by Mz. Toni
“When?”
“We can go right now!”
“I don't know, Kaliah.”
“We gotta talk Jason,” she said, sitting on my lap.
“Alright, what’s up?”
“I'm pregnant. I know you weren't trying to have a child right now, but I don't want to give birth without being married.”
“You're pregnant, but how?” I said, confused. I mean damn, I thought my pull out game was strong, but I know there was always a possibility of it happening.
“Well, we weren't using condoms Jason,” she said.
“I know Kaliah but…” I started to finish, but was interrupted by my ringing phone.
“Hello?”
“Are you sitting down?” Tyler asked.
“Yeah, what’s up?”
“Man, this shit is crazy. Well I found out that Kaliah was kidnapped by that couple almost thirty years ago. The police found her, but she refused to leave the couple and would run back to their house every chance she got.”
“Damn, they fucked her up,” I said as I stared at Kaliah.
“Before you go feeling sorry for her, there’s more. I retrieved his phone records and he has several phone calls from Kaliah on the night she was kidnapped,” he said. Getting up, I walked out into my office and closed the door.
“Yeah, but that was her father. Isn't it normal that she would call him?”
“We also retrieved text messages and it isn't looking good. She sent him the address to the outreach program, twenty minutes before Cherish was taken.”
“Get the fuck outta here!” I screamed.
“Calm down, I don't want her to know that we know.”
“You need to come get this bitch asap before I kill her.”
“I'm on my way, don't be stupid,” he said, before hanging up. Walking back into the living room, I watched as Kaliah looked through wedding magazines, as if she didn't have a care in the world.
“Oh good, you're off the phone,” she said with a smile.
“Yeah.”
“So about the baby, I was thinking if it’s a boy, we can name him Jayson,” she said.
“I already have a Jr., Kaliah.”
“I know, which is why we’ll add a Y to his name and change it up,” she said with a smile.
“What the fuck is wrong with you Kaliah!”
“Ok, calm down, I’ll think of another name.”
“Tell me why you did it!”
“Did what?”
“Why the fuck would you try and kill Cherish!” I screamed.
“I can explain!” she pleaded.
“Ain't no explaining that shit, that girl ain't never did shit to you!”
“She did everything to me, but you're too fucking blind to see it!”
“You're fucking crazy!”
“She took Jasmine. That girl would’ve loved me if she didn't have Cherish feeding her bad shit about me. She took your friends from me, they hated me because she hated me. And she was working on taking you. You think I was gonna let her continue to ruin our relationship!” she screamed. Grabbing her neck, I tried to choke the life out of her. As her legs dangled in the air, I could feel my hands taking her life.
“Let her go!” I heard Tyler scream.
“This bitch is crazy!” I snapped.
“She’ll be charged; she’ll never bother you again!” he screamed. As I continued to choke her, I thought about Cherish and my babies and I realized this crazy bitch wasn't worth it. Letting her drop to the ground, I walked away from her.
“Jasonnnnnnnn, please don't leave. I didn't want to hurt her, this is your fault!” she screamed, causing me to stop in my tracks.
“My fault?” I asked.
“You knew you didn't love me. You used me to try to get over that bitch, but I loved you with everything in me. I thought maybe I was just tripping, but when I saw the way she looked at you on the news, I knew she had to go.”
“On the news?”
“Yeah, her little grand opening. She spoke so highly of you, and then you lied about going. After searching through ya shit, I found out that she invited both of us!” she screamed. I couldn't do shit but shake my head.
“Why couldn't you love me like you loved her? I tried to do everything to keep you happy, but nothing worked because I could never be her!” she screamed. Turning away from her, I walked away and out of my house. Getting into my car as I drove away, I could hear her screaming my name. Pulling up to Cherish’s house, I got out the car and banged on her door as hard as I could. When she opened it, she looked at me with wide eyes. Grabbing her, I kissed her the way I wanted to since the day we broke up. We’d made so many mistakes, wasted so much time arguing and hating each other, that we forgot how much we loved each other.
“I'm sorry Lil Mama,” I said in between kisses.
“I'm sorry too, I was being so childish,” she said. Covering her mouth with mine, I shut her up. Picking her up into my arms, I carried her to her bedroom and laid her on the bed. Removing her clothes, I looked at her body and I knew that her body was the last one I would see for the rest of my life. Her lips were the last lips I would ever kiss; her skin was the last that I would ever touch. As much as we wanted to hate each other, we never could because we were always connected and destined.
“What are we doing?” Cherish asked.
“I love you Lil Mama. I want to spend the rest of my life with you. If you don't feel the same way, tell me now, but if you do, then marry me,” I said.
“What about Kaliah?”
“That bitch crazy!” I said, before telling her everything.
“Damn, Camille called that shit. She always knew the bitch was a weirdo.”
“I'm so sorry I didn't see it, and I'm sorry about what she tried to do.”
“I'm over being angry, now I just wanna be happy.”
“I promise I’ll never hurt you again, I just need you to trust me.”
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Cherish
It has been a few months since everything happened, and me and Mega have never been happier. We decided to take our time and date for a while, before jumping into anything too quickly. I feel like that was our biggest mistake. I was young and going through a lot and from the moment I met him, he was my protector and savior. Even though we're taking it slow, we haven't been able to keep our hands off each other.
“Have you decided what you're gonna do?” he asked, shaking me out my thoughts.
“You mean, what we're gonna do?”
“Yeah, aight. I mean you don't wanna come home and it's too small for us all to stay here.”
“I'm not gonna bring me and the kids into a house that you shared with the next bitch!”
“I got a new bed.”
“Don't make me slap ya ass. Plus, is that crazy chick still sending you letters?”
“Yeah, she’s still claiming to be pregnant with my baby.”
“I'm gonna go see her.”
“Why would you do that?”
“I'm just wanna see for myself. If she is pregnant, she should be showing.”
“So what happens if she is?”
“Mega, if that girl is pregnant, then we'll handle it. I mean it isn't like I didn't know y'all were fucking. I mean shit, you proposed.”
“I know, but part of me feels like if she actually is pregnant, then that would fuck up everything we've been working on and set us back.”
“Mega, I wasted too much time being miserable without you, just to prove a point. Whatever happened while we were apart doesn't matter,” I said, kissing him.
“I think we should take a vacation from all this bullshit.”
“I don't know Mega. With the outreach program and the kids, I don't know if I have time to be going on vacation.”
“You have employees that know what they’re doing, and we have Ms. Evelyn to handle the kids. You've been through so much and I think you need a break,” he said. Maybe he was right, I had been stretching myself pretty thi
n.
“Alright, we can plan something.”
“Bet! I'll handle everything and all you have to do is show up when I call.”
“I hear you, babe,” I said laughing. This nigga never planned anything without my help. Birthday parties, presents for the kids, he never could do anything by himself. I knew he wanted to do it and surprise me because deep down, Mega was romantic, but I honestly didn’t think he could pull it off.
“What you gotta do today?” he asked.
“I have a doctor's appointment.”
“Oh, you gonna go get that dumb ass shit stuck up in you,” he said with an attitude.
“Jason, don't start ya shit. I don't want any more kids right now so yes, I'm gonna get this birth control. You just need to be happy that it will only last five years.”
“You acting just like Camille, like you don't wanna have no babies with the nigga you love.”
“I wanna have more babies, just not right now. If you respect me, then I need you to understand and respect that.”
“Whatever. So is that all you're doing?”
“Yup, then I’mma head into the office for a lil,” I said, before getting dressed. After I was dressed and ready, I gave my babies kisses and headed out.
The drive to Ancora Psychiatric Facility was only thirty minutes long. When I got there, they gave me a name tag, checked my pockets and even made me take off my earrings and any other potentially dangerous items, before letting me back. Sitting at the table, I waited for Kaliah to come and when she came walking out, I felt relieved to see her flat stomach.
“What are you doing here?” she asked.
“I just wanted to come here and get some answers, like I told you in the letter.”
“What do you want to know, why I did it? The answer is simple.”
“What did I ever do to you for you to want me dead?” I asked. These were questions I wished I could ask everyone who did me wrong, but they were no longer here. The worst feeling in the world is not knowing and I refused to live that way.
“I tried to be your friend, but you didn't want that.”
“You were with my kids’ father, the love of my life, what made you think that I would ever want to be your friend Kaliah?”
“Jason wanted so bad to be in love with me, but he couldn't do that with you in the picture. I thought he could, but he wasn't strong enough.”
“Why did you lie about being pregnant?”
“I knew he was gonna leave me, desperate times call for desperate measures,” she said with a laugh.
“So all of this was about getting Jason?”
“What, you thought it was about you? It was never about you Cherish, you are nothing to me. I just wanted what you had, the kid, Jason, the life. You had all this right in your fucking face, but you didn't want it, so why not just give it to me? I could've been a great you, I could've made Jason and the kids so happy.”
“I always wanted my life, I was just too young to know it. You could have never been me, I mean face it, there is only one Cherish Daniels, and it ain't you. You tried so hard to be me that you stopped being yourself. For a moment I liked you, hell, I was almost even jealous of you, but if you taught me one thing, it’s to go hard and don't look back. Don't worry, I’mma love Jason and ride with that nigga until the wheels fall off,” I said, before getting up and attempting to walk out, only for her to pull me back and kiss me.
“I thought it was Jason, but it’s you Cherish,” she said. I had to do a double take, was this bitch really gazing into my eyes? As the guards swarmed her, she was still staring at me with a crazed look in her eyes. I couldn't do shit but shake my head as I walked out, never once looking back. Some people do things for a reason and other do things simply because they’re a few chapters short of a fucking book. I now knew that even when Kaliah seemed cool, she was always crazy, she just did a better job at hiding it than most. Getting into my car, I drove straight past the doctor’s office. The truth is, I don't want any more kids and the moment me and Peter started getting serious, I took my ass to the doctor and got on birth control. I didn't think Mega needed to know that I was planning on sleeping with Peter, so I left out a lot of information. We all know women handle things better than men, so certain shit we just need to take to the grave. Before I could make it into work, Jason called me, letting me know to meet him at the house. Pulling up into my driveway, I hopped out the car, only to have Jason rush me into his.
“Babe, what are you doing?” I asked.
“Just sit back, shut up and don't ask any questions,” he said, turning me on. As he drove closer to the airport, I couldn't help but smile.
“Mega, I didn't even pack anything.”
“What I say!” he snapped, shutting my ass up. When we arrived at the airport, he handed me a blindfold.
“Uh huh, I ain't putting this shit on my face,” I said. I wasn't trying to be difficult, but I still wasn't over being kidnapped, and the last thing I wanted was something tied on my eyes.
“Do you trust me Lil Mama?”
“You know I do.”
“I need you to trust me enough to know that I would never let anything happen to you,” he said, kissing me softly, before placing the blindfold on my eyes. When we boarded the plane, he waited until we were in the air, before he took the blindfold off.
“We going to Jamaica!” I said happily.
“Yeah, I said fuck the Bahamas since you went there with that lame ass dude,” he said with a smirk.
“Shut up!” I said laughing. After hours of flying and two planes later, we were finally in Jamaica and I couldn't be more in awe by how beautiful it was.
“Come on babe, you gotta get dressed so we can be out,” Mega said, rushing me.
“Boy bye, I'm tired as hell, I'm going to go lay down,” I said.
“I have a surprise for you though babe,” he said. When we got to our room on the beach, he wasted no time pushing me towards the shower. After washing off all the plane funk, I turned the water off and covered up with a towel. Walking out of the bathroom, Mega was nowhere to be found.
“He didn't even bring luggage,” I said to myself as I stood there, naked as hell. Walking into the bedroom, I saw the most beautiful mermaid dress that I’d ever seen in my life. After getting dressed, I walked into the living room to grab my phone, only to run into Mega, kneeling down on one knee.
“I love you with all my heart and soul. I know we rushed into this at the beginning, but now there is no doubt in my mind that you are who I want to spend the rest of my life with. I don't want to go another day without you having my last name, so I need you to marry me,” he said. As tears fell from my eyes, I thought about all we’d been through, all the pain and disappointment we caused each other, but then I thought about not having him in my life and the decision was easy. Placing the engagement ring on my finger, he walked me downstairs and onto the beach. I could see people standing there, but I wasn't sure who they were. As we got closer, I spotted Camille, Shante, Shana, Queesha, all of their men, my babies, Ms. Evelyn, Mama Betty and her boyfriend. As I stood surrounded by the people that loved me the most, the tears continued to pour.
“You look beautiful,” Camille said, hugging me. I didn't have on any makeup, just a little lip gloss, but I knew in my heart that I didn't need any of that. Not today, because the man I was marrying loved me just the way I was. As I stood in front of Jason with my hand in his, I felt his love radiating onto me.
“Before we get started on your vows, Jasmine wrote something she wanted to share,” the man prepared to marry us said.
“Mommy, I love you so much. I always thought that babies only had one mommy, but now I know that the real special ones get two. You love me every day and you spend time with me and take me to the park and when I'm sad you make everything all better. I'm glad that you and Daddy are happy again because I missed our family. Ummmmmm, that’s all I had to say,” she said with a smile that brightened my day. Bending down, I hugged and kissed her
, while telling her how much I loved her, before standing back up.
Dear Lil Mama,
From the moment I laid eyes on you, I felt an instant connection, a need to protect you and be everything you needed me to be. Who would've thought that the connection would lead to me falling in love with this quiet, lost and beautiful girl. Some people go a lifetime without finding the person genuinely made for them, so when you're one of those lucky few to find that one true love, you don't let it go, you don't procrastinate and you don't fuck up. I had you, I lost you and now I've been blessed to have to you again. Best believe I ain't never letting you go,” he said. I was so happy I didn't have on any make-up because the way my eyes were leaking, it would have worked out.
