Sarayah December 19, 2016
Today was perfect. And tonight was shaping up to be the same. After the ghost tour, everyone came back to Solo's place to hang out. I was surprised since it was so late, but they insisted. I was glad they had. It felt nice to just relax with everyone.
I leaned on Kai's arm, watching the intense dance battle between Aunty Kellz and my mom. I pulled my legs up onto the seat of the armchair, trying to make the most of the little space Kai had left me. I don't know who told him to come squish up by me, but whatever. I guess it was fine since Nevaeh wanted to be all distant.
I looked over to my right to catch a glimpse of her. She was still chilling on the couch with Julez, Aunty Michelle and my dad. Being weird. Oh well. I guess she wasn't comfortable being with me in front of my family yet. I could understand that.
"This thing is cheating!" Mama accused, still trying to get a 'flawless' to flash around her dancer's circle. "Look! I just hit that move perfectly, and it's showing me red on the leg! How?!"
I turned back to the main event, snickering. This was their fourth round playing Dance Central, and Mama had yet to win against Aunty Kelly.
"Maybe you just suck," Aunty Kellz teased, easily getting another 'flawless'.
Mama shot her a sly look and smiled mischievously. Without any warning, she bumped Aunty Kellz's hip and sent her tumbling into the loveseat Solo and Alan were sitting in. Everyone burst out laughing, including me. I couldn't take it. It was too ridiculous. Especially when Mama started dancing even harder, trying to pass Aunty Kellz while she was out of commission.
"Bey, you can't be serious!" Kelly shouted in surprise. "You know what, I'm not even gonna fight this. Someone come get they mama!"
"Don't even worry about it, Kellz!" Michelle yelled, running to take her place. "I got you."
She immediately started dancing crazy. All you saw on her dancer was red. Red on the leg. Red on the arms. Red on the whole damn circle. Homegirl wasn't even trying. I screamed with laughter, sliding to the floor.
"No! Oh my gosh someone stop her!" Aunty Kellz laughed, flailing around on Solange. Alan quickly got up, moving out of harm's way.
"Kelly–" Solo complained, barely dodging her flying arms. "I swear if you hit me."
"She's destroying my score," Aunty Kellz whined.
"BOOM!" Mama shouted when it was over, pretending to drop a mic. "I win! You lose!"
She sauntered over to Aunty Kellz, doing a little gansgsta lean. When she got right in front of her, she folded her arms high up on her chest.
"How's it feel to lose to a real one?"
Aunty Kellz looked at her for a second before tackling her to the floor. Kai immediately jumped up and bounced on the armchair, damn near crushing me.
"Get her Mrs. C!" He shouted, throwing his hands up. "Don't let her take this win from us!"
I scrambled up onto the arm of the chair, watching the two grown women wrestle like a couple of kids.
"Bite her arm, Aunty Kellz!" I shouted, joining in on Kai's silly instigations. "She played dirty, so you play dirtier!"
"Get off that damn couch," Grandma yelled at us. "And you two, stop rolling around breaking things!"
Suddenly the lights went out and everyone looked around, confused.
"See?" Grandma said. "Now y'all done knocked out the power."
A glow to my left caught my eye. I turned my head and saw Dad carefully walking out of the kitchen with a lit birthday cake. There was a gold '16' sitting in the middle, surrounded by sparklers.
"Happy birthday to you," he sang.
Everyone quickly joined in, adding unnecessary runs and trills. Solo even broke out into a little dance for me, throwing in a few body rolls to make me laugh. I looked around at everyone, feeling weirdly close to crying. I'd never had this before. All this love.
When they finished the song, Dad knelt down and held the cake in front of me.
"Go on, you can make your wish and blow out the candles," he encouraged.
"Don't blow too hard though. I don't want spit covered cake," Solo advised.
Mama slapped the back of her head which immediately earned her a slap from Grandma.
"What'd I say about slapping people," Grandma asked.
Mama frowned. "But you always slap me back. What kinda example is that?"
Grandma slapped her again. "Stop talking back."
Aunty Kellz snickered and Mama clapped her hand with her fist, threateningly.
Aunty Michelle shook her head at all of them. "Can't you see the child is trying to think of a wish? Acting like some damn fools." She turned to me apologetically. "They're sorry, baby. You can make your wish now."
I looked around at my family and friends and realized for the first time, I didn't want anything. There wasn't any deep, buried dissatisfaction with my life. No hidden desires. Sure, I still had things I had to work on, but who didn't? All I wanted was for life to continue like this. Moving forward with the people I loved.
I grinned and blew out the candles. They all clapped and cheered, swarming me with hugs and kisses. I mean, everyone except Nevaeh who gave me an awkward thumbs up.
After we ate our cake, I decided to pull her aside because a thumbs up was just not it. I never wanted to see that shit again. I grabbed her hand and led her out to the balcony for some privacy. As soon as we were outside, I turned to her.
She stared at me, and I stared at her. After a few seconds I raised my fist, sticking up my thumb. I shook my head, and she laughed.
"Okay, I don't know why I did that," she confessed, moving closer to me.
"I don't know why either," I laughed, meeting her halfway. "It was so weird."
"Can I get a redo?" She asked as she wrapped her arms around my waist.
I shrugged, smiling. "I don't know. You planning on giving me a high five next?"
Vaeh laughed and shook her head. "No. No high fives." She cupped my face in her hands. "Happy birthday, Ray," she whispered on my lips before kissing me. Her tongue darted out, easily sliding past my defenses. I welcomed her tongue with my own, tasting hints of the cookies and cream cake we'd just eaten.
"Hey, I'm sorry about how I've been acting today," she apologized.
I shrugged it off. "It's okay."
"No. It's not. I was acting like...I don't even know what, today."
I nodded. "Yeah. I didn't take you for the jealous type."
She scrunched up her face. "I wasn't jealous. Well not for the reasons you think," she amended when she saw my disbelieving expression. "I was jealous. When you were talking about Deanna and listing everything you admired about her, it just reminded me I don't really have much to bring to the table."
I frowned, tugging on her chain. "I never asked you to bring anything to table. Just yourself. I don't even know why you're comparing yourself to Deanna. If I compared myself to Deanna, I'd fall way short. My biggest accomplishment is being the daughter of legends. That's really it. Being born." I laughed. "So, don't worry about that stuff."
She nodded, smiling sadly. "I just wish I had something to give you. I was saving up to get you a gift, but I was stupid enough to leave my money in the vent and my mom found it."
I grinned. "You were saving up to get me something? How long?"
She shrugged. "Like a month. Maybe longer." She gave me a confused look. "Why are you so happy about that? The money's gone. I couldn't get you anything."
"I know. But you wanted to. You saved for a whole month. We weren't even dating. That's really sweet."
Vaeh blushed. "I guess. But it would've been even better if I had something to show for it. I just wanted to be able to do something for you."
I watched her downcast eyes and sighed. "Listen, since you're SO determined, there is one thing I want."
She raised an eyebrow. "Yeah?"
I nodded, forcing myself to maintain eye contact. "Yeah. Commitment."
She blinked a few times. "Commitment."
I nodded again, playing with her chain. "Commitment. I want you to be my girlfriend. That's all I want. For you to be all mine, only mine...and, I'll be yours. Can you do that for me?"
She stared at me for a few seconds and then chuckled. "Damn. I mean, yeah. I can definitely do that." She reached behind her neck and unlatched her chain.
"Woah, I already told you, I don't need you to give me anything," I protested.
She placed it around my neck, latching it at the back. "Trust me. Having you wear my chain is more of a gift to me than you." The latch clicked, and she dropped her hands smiling. "Beautiful."
I smiled, looking down at the NW initials. "Everyone's gonna know we're together."
Her smile widened. "Good. Now come here, girlfriend."
I giggled, letting her pull me in by her chain.
"HEY!"
I leapt away from Nevaeh, my eyes wide open in fear. My dad was in the doorway glaring at Nevaeh, his phone in his hand.
"Uh, yes?" I squeaked out.
He slowly looked over at me and held the phone out. "Your nana called to speak to you."
I shakily walked over to him, every inch of my body trembling. I carefully took the phone from him, making sure to stay out of reach. I lifted the phone to my ear, my eyes still on my dad.
"N–Nana?"
"Happy birthday baby! How's your night been? I wanted to be the first person to call you, so I set my alarm for 12:00 am. I may have overslept a little though."
Dad was still glaring at Nevaeh, his face screwed up. I could practically see daggers shooting out of his eyes.
"Oh, it's fine," I answered, my voice barely coming out above a whisper. "I'm having a good time."
"You sure? You sound a little...are you okay?"
"Y–yeah. Just tired I guess. I have to go. I'll visit you when I come back to New York, okay?"
"Okay, baby."
We hung up, and I silently handed Dad the phone. He accepted it without a word. Nevaeh and I shared a panicked look.
"You been kissing my daughter?" He asked quietly, his upper lip twitching.
Nevaeh opened her mouth, but no words came out. Suddenly Mama came tumbling outside. She frantically looked around at the scene.
"Shit." She mumbled. She looked over at me apologetically. "I tried to keep him away, but I got distracted. Sorry."
He turned to her. "You knew? That this random kid has been kissing my daughter?"
Mama tried not to laugh. "Random? She's known her longer than you."
He shrugged. "So? What do we even really know about her? Huh? What do we really know about this 'Nevaeh'? She could be–she could be crazy! Or something! We don't know!" He wildly gestured between us. "And they've been sharing a room! She could've been doing all sorts of things! To my daughter! In my house!"
Mama bit her lip, nearly cracking up at his panic. "This is Solange's house."
My whole face heated up at his accusations. "Dad! We haven't been doing 'things'! We haven't been doing anything! Can't you trust me?"
"HELL NO!"
I raised my hand to my chest, a little offended. "Oh."
"You can't trust teenagers!" He shouted, his voice reaching shrill levels. "I was a teenager, so I know exactly what's running through your little heads. Everything's all innocent at first. But then all of a sudden, you're pregnant and homeless and on drugs! AT 16! Sweet 16! TELL EM, BEY! Play the song for them!"
I groaned. "Uh, hello. In case you forgot, we're both girls. Nevaeh can't get me pregnant!"
He put his hands on his head. "This is too much. You just turned 16! It's been five minutes. And now you got a girlfriend outta nowhere. Just like that. Already...Blink and you miss it, isn't that what they say?" He shook his head, walking away. "I need a drink."
Mama watched him with a small smile. She looked over at the two of us. "Don't worry about him. He'll be fine. He's just afraid of you growing up and...leaving us..." She pursed her lips, her eyes getting teary. "I should–I should go check on him."
I watched her hurry back into the house. "Well, that was embarrassing."
Nevaeh let out a loud breath. "I thought he was gonna kill me."
I laughed. "Shit he still might."
Her eyes widened.
"I'm kidding," I rushed out, lightly nudging her. "Maybe. I actually don't know."
She stared at me in horror. "This isn't funny. He could seriously kill me."
"You're being ridiculous. Now come on before he comes back and throws you over the ledge," I joked, grabbing her hand and dragging her to the door.
...
I carefully climbed out of the cot, scared of making a noise. Naturally, after Dad realized Nevaeh and I were more than friends, he switched up our sleeping arrangement. He let Nevaeh have our room and banished me to a rusty cot in his and my mom's room. Some birthday night.
I looked over at their bed. Completely still. Perfect. I crept out of their room and down the hall to Vaeh's room. Soft morning light peeked in from the curtains, falling across her peaceful face. I smiled at the sight.
I padded my way over to the bed and started climbing in. When the mattress dipped, she stirred. I stopped moving for a few seconds, waiting to see if she'd wake up. When I was sure she was still sleeping, I climbed in, cuddling up to her. As soon as she felt me near, her arms wrapped around my waist, holding me close. I internally melted, smiling at her unconscious reflexes.
I contentedly watched her sleep. Part of me felt like a creep, but I couldn't help it. She was so beautiful. It almost wasn't fair. My eyes greedily drank in the sight of her.
"How have I not painted you," I mumbled to myself.
I hovered my hand over her mouth, feeling her breath on my fingertips. I propped myself up on one elbow to get a better look at her. Keeping my fingertips a few millimeters above her skin, I traced her face as if drawing it. I started outwards, moving in slowly, until eventually I stopped at her lips.
"Are you gonna make this a habit?"
I jumped out of bed, heart beating wildly. Vaeh watched me with an amused smirk. I clutched my chest, trying to calm down.
"You scared the shit out of me."
She laughed. "I scared you? You're the one who was watching me sleep, trying to suffocate me or something."
I frowned. "I wasn't trying to suffocate you, you weirdo."
Vaeh widened her eyes, nodding. "I'm the weirdo."
"Yeah, you are. I was just...looking at you."
She raised an eyebrow. "With your hands?"
"I didn't touch you. Don't make it weird. I was just using my fingers to trace your features. I'm an artist. I see things differently," I argued, defensive.
"I'm an artist too," she reminded me, her eyes smiling. "Doesn't mean I go around feeling up people's faces while they're unconscious."
I smacked my lips. "I liked it better when you were asleep."
She rubbed the sleep out of her eyes, watching me tiredly. "You're cute when you're annoyed. Come here," she demanded, her arms open.
I pursed my lips. The desire to spite her was strong, but the desire to be in her arms was stronger, so I walked over to her, happily falling into her embrace. She smiled and sank back into bed with me on top of her.
"I like waking up to your eyes," she sighed. Suddenly she shot up, carelessly tossing me to the side like a sack of potatoes.
"What the fuck!" I yelled, glaring at her as I sat up.
"How are you in here?" She demanded. "Why are you in here? You're supposed to be...not in here! You want your dad to kill me for real?"
I rolled my eyes. "Seriously? Are you still on that? He's not gonna do anything to you. He was just talking." I grabbed her calves and pulled her closer to me, a mischievous smile playing on my lips. "Plus, he's asleep–"
"WHO'S ASLEEP!?"
I jumped up, accidentally biting my tongue in surprise. Nevaeh quickly flew out of my grasp and onto the floor.
"I didn't touch her," she insisted, holding her hands up.
I turned around to see my dad standing in the doorway, his eyes piercing into Nevaeh. "Sarayah. Grab some clothes. We're leaving in five minutes."
I frowned, looking at him suspiciously. "To go where? A convent? A misogynistic TED talk on the spiritual benefits of being a single woman? Yeah. I'll pass."
He looked over at me, unfazed. "Actually, I was gonna take you to get a car, but if you don't want to–"
"Is it brisk out? Should I bring a sweater? I think I'll grab one just in case," I rushed out, scrambling across the bed to my dresser.
He smirked, leaning against the wall. "Oh, but I thought you didn't wanna come?"
I waved him off. "We both said things we regret. You said 'get ready', I called you a misogynist. It's all in the past! Dad. Come on. You know I love you."
"Mhm," he hummed, his smirk growing.
"You've always been my favorite parent."
He raised an eyebrow. "Oh?"
"I don't even know Mama like that, you know. Who is she? I don't know."
He burst out laughing. "Okay Sarayah. Just get ready and meet me outside, alright?"
"Anything you say, fave," I called out to him as he left. "I love you!"
Three minutes later I was hopping into the front seat. Dad looked over at me like I was crazy.
"Damn, girl. That was fast."
I buckled my seatbelt. "Couldn't give you time to change your mind."
He laughed and pulled out of the driveway. After a few minutes, he glanced over at me and turned down the music.
"Hey, my bad about last night. I might've been freaking out a little bit."
"A little bit?" I repeated, raising my eyebrow.
He laughed, shaking his head. "Okay okay. I lost it. It's just–" He glanced over at me and sighed. "I feel like I missed all the important years. When I was singing happy birthday to you, for a second I thought maybe it wasn't so bad. You still felt like my little girl. But then when I saw you two together..."
I nodded. "It's okay, I get it. But can you maybe stop treating Nevaeh like a criminal?"
"She is a criminal," he insisted dramatically, pretending to cry. "She stole my daughter away."
I rolled my eyes, smiling. "Oh my gosh, stop."
He cracked a smile. "Seriously though. I'll try to lay off." He glanced at me. "You know, I was scared I was gonna catch you today."
I scrunched up my nose. "Ew. Catch me what? What'd you really think was going on?"
He widened his eyes. "Oh, you know what I thought was going on!"
"Then WHY would you come in?!"
"Because! Nevaeh may not be a guy, but she's still trying to get in your pants. And if she thinks being a woman is gonna stop me from stopping her from having sex with you, she's dead wrong."
I burst out laughing, completely lost by the end of the sentence. "You're crazy."
He shook his head, smiling. "No, I'm your dad."
I made a face. "You and Mama are perfect for each other. So corny."
He chuckled. "Yeah...speaking of, I wanted to ask you something."
"Okay."
He nervously drummed his finger on the steering wheel. "I almost feel bad about asking, and of course it doesn't have to be today. But. I was just wondering if–only if you're okay with it–"
"Just spit out," I interrupted.
He smiled and shook his head. "You and Bey are so impatient." He glanced over at me. "I want to propose to your mother."
My eyebrows shot up. "Propose? All these years and you still haven't married her?"
He laughed nervously. "We're married, but I've been messing up lately. So I want to renew our vows. Start a new beginning. And now that you're back, it just feels right. You weren't there the first time, and that always weighed on me. I want you to be there this time. And. I want you to be my best woman."
I scrunched up my nose. "Best woman? Oh, like your best man except–okay yeah. I'm slow, but I got there. Okay. I'd love to."
He looked over at me. "Yeah?"
I nodded, feeling a little excited. I'd never been to a wedding before. Plus, I could get another suit.
"Yeah. This is gonna be great."
"Okay!" He grinned. "Okay."
When we pulled up to the dealership, I practically bolted out the car. Even hearing Dad blatantly laughing at my excitement couldn't dampen my spirits. I was gonna get myself a...nice car. I hadn't really thought about which car I wanted. I just knew it was gonna be nice.
As soon as I stepped through the door, a salesperson walked over to me. He looked like a plastic Ken doll with his perfectly coifed hair and his weird, dead-eyed smile.
He held out his hand to me. "Hi, my name is Bryan. You must be Sarayah. Happy 16th birthday by the way. Congrats."
I narrowed my eyes slightly, looking over to my dad who just smiled in response. It really creeped me out when people knew things about me before I told them. Like, take it down a notch. We just met.
I took his hand. "Hi Bryan. Let's not waste any time. Show me your most expensive vehicles."
My dad started to protest but thankfully he was cut off by my phone ringing. I smiled apologetically before answering.
"Hel–"
"HOW YOU GONNA DISAPPEAR ON YOUR BIRTHDAY, BITCH. I MADE YOU BREAKFAST!" Kai screamed into my ear.
I pulled the phone away from my ear. "Lower your damn voice." I put it back to my ear. "I'm at a dealership picking out a car for my birthday."
"A CAR? Damn, you rich rich now, huh. Don't forget you have poor friends who are not above taking handouts. No pride here. No Ma'am. The good Lord said, let there be...no pride, and–"
I laughed. "Boy, you better stop misquoting the Bible before the good Lord smites you down. And anyway, I'm not the one ballin' out. My dad is, or he will be. I just gotta figure out which car I want."
"OOOOO! GET A LAMBO. Wait no. You'd die in a car crash. A PORSCHE!!! Wait, there'd be no room for me. OOOOOO! NO!! GET YOU A ROLLS ROYCE. LIKE THE ONE IN THE 'UPGRADE U' VIDEO. OH MY GOD. MAKE IT VINTAGE SO YOU CAN SING THAT PART IN GET ME BODIED AND MEAN IT. I COULD BE ONE OF YOUR THREE BEST FRIE–wait, you don't have enough friends for that."
I smiled awkwardly at Bryan. "Can I see the Rolls Royce...section? Area? Place? Category?"
"SARAYAAAAAHHHHH! I HAVE NEVER BEEN MORE PROUD OF YOU!"
I laughed at Kai's antics.
Bryan smiled at me, probably thinking about his commission. "Of course, right this way." He stopped beside a white Rolls Royce. I didn't know anything about cars, but it looked sexy. "This is–"
"Perfect," I interrupted, my eyes glued to the beautiful masterpiece in front of me. "Thank you. We'll take it. Yes. Wrap it up. Ship it out. Let's get this to my house today."
"WOAH, NO!" My dad stepped in between me and the car. "THE FUCK YOU NEED A PHANTOM FOR?"
"OOOOOOOO! A PHANTOM?" Kai piped up. "GET THAT ONE. GET IT."
"What you need them Louis Vuitton slippers for?" I fired back at my dad.
"YES, SARAYAH. ASK THE REAL QUESTIONS!" Kai encouraged.
Bryan's eyes widened. "I'll go give you some privacy. I'll be in my office. If you need me just shout."
"Kai, I'll talk to you when I get back," I said before hanging up.
My dad watched Bryan leave before turning back to me with narrowed eyes. "Aren't you the same person who said you couldn't be bought? The kid who wouldn't shut up about how shallow we were?"
I waved my hand dismissively. "That was like five Sarayah's ago."
I could see him fighting not to laugh. "That's not funny."
"Really? I thought it was kinda funny in a cheeky sort of wa–that actually doesn't matter right now. My point is, I've changed. Back then, I was making excuses to reject you guys and stay loyal to Alison. I thought that if I let myself enjoy the life you guys provided, I would be betraying her. But I'm not that person anymore. I want to fully embrace my life and everything that comes with it. That's why I want this car."
He still looked skeptical. "That's convenient."
"No, seriously. I can't think of one time I've let myself take advantage of life. Really just live. I always had one foot out the door. Like I was afraid of getting used to it, only to have it taken away. I don't want to feel like that anymore. This car is a symbol of a new beginning for me. Please, just let me have this."
He studied my face. After a long moment, he sighed. "Okay. Your mom is gonna punch me in the face, but okay."
I grinned. "Thanks, Dad." I ran into his arms.
"Okay, just make sure you tell her all that stuff you told me about the new beginning and the symbols."
"Don't worry, I got you," I rushed out, rubbing my hands together. I looked at my new car, and grinned. "So...can I drive it home?" I asked, bouncing my eyebrows.
"Hell no."
...
I pulled into the driveway, making sure to park in the most visible spot. I looked over at my dad who was clutching the side of the car like he was going to die.
"Really? All that?" I asked, watching him. "Was I seriously that bad?"
He laughed. "Nah, I'm just playing. You were actually very good."
I unbuckled my seatbelt and got out. "Why you sound so surprised?"
He stepped out of the car and turned to me, leaning on the roof. "Um, because you just started driving."
I copied his position, resting my arms on the roof. "What do you mean? I had to drive around for hours the night I kidnapped Blue. It was really good practice. I was driving at night on roads with no light or visibility. I had to take the highway too! Plus, I was like half dead, going through some serious emotional trauma AND on some heavy drugs, so, this was nothing, really. SUPER easy."
Dad's face was completely drained of color by the end of my explanation. "Oh...okay. I'm gonna sit down right here. For a minute."
I shrugged. "Suit yourself, but don't take too long. I have to show off my whip." I did a little dance, before walking inside.
"WHO WANTS TO SEE MY NEW CAR?!?" I shouted.
Julez ran around the corner, Blue hot on his heels. "I DO!"
Kai sauntered out, grinning. "BEST FRIEND! Tell me you got it."
I closed my eyes and nodded. "I got it."
He placed his hands on my shoulders and pretended to cry. "If I had known seven years ago that that ratty haired kid was gonna turn into this ratty haired teen with a Rolls Royce–"
I kissed my teeth and laughed, pushing him off me. "Boy, if you don't shut up."
Nevaeh walked out looking very cute in her basketball shorts. "You're back."
I nodded and held out my hand for her. "And better than ever. Come see my car."
The three of us walked outside. As soon as the car was in view, they gasped. I nodded, a big smile on my face.
"Yup. Yup. It's mine. I got the keys and errthang," I bragged, holding them out on one finger.
"Snatched," Solo said, grabbing it as she ran past me.
"Why are you playing right now?" I yelled, chasing after her. "It's my birthday!"
I cornered her by a fence. She made a lunge for the right, and I followed her movement, but she quickly pulled back and darted left.
Solo kept running, laughing at me. "Gotta be quicker than that. Qui–qui–quicker than tha–"
I tackled her from behind, sending us both tumbling into the grass. I grabbed the keys, skipping over her broken body back to my car. Mama and her cronies must've heard the commotion because they were outside swarming my car too.
Aunty Chelle peered through the windows at the leather interior. "Dang, girl. You couldn't start with a Honda or something?" She gave me a knowing look. "You played the kidnapped card, didn't you? I see you. I see you."
I smiled. "I don't know what you mean. I am an angel."
She snorted, slapping my back. "The lies you tell!"
Aunty Kellz put her hands on my shoulders and gave them a light squeeze. "My niece has TASTE. When you gone take us on a drive?"
"When she gets her license." Mama said sternly. "Until then, I'll take those keys."
I groaned. "On my birthday, really?" I reluctantly handed over the keys.
Vaeh inched her way over to me. "Hey, you can still take pictures."
I immediately brightened. "Oh my gosh, you're right!" I looked around. "Solo? Solo! You know what this means!"
Solo ran over to me, pushing Aunty Kellz out of the way. "Are you gonna say what I think you're gonna say? Because you know I just bought that new camera..."
I grinned. "You already know..."'
Solo's eyes widened in anticipation. "Say it. Say. The. Words."
I smiled, moving my head closer to hers. "You really wanna hear me say the words?"
"Say them. Say the words," she whispered, giggling.
"Y'all are so annoying," Mama complained, rolling her eyes.
"You really want me to say those words? Those two words," I continued, grinning.
"Yeah. I do. I really–"
"FAMILY PHOTOSHOOT!" Mama yelled, already turning to walk back into the house. "That's what she was gonna say! Oh my gosh! I really can't stand you two."
"It's like it's not even my birthday," I fake whined, following her into the house so I could get ready.
"Right? So disrespectful," Solo agreed, right behind me.
"This family is so weird," Vaeh commented.
"I know," Kai said, running into the house before me. "I love it here!"
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I almost wanna do a countdown to the end. But I also don't want you guys anticipating when the end is coming. So I guess I won't do that.
Anyway I have nothing to say. Hope you kids are doing well. If you're writers and I'm reading your books, stop blocking my blessings and UPDATE, YOU BASTARDS. Lol. It's all love. Ok byeeee ✌🏽