both working on it.
Letting out a calm breath, my mind wandered to our future. And our last conversation about moving. One day I did see us getting out of Miami, where we're more established. The kids being a little older too, but I don't know, we had to talk about it some more. I'm just happy that we both agreed on talking about it after having this baby. Moving wasn't something really on my mind at the moment.
The feeling of his body growing limp on top of me, caused me to gently push him off. I was not about to suffocate under him, and all his weight on me wouldn't have been good with my growing belly. I chuckled at the groan he had made, but got comfortable on his side anyway. Slipping out the bed, I stuffed my feet into my slippers and made my way out the room and downstairs.
I was going to get me a well deserved snack. Oreo cookies. Wasn't nothing anyone can say to me, and even if they did, I'd still eat them.
Getting to the bottom of the stairs, I turned the corner and walked through the living room to get to the kitchen. Silently cursing to myself as I saw Nayeli and Kairi in the living room watching a movie, Kion sleep on Cass' chest.
"We thought you weren't gon be coming down." Neli looked to me, a low chuckle parting her lips. "What changed your mind?"
"I wanted a snack." I smiled childishly, nodding for her to follow me to the kitchen. "You okay?" I asked as we entered, going straight to the snack cabinet and rummaging through it until I found what I was looking for.
"I'm alright." She lifted a shoulder, licking the corner of her lip. "I'm still healing, and I guess with Chelsea's pop up disrupted that. Cass been helping me." She looked out the entry way and to them, a smile on her face. "He's really been that person for me, besides you and Liv of course, but just to have a male understand you is what makes us this better this time around."
"Y'all both grew for the better. He's that shoulder for you, as you have done the same for him." I bit into a cookie, chewing as the chocolatey taste melted into my mouth. "It's not the best circumstances, but seeing y'all together is beautiful to see."
Nayeli just nodded, her cheeks flushing a deep red color. I let out a small chuckle. "Give me a Oreo." She held her hand out, and I placed one in her hand before she walked out.
She didn't want to be teased.
Grabbing two more Oreos out the package, I placed the container back into the cabinet as I made my way into the living room. I sat next to Kairi and passed her a cookie, I chuckled at the big smile on her face as she leaned up and kissed my cheek. I loved my babies, man.
———
I'm thinking after the next 2-3 chapters, a time skip is gon have to happen... 😬
What do y'all want to see next?
I love y'all 💕