by Shana Burton
“No, quite the opposite,” replied Namon. “We broke up.”
“Why?” asked Reginell, concerned. “Namon, you can’t just leave the girl knocked up and alone!”
“It wasn’t his idea,” said Shari. “It was mine.”
Namon turned to his father. “You and Mom are right. We aren’t ready to handle this kind of relationship. We’re too young.”
“While I commend you for recognizing that I’m right, it’s a little late for that now,” retorted Mark. “The baby will be here in a couple of months. He or she deserves to be raised by both parents. You accepted the responsibility to keep the baby. Now accept the responsibility of taking care of it together.”
Shari and Namon looked at each other, and then Namon addressed Reginell and Mark. “We don’t think we’re ready for the responsibility of raising a child, either.”
“Namon, that’s a moot point now,” affirmed Mark. “This baby is coming whether you’re ready or not.”
“We already love these babies,” said Shari. “But we know that our babies need more than just our love to make it in the world.”
“Babies?” repeated Mark. “Did you say babies?”
Shari nodded. “The doctor said I’m having twins. A boy and a girl.”
Reginell was floored. “Two babies? No wonder you’re feeling overwhelmed!”
Namon nodded. “It was going to be hard enough taking care of one baby, but two?”
Reginell looked at Mark. “They’re definitely going to need our help now.”
“We were hoping for a little more than your help, Aunt Reggie.” Namon took a deep breath. “Shari and I were hoping that you and my dad would consider raising the babies.”
Reginell felt like the wind had been knocked out of her. “What?”
Mark was equally astounded. “Namon, have you thought this through carefully?”
“We want our babies to have a good home and two loving parents, like you said,” expounded Shari. “It’s become more obvious every day that we can’t do it. We can’t even take care of ourselves, much less two kids.”
Reginell remembered Lawson suggesting the same thing. “Namon, did your mama put you up to this?”
Namon shook his head. “She has no idea I was even thinking about it.”
“Okay, you know I never thought you having a kid was a great idea, but do you know what you’re asking of us?” questioned Mark.
Namon nodded. “We do. We thought about it.” He reached for Shari’s hand. “We even prayed about it. We know we’re not what’s best for these kids, but we think you and Aunt Reggie are. Plus, Aunt Reggie can’t have children. We thought it would be kind of like a gift.”
Reginell spoke softly to her nephew. “I’m very honored that you’d think enough of me to ask me to take care of your children while you finish school, but I don’t think I can do that. I know me. I’d fall in love with those babies, and it would devastate me to give them back.”
“We’re not loaning them to you, Aunt Reggie. We want you to adopt them,” said Namon, clarifying the matter. “We want you to be their parents.”
Reginell looked at her husband. “Mark and I need some time to think about this, okay?”
“Regardless of what we decide, I think that the two of you made a very mature decision today, and you made it on your own, without any interference from your mother or anyone else. I’m proud of you.” Mark hugged Namon. He also hugged Shari.
“Thank you,” said Shari.
Mark slapped his hands on his thighs. “Well, I’m in!”
Reginell’s eyes grew twice their normal size. “Huh?”
“Baby, if you’re with it, I’m with it,” he told her. “You know I want nothing more than to share a child with you.”
“Don’t you need time to think it over?” asked Reginell.
Mark cupped her face. “You’re my wife. Whether or not to have a baby with you is nothing I even have to think about.”
“But they would be your grandchildren!” argued Reginell. “Wouldn’t you think that’s weird?”
Mark shrugged. “Children are raised by their grandparents all the time. Personally, I think it’s a splendid idea. Shari and Namon could go on with their lives, and, Reggie, you and I will have the children that we want.”
Reginell looked into the eager faces surrounding her. “I guess I’m the holdout, huh?”
“Baby, there’s no pressure,” Mark assured her. “You don’t have to do anything that you don’t want to do, especially something as huge as deciding whether or not to take on the responsibility of two kids.”
Reginell’s insecurities reared their heads. “I don’t know if I’m ready . . . if I can be a good mother.”
“Reggie, you’ll be an excellent mother,” Mark told her.
“Can we pray about it first?” asked Reginell. “I know that’s more Lawson’s territory, but I want to give it a shot.”
“Yeah, of course,” said Mark, linking hands with Reginell and Namon.
Shari and Reginell linked hands. “Lord,” began Reginell, “we thank you for today and for the awesome blessing that you’ve bestowed on us in the form of these babies. Even if the rest of the world can’t see the beauty in their lives, we can. We thank you for Namon and Shari loving their children enough to want the best for them, even if it means letting someone else raise them. Lord, if it’s your will for Mark and me to raise these babies as our own, please give us the wisdom and the heart to do so. Let us be loving examples of your love for us. Let our home always be filled with you so that it’ll always be filled with love. In Jesus’s name I pray. Amen.”
By the end of the day, Mark and Reginell were unofficially the proud parents of a future baby boy and baby girl.
Chapter 42
“I hate to say it, but maybe this friendship or sisterhood,
or whatever you want to call it, has run its course.”
–Angel King
At Kina’s town house later that afternoon, all Lawson, Sullivan, and Angel could say was, “What?” upon hearing about Elvin’s link to Desdemona.
Angel faced Desdemona. “How could you do that?” she demanded. “Kina trusted you. We all did.”
“I never asked any of you to do that,” replied Desdemona. “My mission was pure and simple—to find Kina’s story—and I did that.”
Sullivan shook her head. “You don’t even have any remorse, do you?”
“It makes no sense yet perfect sense at the same time,” Lawson declared and directed her anger toward Desdemona. “I started figuring you out weeks ago. We didn’t have all these problems till you came along with all your instigating and stirring the pot. You’ve been manipulating everybody this whole time.”
“I think manipulation is a strong word,” protested Desdemona. “Though I do admit I may have fanned a few flames.”
“You did more than that! You took advantage of our insecurities and fears and pitted us against each other for your own entertainment. That’s cruel, and it’s sick,” said Angel.
“I don’t care what Terrilyn says. I want you gone,” roared Kina. “The way I see it, we get rid of you and we get rid of the problem.”
Desdemona laughed. “I’m the least of your problems. What did I do, other than make suggestions?”
Lawson sucked her teeth. “That’s exactly how the devil operates! I should’ve known not to trust you. If you take off the first three letters and the last letter of your name, you get demon, which is exactly what you are!”
“Be that as it may, your friendships and your lives weren’t nearly as together as you tried to make them out to be,” said Desdemona, “especially if all it took was a few well-placed words from me to make it all crumble.”
Angel narrowed her eyes at Desdemona. “How can you say that with a straight face, knowing that you orchestrated the whole thing?”
“The cracks in the foundation were there long before I was. Kina, I will see you at Terrilyn’s office next week. Be sure to look over th
e book. It’s a real page-turner.” Desdemona seized her keys and purse. “It was most rewarding meeting all of you,” she added, throwing them a wave before sauntering out.
The five of them were left standing there to try to pick up the pieces of their broken friendship. No one had a clue as to how to begin that process.
“See what happens when we let other people infiltrate the sister circle?” joked Lawson.
Kina tried to laugh, but the joke was met mostly with uncomfortable looks.
“I owe you all an apology,” said Kina. “I’m the one who introduced her to everybody. I feel like this was all my fault.”
Angel rested a hand on Kina’s shoulder. “It wasn’t you fault, Kina. All you did was bring her around. We took it upon ourselves to trust her.”
Lawson was still heated. “I can’t believe she manipulated us that way!”
Sullivan looked around at her friends. “I don’t think she did, not really.”
“Are you defending her?” asked Lawson.
Sullivan disputed the idea. “Of course not, but when it came down to it, what did she really make us do?”
“She made you question your marriage to Charles,” noted Angel.
Sullivan shook her head. “I was already doing that. She only said out loud what I was thinking.”
There was a long silence.
“Sully’s right,” conceded Angel. “Whether it was about our relationships or our friendship with each other, Desdemona just unearthed everything we were feeling beneath the surface. To be honest, I don’t think she lied about or to any of us.”
“Yeah, but we said some really hurtful things to each other because of Desdemona’s mechanisms,” Lawson pointed out.
Sullivan faced Lawson. “Maybe that’s how we really feel and we have been afraid to admit it.”
Tension wrapped around them like a thick blanket.
Angel sighed. “I hate to say it, but maybe this friendship or sisterhood, or whatever you want to call it, has run its course.”
Kina squinted her eyes. “Are you serious?”
Angel nodded. “Can any of you honestly say that this friendship has made you better or helped you to grow as a person or a Christian?”
“Definitely!” affirmed Kina. “I wouldn’t have made it without your support.”
“You would’ve been fine,” Angel assured her. “Look how you thrived out in California on your own. Frankly, I think being here with us has held you back. I think to a certain extent, we’ve all held each other back.”
“How can you say that?” replied Lawson.
“How many times did we sit by idly while Sullivan cheated on Charles? Who came to Kina’s rescue when she was being beaten by E’Bell?” Angel asked, rattling off their faults. “All of us have connections, but which of us stepped up to help Reggie find a decent job so she wouldn’t have to keep stripping? Didn’t we all help Lawson lie to Mark about Namon being his son?”
“That’s what friends do,” argued Kina.
Sullivan stepped forward. “A friend wouldn’t have let you stay in that abusive marriage, Kina.”
“What could you have done to stop me? I’m a grown woman!” returned Kina.
“We didn’t even try, though. We may call each other out on our sins, but ultimately, we condone them,” admitted Lawson.
“That’s because real friends don’t judge each other,” asserted Kina. “They love and accept each other for who they are.”
“Yeah, but at what point does that become counterproductive, destructive even?” asked Angel. “If we claim to be serious about our Christianity yet don’t correct even those closest to us when they fall, what does that say about us as Christians?”
Lawson sighed. “As much as I’d like to, I can’t argue with that logic.”
“We’ve all been friends for so long that we have practically shut out the possibility of letting other people in our lives. Perhaps it’s just time to move on and explore other friendships,” suggested Angel. “Whether we want to admit it or not, I think it’s pretty obvious that we’re starting to outgrow this one.”
Kina started tearing up. “Angel, I can’t imagine not having all of you in my life.”
“I didn’t say we couldn’t be civil and have the occasional lunch or conversation. I’m just saying maybe we don’t need to be all up in each other’s business. I think we need to set some boundaries and have some space, meet new people.”
Lawson nodded. “If that’s what you want, I guess we have to respect that.”
“It’s not necessarily what I want,” said Angel. “It’s what I think we need for a little while. There’s nothing wrong with having friends outside of this group.”
“Besides, most of us are married. I’m sure our husbands would probably be a lot happier if they got half the attention that we lavish on each other,” added Sullivan.
Kina began to cry.
Angel hugged her. “This isn’t the end, Kina. It’s just rearranging our priorities. We’ll always have a role in each other’s lives. Now it will be a smaller role, that’s all.”
Lawson patted Kina on the back. “We’re family. You couldn’t get rid of me if you tried.”
“But it won’t be the same,” wailed Kina.
“Nothing ever stays the same,” said Sullivan. “Things change. People evolve. That’s life.”
Kina looked around at everybody. “Is this really what you all want?”
Angel nodded. “I think it’s what we need, for right now, anyway.”
Kina wiped her eyes. “So this is it? This is good-bye?”
Sullivan squeezed Kina’s hand. “It’s . . . see you later.”
Lawson put forth a brave front. “Well, then, I guess I’ll see you all later.”
“See you later.” Angel smiled and reached out to hug her. “I do love you, Lawson, and I wish you all the best.”
“Same here.” Lawson let her go. “Good-bye, Angel.”
“Aw, can’t we at least have a group hug?” asked Kina.
They laughed and huddled together for a final group hug.
“I love you,” whispered Sullivan. “You’ll always be my sisters.”
They all departed, leaving their most treasured friendships behind as each one went her separate way.
Chapter 43
“Sometimes I don’t know how to cope with pain.”
–Sullivan Webb
Sullivan came home and found Charles already in bed, asleep. He stirred when he heard her come in the bedroom. She set her keys down on her dresser.
“Hey,” she said.
Charles glanced over at the clock. “It’s kind of late. Where were you?”
“I was with the girls. I didn’t mean to wake you. I’m sorry.”
“No need to apologize. I know you love spending time with your friends,” said Charles.
“I think I’ve been showing them a little too much love.” Sullivan gazed at Charles. “And not enough love to my husband.”
That caught Charles’s attention.
Sullivan sat at the foot of their bed. “And you’re wrong, Charles. I do owe you an apology.”
“For what?”
“I was talking to Vera yesterday. She reminded me what a good man you are and how blessed I am to have you.”
Charles was surprised. “Vera said that?”
Sullivan nodded. “Anytime a falling-down, train wreck of a mother like Vera gives a compliment, it’s worth taking note!”
They both laughed.
“Charles, I’ve been so caught up in my own grief and pain that I couldn’t see what a completely selfless act you committed by saving my life. It was an impossible position for you to be in.”
“Yes, it was,” agreed Charles. “But I knew if Christian stayed inside of you, you both could die. If I let the doctor deliver him, there was a greater chance that both of you would survive. Maybe it was a little selfish on my part, but I couldn’t risk losing you, Sullivan. I just couldn’t.”
S
ullivan hugged him. “I know that now. It took an incredible amount of love and courage to do what you did, and I know that you grieved for our son just as much as I did.”
“I really did, Sullivan. I had so many dreams and plans for that boy. I wanted to teach him how to fish and play ball, how to treat a lady, and how to be a man of God. It broke my heart when he didn’t pull through. It broke again when you blamed me for killing him.”
“I’m so sorry for that. I was hurt, and I needed someone to blame.”
“It’s okay, but, Sullivan, I can’t be your whipping boy whenever you get ready to lash out at somebody, and you’ve got to find a way to handle your problems without turning to alcohol.”
“What am I supposed to turn to?”
“It’s not a what. It’s a who. God.”
“It’s easy for you to say that. You’re a pastor. You have an inside connection with Him.”
Charles laughed. “I have the same inside connection you have, darling.”
“Sometimes I don’t know how to cope with pain. Unfortunately, when it comes to dealing with hurt and disappointment, I revert to acting like Vera. I become mean and destructive like her.”
“I know you saw way more than you should have growing. Vera did and said things in front of you that no child should have to witness, but you’re a grown woman now. You can’t blame everything on Vera and your childhood. At some point, we’ve all got to grow up and realize who the problem really is.”
Sullivan took a deep breath. “You’re right. The issue is with me. I’m the one who hurt you, and I’m the one who’s pushed you away time and time again.”
“Well, I believe we’ve both been guilty on that end. I’ve let the church come between us, and I was wrong for that. Yes, God called me to preach, but he called me to minister to my wife and my family first. I’m sorry that I haven’t always made you my priority.”
Sullivan wouldn’t let him blame himself. “Charles, I can’t hold anything against you after all I’ve put you through.”
“No, I still have to be held accountable just like you do. Sullivan, the only way this marriage is going to work is if we start taking responsibility for it and stop fighting each other and start fighting for our marriage.”
