Feels So Right, It Must Be Wrong

by Charmanie Saquea

  “Okay, big brother of mines,but this is not my first time doing this. I know what to do.”

  “No,it’s not your first time, but it is your first time going without me,” Symir said as he helped her take her bags down the stairs.

  “I got this baby,don’t trip. I’m not new to this, I’m true to this.”

  “Alright now,gangsta boo.” Symir laughed.“As you know, the shit is in the hidden compartment that only you two will know about so if you get pulled over,you should be straight because that bitch is hidden real well.”

  “Gotcha,” Asia said as she peeked in Symare’s room to check on him. He was glued to the TV and not worrying about nothing else.“Don’t let him watch that TV all day, Mir. I been teaching him his letters and numbers lately so make sure you go over them with him,” she instructed.

  “Now look at who is givingorders. He’ll be reciting the ABC’s backwards to you by time you get back,” he laughed.

  There was a knock at the door so Symir went to answer it.“What’s up, boy?” he greeted Knowledge with a brotherly hug.

  “What up?Where Ms. Drama Queen at?” Knowledge laughed.

  “Who you calling a drama queen?” Asia asked as she looked Knowledge up and down. She couldn’t deny that he was fine. Even with him being dressed down in some cargo shorts, wife beater and all-white Uptown Nike tennis shoes.“And where is your bags?” she asked after she finished examining him.

  “Oh, I’m good mami. Noneed to worry about me. You just need to bring ya ass on so we can hit the road.”

  Asia cocked her head to the side and looked at him through squinted eyes.“You asking me or telling me to bring my ass?” she sassed.

  “Telling, now let’s go,” he said as he grabbed her bags from the front door.

  Symir just shook his head at the two. He knew that would be a long ride with those two. He knew he didn’t have to worry about anything going down between the two that wasn’t supposed to go down because he had a strict rule about fucking around within the crew. It caused too many problems so it wasn’t allowed.

  “Alright you two, get on up out of here,” Symir laughed.

  While Knowledge was putting Asia’s bags in the trunk, Asia was starting up the car. Knowledge thought he was slick, talking about Asia was going to be doing all the driving but he had to be crazy as hell. There was no way in hell she was driving for 18 hours straight. She would do the first half and he was going to do the second half whether he wanted to or not.

  The ride was going smooth until Knowledge reached over and turned Asia's music down. "Tell me something about you."

  "The last time you were in the car with me, didn't I tell you there was nothing about me to know?" Asia sassed.

  "Cut the bullshit Asia. I'm not the type of nigga you gotta act hard around. It’s obvious that we're going to be around each other more often than not, so why not get to know each other a little?"

  Asia sighed. She wasn't the type of female that was cool with letting everyone in. She didn't trust anyone besides Crystal and Symir. She had barely trusted Khyree when they were together. "What do you want to know, Omari?" she asked, calling him by his government name.

  "Oh, so I'm Omari now?" Knowledge laughed. He knew he was getting in her nerves but he didn't care. He was tired of her acting like it was a bad thing to get to know her a little.

  "That's your name, right?"

  "Yea, but I don't let everybody call me that."

  Asia rolled her eyes at him. "I'm not everybody, I'm Asia."

  "You got a smart ass mouth," he said before he slapped her exposed thigh.

  "At least you know I'm not a dumb broad." She smiled. "And put your hands on me again and I promise you'll have a few less fingers."

  "I’m not worried and that's good that you're smart," Knowledge said. "I don't like my girls dumb anyways," he said under his breath so she couldn't hear him.

  After driving nine hours each, they pulled up to the Marriott in the heart of Dallas. Knowledge grabbed their bags while Asia waited for him. They walked right up to the front desk where Asia was happy to see a familiar face. "Hey Asia," Mason said.

  "Hey Mason, how are you?"

  "Good now since you're here." Mason smiled. Truth be told, he was in love with Asia. When she and Symir first started taking trips here, she wouldn't give him the time of day considering she was only sixteen and with Khyree at the time. But eventually, she started warming up to him and they went on two dates on previous visits.

  "Flattery gets you everywhere boo." Asia smiled.

  "Your brother coming?" Mason asked as he went to get her room key.

  "Not this trip, he sent a replacement," answered Asia as she looked over at Knowledge who had his eyes trained on her. She winked at him and turned back around.

  When Mason returned with her key, he glanced up at Knowledge and got an uneasy feeling in his stomach. "Here's your key to your usual rooms," Mason said.

  "Thanks sweetie."

  "Are you going to be busy later?" Mason asked with just in his eyes.

  "Actually, I'm about to hit up the shower then get some rest. I'll hit you up later," Asia said.

  "Cool." Mason nodded his head.

  Knowledge didn't miss the look in Mason's eyes as he watched Asia. When he reached her room, he couldn't help but to speak on the subject. "Y'all fucked," he bluntly said.

  "Maybe, maybe not. What's it to you?" she asked as she got her stuff ready to shower. "And when are you going to your room? I need some me time."

  Knowledge flopped down on her bed and closed his eyes. "I like the way your bed feels. I think I'll just chill out in here for a minute."

  "You have the same bed as me next door, Omari." Asia shook her head.

  Knowledge didn't respond, so Asia headed towards the bathroom. She turned the water on to the temperature that she liked before she undressed and got in. She let the hot water run down her body and ease her muscles that were tense from being in the car for so long. She loved hot showers because they helped her clear her mind.

  She stood there under the water and thought about her life. She wondered what her life would be like if her parents were still alive. She knew she wouldn't be doing what she was doing now because her mother wouldn't have allowed it and her daddy damn sure wouldn’t have allowed it. She figured she would probably be in college right now.

  Some people would say that Asia was wrong or selfish for being in the drug game when she had a son to raise, but in her eyes she was doing what she had to do to make sure that her son would never want for anything and never need for shit. She didn't want to be living off of her brother for the rest of her life knowing that she was capable of taking care of herself.

  After what seemed like forever, Asia washed her body and got out of the shower. It felt like a sauna in the bathroom and looked like one, too, with all the steam in there. She lotioned her body down before putting her bra and panties on. She put on a cami and some pajama shorts before leaving out of the bathroom.

  She was surprised to see Knowledge still lying in her bed, but now he was asleep. She wanted to wake him up and kick him out but she thought against it. She knew he was tired because she was too, so she just left him alone knowing they only had a few hours to rest. She climbed in bed and got comfortable. As soon as her head hit the pillow, she was out.

  5

  The next morning, bright and early, Knowledge was up and getting ready. Since he never took his bags to his room, he showered and got dressed in Asia's room. As he was getting dressed, he kept stealing glances at her. She looked so beautiful and peaceful while she slept. He wouldn't mind waking up to her every morning but then he remembered he already had someone to wake up to every morning and she was carrying his seed.

  Damn I'm tripping, he thought. He couldn't believe he was having those thoughts about someone he barely knew because she refused to let him get to know her. He walked over to the bed and tapped her lightly. She stirred a little before finally stretching and waking up.<
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  "What time is it?" she asked.

  "Seven o'clock," answered Knowledge.

  Asia stretched once more before climbing out of the bed. Knowledge watched her as she walked to the bathroom and couldn't help but to lick his lips at the way her thighs and ass looked in the pajama shorts she had on.

  While Asia was in the shower. Knowledge sent Chelsea a quick text message that she would wake up to, checking on her and his daughter. He wanted to call her but he knew she wasn't up yet so texting her was the next best thing.

  A half hour later, Asia walked out of the bathroom ready to go. She walked over to her suitcase and grabbed her pink Birkin bag. Knowledge shook his head because he knew that purse had to be at least ten stacks. He knew because he had bought Chelsea one like it. Asia reached deeper in her suitcase until she reached her nickel plated Colt .45 that she never went on a business trip without. She checked her clip and made sure it was full before kissing it and placing it in her bag.

  She turned towards Knowledge with her head tilted. "You strapped?"

  "You gotta ask?" he retorted.

  Asia just smirked before nodding her head towards the door, letting him know she was ready. Knowledge let Asia lead the way. When they reached the parking lot, Asia jumped in the driver’s seat since she knew where they were going. "I hope you're paying attention to where I'm going just in case Symir ever sends you again," Asia said.

  "I'm paying attention, even when you don't think I am."

  "Good, so as you know, bricks go for $20,000 apiece and he's getting 30 of them so when we come back to collect next month we should have $600,000. Last time we dropped off 25 of em, so today we'll be picking up..."

  Knowledge cut her off. "$500,000."

  Asia just smiled without saying anything.

  The rest of the ride was a quiet one. They both were stuck in their own thoughts. Asia was thinking about how she couldn't wait to get back to her son and Knowledge's mind was on Asia. There was just something about her that he was drawn to but he couldn't put his finger on what it was.

  They pulled up to a car shop that was owned and run by this cat named Kasim. Not only was it a car shop but it was also a cover-up for him to handle his business. Asia drove around to the back and threw the car in park. "Let's do this, sweetie." She smiled before grabbing her bag and getting out.

  She walked up to the door and knocked twice. The door cracked open and Marcho, Kasim's right hand man stuck his head out. "Oh shit, what's up, Asia?" Marcho said excitedly before opening the door all the way, granting them access. "We were just talking about you."

  "I can only imagine what you were saying." Asia playfully rolled her eyes as she followed behind him to the underground basement. Kasim was smoking a blunt and finishing up counting the last of the money. When he looked up to see Asia walking his way, he smiled.

  "Aw shit, there she go," Kasim said before putting a rubber band on the last of the money and putting it in a duffle bag. He got up and walked over to Asia, hugging her tightly. He let his hand slip down to her ass and gave it a little squeeze before she slapped his hand away.

  Knowledge didn't like what he just witnessed. For some reason, he felt a little tinge of jealousy. He didn't like the fact that a nigga was putting his hands on her in that manner.

  "Stop playing with me, boy," Asia said sternly. She knew that if Symir was there, he wouldn't have done that shit. She turned towards Knowledge and saw a look in his eyes. "Knowledge this is Kasim, Kasim this is Knowledge," she introduced.

  Kasim hit him with a head nod but Knowledge didn't return it. Asia felt a little tension coming from him so she went ahead and got down to business. "Alright, Marcho is getting the stuff out of the car, so where's the money?" Asia asked.

  "Damn, straight to the point, huh?" Kasim asked as he zipped up the duffle bag and held it out towards her but Knowledge stepped up and took it. It was no secret that Kasim wanted Asia in the worst way but her ass was too mean and he knew Symir wouldn't allow one of his clients to mess with his sister.

  "Alright, same time next month," Asia said before turning and leaving.

  When they were walking to the car, Marcho was walking from it carrying two duffle bags. When they got in the car, Asia looked over at Knowledge. "What's wrong, Omari?" she asked.

  "You always let niggas grab on yo ass and shit?" he asked looking her dead in her eyes.

  "Hell no! Had that have been Symir in there with me, that shit wouldn't have happened. He knows better and I will be informing my brother," Asia said honestly. She was bothered by the situation herself. She didn't like nor appreciate Kasim even thinking it was okay to put his hands on her like that.

  ~ ~ ~

  Since Symir was active in Symare’s life and he was also close with Khyree, he went to visit him as often as he could. Since Asia was out of town and he was watching Symare, he decided to take him to see his daddy. Symir never wanted to feel like he was replacing Khyree and he wanted his nephew to know who Khyree was so he always talked about him and showed him pictures so he would know.

  "What's up, man?" Khyree smiled as he dapped Symir and took his son in his arms. "Damn he getting big."

  "Smart as hell too," Symir laughed. "Mare, who is that?" he asked his nephew.

  "Daddy!" Symare said excitedly.

  "That's right, lil man." Khyree smiled. "Where your sister?"

  "She had to go out of town for a few days."

  Khyree knew what he was talking about and it made him shift uncomfortably. "By herself?" he asked.

  "C'mon man you know me better than that. I sent someone with her. He's new to the family so he had to learn the history," Symir said as he spoke in code.

  "You know I don't like her doing that shit. She need to be at home taking care of him." Khyree pointed at Symare.

  "You know like I know that Asia is just a stubborn and bullheaded as they come. She was not taking no as an answer, but you also know that I wouldn't allow shit to happen to her either."

  "I know. I just ain't feeling her doing that. Especially with me in here."

  "I feel you, but your lawyer said they are reviewing some evidence and the man that got shot woke up from his coma," Symir said cheerfully.

  Khyree had been professing his innocence since day one. He admitted to being there but he wasn't the one that committed the robbery and he sure didn't shoot anybody. He was happy about this new evidence that could possibly prove his innocence.

  "Yea, he said he should be getting back to me real soon." Khyree smiled. He was real hopeful that everything would work out on his favor.

  6

  Chelsea was left home alone, yet again, but she had grown used to it now. She had been dealing with Knowledge since she was sixteen years old, so now, at twenty-two years old, she knew the routine. She knew Knowledge was grinding hard to provide for the family, especially since he refused to let her work while she was pregnant. She was cooking his favorite meal when her phone started ringing.

  "Hello?" she answered.

  "I guess I have to call and check on you since you don't check on me," Clare, her mom, sassed.

  "Cut it out mom. I just talked to you two days ago." Chelsea shook her head as though her mom could see.

  "Yea, whatever. I'm guessing that no good thing you call a man isn't home," Clare said like she was disgusted.

  Chelsea just rolled her eyes and sighed. It was no secret that her mom didn't like Knowledge nor did Knowledge like Clare. "I'm not about to go there with you right now, mom."

  "Well, you should. I told you years ago that he was no good, and now look at you. Stuck at home all day by yourself while he's out doing God knows what with God knows who," Clare preached. She hated the fact that her daughter fell hard for Knowledge. She wanted Chelsea to be with a doctor or a lawyer. Not some drug slinging thug.

  Chelsea looked up as she saw Knowledge walking in the kitchen. He kissed her forehead then her stomach. "Alright mom. Is that all you called for because I have to go." Hearing that caused
Knowledge to roll his eyes and leave the kitchen.

  He went to the bedroom and stripped out of his clothes so he could get in the shower. He had been working alongside Symir and Cordae all day handling business and he was tired. All he wanted to do was shower, then go to sleep. He didn't even want to eat anything.

  After he got out the shower, he threw some boxers on and went straight for the bed. He landed on the bed on his stomach and was sleep instantly. Chelsea walked in the room to tell him the food was ready but stopped in her tracks when she noticed he was sleep. She just shook her head and made an about face out of the room.

  She went back downstairs and fixed her plate before going to the living room and powering on her laptop. She was going to do some online shopping so she could finish making up the nursery their daughter was going to be sleeping in. Knowledge gave her full control on what the room was going to look like and said the cost didn’t matter. If she liked it, get it, so she was about to have some fun.

  She was scrolling when she heard a vibrating noise. She looked in between the couch cushions to find Knowledge’s phone vibrating with a text message.

  Asia: Meeting tomorrow at 8:00 am sharp. Be on time play boy.

  Chelsea left the message open so when he would check in phone in the morning that would be the first thing he seen.

  ~ ~ ~

  Symir sat at the head of his table in the meeting looking at every single street lieutenant and runner. This was just a general meeting to make sure everything was running smoothly. He had officers, judges, lawyers, doctors and anyone else you could think of on his payroll. One could never be too careful so he had to make sure that he was protected all the way around. Today he has just had top men in attendance for the monthly meeting that was mandatory.

  He was sure that his dad would be proud of the way that he was running things. He reminisced about how he rose to the top from the bottom. After Syrus had got killed, none of his so called friends had bothered to help Crystal to take care of his kids to make sure that they were straight. It was like they all said fuck him and Asia. Symir was good growing up with just Crystal, but Asia, on the other hand, had nobody.