Rodrick Wayne Moore Jr.
"Wassup Lo?" I spoke as I slid in the backseat of Nipsey's car giving him dap. I didn't feel like driving today. Hell, I didn't feel like going, but I was invited so I figured I might as well show my face. I hadn't seen or spoken to Charnaé since the little incident at the shop, but from what everybody was saying, she was doing alright. I was doing okay, I started this lil music thing, but I doubt I'll take it far. Just not my type of thing. "You talked to Naé?" I asked in general.
"Have you talked to Naé?" Lauren shot back. I knew everybody was upset with me for the way I just walked away, but hey. Charnaé and I were never together and she was continuously pushing me away. What did they expect me to do? I decided not to answer leaning back in my seat shaking my head. "Well, you'll have a lot of opportunity at this gender reveal." The rest of the car ride was silent except for the music that was playing from the radio. I couldn't have been more relieved when we pulled up. I hopped out the car walking over to Joshua.
"Wassup nigga?" I gave him dap, smiling. "You excited?"
"Hell yeah, man. I need a lil girl." He said shaking his head.
"Joshua!" We heard Ry Ann yelling. She was obviously upset with the way she stomping over here. "We already late, let's go!"
"Alright, mama. I'm coming." He said calmly.
"Mhm." She hummed before looking at me. "Rodrick." She turned away storming back over to the building her nose in the air and her dress flowing behind her.
"Ya girl is something else." I said shaking my head as we walked into the building.
"Tell me about it." He said. I left his side walking into the big banquet hall. I quickly found Nipsey and Lauren sitting with Reggie and Charnaé's mom. Sitting down next to them I scanned the room. Charnaé definitely planned all this. Guns or glitter? That had her all over it. I couldn't lie though, it looked nice as hell. Looking around the room some more, Charnaé was the first person I laid eyes on. She was laughing with this other nigga. She sat so close to him she was damn near on his lap and I knew what that laugh meant. I kept my eyes on her feeling my blood beginning to boil. She looked down at her phone before getting up and walking to the front of the room.
"Hey y'all, I hope everyone is having as good a time as I am right now. But now it's time to shift our attention to the door as we celebrate the mother and father to be." She said and everyone began cheering and clapping as Josh and Ry Ann danced in to 'Step In the Name of Love'. Once they got to the middle people started grabbing their partners and began dancing with them. Nipsey grabbed Lauren, Reggie grabbed Nica, and Charnaé grabbed the nigga she was with. Everybody seemed to be having a great time, except me. Eventually, the music faded out and everybody dispersed to their seats. "Everybody stay in your seats for a second, we're getting ready to eat. It is buffet style, but we've assigned each table a song when you hear your song that means it's time for you to go get your plate." Charnaé began walking back to her seat as the first song played. I got up completely ignoring her instructions to stay seated and walked over to the table where she sat beside her sisters, cousins, Ricky, and the new nigga.
"Wassup y'all?" I spoke to everybody. "Aye, let me holla at you real quick." I said looking around.
"I don't know if now is-"
"Please." I said looking her in her eyes. She sighed before getting up and following me outside the room. We stood staring at each other for the longest time. Both our arms crossed. "So that's your new nigga?" She scoffed turning around to leave. I reached out grabbing her arm. "Wait, I'm sorry let me start over." I said.
"You got 2 minutes." She said shifting her weight to her other foot.
"I'm sorry for leaving. I was just upset and I shouldn't have did you like that." I apologized. She nodded. "And, if you would allow me to I wanna be back in your life. I miss you, Naé and I'll be honest. I've tried to replace you, but nobody compares."
"Well Rodrick, I'm in a committed relationship right now, but if you're willing to be strictly friends, then sure. But I mean strick friends." She pointed letting me know she wasn't playing no games. It hurt me to know that she had moved on, but you snooze you lose. Now, I'm regretting those 2 months of not speaking to her.
"We can be friends." I nodded.
"Good. I missed you." She smiled.
"I missed you, too. Hug?" I held my arms out walking towards her.
"Aht." She put her hand on my chest.
"Too soon?" I asked.
"Too soon." She confirmed and we laughed as we walked back into the room.
Charnaé Joni Sorell
"Roddy this is DeMarcus, Marc this is my friend Roddy." I introduced them. Roddy reached over giving him dap before sitting next to Reese. I commended him for being a good sport, cause Lord knows if he brought a bitch here my heel would be in her skull.
Once everybody had eaten, it was time to find out the gender. I took my heels off handing them to Marc and walked up to the front once more gathering everybody's attention. "Can everybody wearing white come up to the front and stand on this tarp please?" I watched as Josh's 3 brothers stood up with Roddy after looking down at himself and realizing that he was one of the few who wore white. He wouldn't even be here if it wasn't for Josh, but ever since I started the shop they had gotten semi-close. I purposefully told the godparents to wear white on their invitations, but on everyone else's it told them to wear anything BUT white. I proudly stood up there as the only female. "Could you guys please grab a gun?" I waved my hand in front of the table that had several guns. Roddy picked the biggest, which I expected. He was the only one who was really like that out of the godfathers. I picked up a pistol standing next to Ry Ann. "Okay, so everyone inside these guns are paintballs and we're gonna shoot each other and the color of the paintballs is the gender. Lee Lee." I waved my sister up to do the countdown.
"3.....2....1..Shoot!" Lee yelled into the mic. Ry Ann and I began shooting our guns, but the boys' guns were shooting blanks because we put no paintballs in theirs. Everybody cheered going crazy as the boys were all covered in glittery pink paint. Josh ran up to Ry Ann picking her up. I fanned my eyes as they cried hugging each other tightly. Roddy walked up to me his arms open while I backed up.
"Rodrick." I said in a warning tone. He ignored me picking me up from behind my knees getting paint all over me as well. When the excitement slowed down Ry Ann picked up the mic.
"So, we just wanted to do a kind of blessing for our godparents." I looked around confused, I definitely knew nothing about this part. "Naé could you come up here please?" I walked up to the stage standing in front of them. "Naé, I chose you and only you as my godmother, because you've always been here for me. For as long as I can remember, I could always call on Naé and she'd come running to my rescue. I know for a fact you'd do the same for my baby." She rubbed her belly smiling. "I couldn't ask for a better bestfriend, or sister, or now godmother. I love you to the moon and back." She handed me a box as everybody 'awwed' around the room. I looked down at it tears already in my eyes. 'Every princess needs a fairy godmother. Will you be mine?' It read in pink and gold cursive letters. "We had two made just in case she was a boy." Ry Ann laughed. "Open it." I opened it and inside was a tiara, a feathery wand, and a diamond bracelet.
I pulled the bracelet out holding my arm up. "Put it on, put it on." I did a little dance as if I had to pee making everyone laugh. The tears were just spilling out as she clasped the bracelet on my wrist. I pulled her into the tightest hug I could muster not letting go for a while. Everybody clapped and cheered as I pulled away hugging Josh. At this point, everybody was pink. Josh took the mic from her turning to the boys.
"Get y'all asses up here." He said making them laugh. They jogged up the steps. "Now everybody knew that y'all would be up here. Y'all are my brothers and I wouldn't be shit if it weren't for y'all cultivating and guiding me in the right direction. I know I can trust y'all to do the same for my daughter. Roddy, in the past couple months you've become someone I've grown to trust with my life. I have no doubt in my mind that if it came a time where I needed to buss, you'd be right by my side. That's why I chose you as one of my godfathers. That and you the only nigga I know that's really living like that." He said making everybody laugh. "I trust you to protect my daughter with your life and there's no doubt in my mind that she'll always be safe in your hands." He handed them all their boxes. 'I'm going to make you an offer you can't refuse. Will you be my godfather?' They opened them and inside were a few cigars and small bottles of Scotch. Josh grabbed a bottle from off the table behind him and they all grabbed theirs clinking them together before taking a swig. They all took their turns hugging Josh before Roddy came over hugging Ry. She accepted it, even though she was almost as upset with him as I was.
"Okay, godparent picture!" Ry yelled and we all piled around the parents to be, smiling for the videographer and photographer.
"Thank you for coming on such short notice." I said as DeMarcus and I put the last of the gifts in my car. There were so many gifts that I had to put some in my car to drop off at their apartment. We had finished cleaning up the building not too long ago, now they were just pushing the chairs and tables back where they had previously been. Most of everybody was gone, but some people still lingered to help out.
"No problem, I wanted to be here." He smiled. I blushed as we walked over to his car. "So, how did I do?"
"I think you did great. Everybody seems to love you." I said.
"And what about you? Do you love me?" He asked. I was stuck for a bit. Yeah, 2 months was a while, but it wasn't that long. I wasn't too sure how I felt about him.
"I think I really really like you, but to say I love you? I'm not too sure." I put my hand against his chest careful not to stain his clothes.
"I'll take it." He said leaning down to kiss me. Just as I leaned up I hear my name.
"Naé!" Roddy came jogging out. "Oh, shit my bad. They said you were leaving and I wanted to ask for a ride home. Nip and Lo staying on this side for a bit to go see her parents and get the kids." He explained.
"Yeah, sure." I nodded, expecting him to leave but he just stood there. He knew what he was doing.
"Well, I should head out. It was nice meeting you, Roddy. I'll call you tonight, Naé." He got inside his car and sped off.
"Why would you do that?" I punched his shoulder.
"Do what?" He asked, smiling.
"Ugh." I growled walking off from him. New friend me.
hey guysss! i'm back after 2 weeks (has it been 2? i'm not sure.) with everything that's been going on recently, i haven't had time to write and even before that i had a horrible case of writer's block. i still have one more prewritten chapter after this one so we should be fine for this friday. thank you guys for your love and patience. NOOOWWW..how do we feel about this chapter? roddy? naé? marc? how about the gender reveal? questions, comments, concerns?
-headbrattinchargebri 💛