by Jade Royal
“Jason told me what happened, is everything alright?” Brianna asked.
“It’s all good,” Charm said. “Denzel made it better.” Denzel cupped Charm’s face.
“You mean everything to me,” he said. “I’ll always be here to make it better for you.” Brianna’s heart melted at his confession. She felt like a complete sap, but it was the sweetest thing ever. And then someone cleared their throat.
“Hey, am I interrupting something?” Everyone turned to the front door where Gabby was standing. Denzel pulled away from Charm.
“Kind of. Who told you I’d be here in the first place?” Denzel asked.
“You weren’t home, so this is the only other place.”
“What do you want?” Brianna asked.
“Just to talk, you know?” She looked over at Charm. “I didn’t realize the two of you started seeing each other again.” Charm kept quiet, moving behind Denzel. Knowing what she knew, Gabby was the one responsible for Terrell.
“We’re all kind of celebrating here, and you’re not invited,” Brianna said. “So excuse us.”
“Celebrating what?” Gabby asked. Denzel shifted to the side, and made Charm stand next to him. Gabby looked straight at the swell in her belly.
“You’re having a baby with her?!” Gabrielle shrieked. “And not me?!”
“He would have, if you didn’t kill it,” Brianna snapped. Gabrielle ignored her and looked straight at Charm.
“I’m going to kill you,” Gabrielle said, intently. And then she just left the gallery, just like that. Charm gripped Denzel’s hand.
“Don’t worry, baby, I got you,” Denzel said.
“I’m gonna go figure out what’s going on with Charm’s case,” James said. “The detective I brought on used what you and Brianna figured out, and is finding some things against Gabrielle. And after that threat, she needs to be in jail. Please, Denzel, keep her safe.”
“I got her,” Denzel nodded. James kissed Brianna before he hurried out of the gallery.
Everyone sat tight at the gallery, but Charm was feeling anxious. She was worried about Gabrielle’s threat, and didn’t feel safe at the gallery.
“Denny, let’s go home,” Charm said to him. “I-I would feel safe there.” Denzel rubbed her back.
“I’m sorry you have to deal with this,” he sighed.
“You two can come to the loft too,” Charm said to Brianna and Jason.
“Alright then, we’re right behind you.” Denzel packed up a few art items to take back to their place before he led the way out of the gallery.
Brianna hurried out of the gallery when she realized everyone had left ahead of her. She was grabbing the unfinished piece she was working on, when everyone had walked out. She toted the large canvas out of the gallery, then locked the door behind her. When she looked up, Gabrielle was walking towards Denzel’s car intently. No one saw her but Brianna.
“Denzel!” She screamed. She threw down her painting and began running. Everything went in slow motion. Her feet didn’t seem like it could move fast enough. Then Gabrielle was slowly lifting her arm, aiming a gun straight at the back of Charm’s head. Brianna remembered what Denzel had said to Charm. ‘You mean everything to me.’ Despite what Brianna was sacrificing, she could not let Charm be taken away from Denzel.
Everything returned to normal speed as Brianna knocked Gabrielle to the ground. She still pressed the trigger, sending the shot in another direction. Brianna didn’t know what else was happening, but the fight she was having with a psychopath underneath her. She knocked the gun from Gabrielle’s grip, then used the same gun to hit her over the head with it. Gabby went still under her. Brianna was breathing heavy as she slowly looked up. Charm was screaming her head off amongst the chaos.
“No-no!” Brianna screamed. Jason was kneeling on the ground, with blood spreading at the center of his shirt. Blood dripped out of his mouth, before he finally tilted over, falling flat on the pavement.
Chapter Twenty-Four
“He’s going to make it,” Doctor Murphy said. Charm felt like fainting when she heard the news.
“Thank goodness,” Brianna breathed, holding her chest. “I would have fucking lost it if he died.”
“Thankfully the EMT on call kept him alive enough for me to be able to do what needed to be done,” Doctor Murphy said. He nodded over to the EMT’s, who were filling out paperwork at the desk.
“I’ll be sure to thank them,” Charm said.
“You can see Jason when you’re ready,” he said, before walking off. Charm took Brianna’s hand and they walked together to the paramedics.
“Excuse me,” Charm said. Both of them looked at her. “We’re friends of the man you brought in earlier. The shooting,” She informed them.
“Oh, yeah, him. He’s was very talkative in the truck,” the fairer skin of the pair said.
“Really?” Brianna asked.
“Yep. He said, ‘you better keep me alive, so I can use this as a way to get what I want in the future, and name my best friend’s babies,’” The other paramedic said. Charm and Brianna were mesmerized by his eyes.
“That sounds like Jason,” Brianna said.
“And he’s still not gonna name my twins,” Charm added. “He’ll choose something ridiculous.”
“Anyway,” Brianna continued. “We just wanted to say thank you for keeping him alive until he got here.”
“That’s what we’re here to do,” the one with the nice eyes said.
“What’s your name?” Brianna asked.
“Iman,” he smiled. “And this is Chase. You keep your friend healthy.” They waved at him and his partner as they gathered their things and left.
“Well, they’re nice,” Brianna said. “Let’s go see Jason.”
Jason was bandaged and in pain, but that didn’t stop him from talking. Everyone was relieved this didn’t turn into another disaster. None of them knew how they’d handle it. At the end of the day, they were all stressed and tired. James was tied up with legalities, so Brianna went home with Charm.
“You ran into danger for me,” Charm said. “Gabrielle could have easily turned around and shot you instead.”
“I know,” Brianna shrugged.
“Don’t shrug, Brie. I could have lost you!” Denzel snapped at her.
“Yeah, well, no matter how it turned out, I just had to make sure you didn’t lose her.” She pointed to Charm. “Not when she’s everything to you. Not when you’re finally in love and starting a family. I wasn’t going to let that happen.” Denzel sighed hard. He pulled Brianna into his arms and hugged her tightly.
“Thank you,” he whispered. Charm joined the hug, wrapping her arms around the both of them. She owed Brianna too.
********
“The police are here,” the nurse said, coming into Jason’s room. Everyone sighed and rolled their eyes. Jason was stuffing his face with red Jell-O.
“I’m with family right now,” he protested.
“They say it’s important.” Either way, the cops entered the room, along with James. He had a wide smile on his face.
“What’s going on?” Denzel asked.
“Gabrielle is going to be charged with shooting Jason. We also found your spare car keys in her possession, Charm. After questioning, she had admitted to attempting to shoot you and hitting Terrell instead. As of now, all charges against you have been dropped.” Everyone cheered at the announcement.
“Gabrielle is currently being evaluated by the psych department. She seems to be unstable.” Denzel hugged Charm, grateful that their nightmare was over. Now they could really begin to move on. The cops confirmed some things with Jason and then they were gone.
“Now I’m thankful the hussy shot me,” Jason joked. They were laughing when Terrell walked into the room. Charm’s smile immediately dropped. Denzel pulled her into his lap making her sit on him. It was a possessive gesture, that warned Terrell not to even try anything that would upset her.
“Hey, Jase.
Heard about what happened, just had to come and wish you well.” He gave Jason flowers. Jason took them and gave him a look.
“Just cause I’m gay don’t mean I like flowers,” he said.
“Oh. I can take them-”
“Just kidding,” Jason laughed. Terrell chuckled and shook his head. Naturally, he looked over at Charm sitting in Denzel’s lap. She was giggling at what Jason said, but she seemed happier beyond that little joke. Denzel kissed her neck and she erupted in even more giggles. And then Denzel palmed her belly. Terrell wasn’t happy, but he knew that there was no getting his wife back. It was over. And he had to move on.
“Well, I gotta go,” Terrell said. He patted Jason on the shoulder and walked towards Charm. She leaned against Denzel’s chest as she looked up at Terrell.
“Good luck,” Terrell told her. He dropped folded papers onto her lap, before turning and walking out of the room. Charm quickly took up the papers and opened them.
“What is it?” Jason asked.
“He signed the divorce papers,” Charm gasped. “FINALLY!” Denzel stood and kept her in his arms, only turning her around so he could hug her tightly.
“One day, I’m gonna marry you,” he whispered in her ear. “You can bank on that,” he added, before he was kissing her deeply.
Epilogue
7 months later
Terrell held his crying son, rocking him until he started to simmer down. Destiny handed him a bottle, and he pushed it into the baby’s mouth. His son looked just like him, and even though he was happy to have a baby, he wasn’t happy with Destiny at his side. She was nothing like Charm, and Terrell realized what he’d given up by cheating in the first place.
“Charm had her twins,” Destiny said, scrolling on Facebook. Terrell went to her side to see the photos of Charm with her new man and her twins. They looked so goddamn happy, it literally, made Terrell want to cry. He shook his head and continued feeding his son.
“Go on back to bed,” he told Destiny, seeing the fatigue in her face. She shrugged and walked slowly back to the bedroom, leaving the nursery. Ever since they brought TJ home, she wasn’t that excited woman who wanted a baby anymore. She would do anything to get away from taking care of TJ, and she never wanted to hold him. The doctor’s said it was postpartum and Terrell feared the worst.
Finally getting TJ back to bed, he put the baby in his crib and left the nursery. He sighed as he entered his bedroom. He got in bed and Destiny splayed herself all over him. And in his head, he couldn’t get over the fact that it wasn’t Charm.
“How did you get pregnant?” He asked her. “I need to know the truth.” Destiny sighed.
“I drugged you. Made you come inside me. Doesn’t matter now. You’re stuck with me.” Terrell closed his eyes and exhaled. If it wasn’t for his son, he would have strangled Destiny, right then and there. But he’d made his bed when he cheated in the first place. And now he just had to lie in it.
********
Charm screamed as she gave one final push, and she felt her second baby slide out of her. Every month was an achievement in her case, and by the 8th month, Charm just knew she was having her babies. And now, she’d just given birth. She flopped down onto the bed, breathing heavily. Denzel fed her some ice chips and patted her forehead dry with a cold rag.
“You did so good, baby,” he said, kissing her on the cheek. The loud wailing of two different babies made her start to cry.
“They’re beautiful,” Jason said, watching the nurse clean them up. Denzel cut the umbilical cords before staying at Charm’s side.
“Here’s baby A,” the doctor said, handing the first baby to Charm. “A little boy.” Charm gasped and held her baby. He was squirming, but when she held him, he stilled and relaxed, as if he final found comfort.
“Here’s baby B. A little girl,” the doctor handed Denzel the second baby for him to hold. He couldn’t believe that he had created this little human being.
“The both of them look like you!” Charm exclaimed. “I know they’re gonna be little chocolate drops.” Denzel massaged the mass of curls on his daughter’s head, before looking down at his son.
“Thank you, Charm,” Denzel said.
“For what?” She asked.
“For carrying and giving me my first son and my first daughter,” he replied. He bent over and kissed her on the mouth.
After they spent some time with the babies, they were carted away to get checked out, while the nurses cleaned Charm up and transferred her into another room. When she was comfortable, his mother came into the room with them, then the babies were brought back. She held the both of them in her arms at the same time.
“I want some more grandbabies from you next, little girl,” Daisy said to Brianna.
“Oh hell no,” Brianna scoffed. “Don’t plot on my uterus. Shit.” Daisy shook her head and looked down at the twins.
“Names?” She asked. She passed the girl to Charm.
“Cadence,” Charm said, rocking her daughter. Denzel took his son from his mother.
“Caden,” he said, as he held his son. “Apparently, they look like me, so Charm gets to choose C names.”
“Those are cute,” Jason said, crossing his arms. He was still upset he didn’t get to pick a name, but he’d get over it.
“My little rainbow babies,” Charm smiled, as Denzel slid in bed next to her, still holding Caden. He looked at Cadence and smiled. He was so ready to take his twins and future wife home. The crazy part of it all was that the both of them almost missed the chance at being happy together. Ending a ten year relationship was hard for Denzel, and for Charm getting a divorce wasn’t an easy either. But the depth of their love was all the proof they needed to know that they belonged together. And now that Charm had babies and a man that loved her beyond measure, she was never letting go. And as Denzel looked down at his sleeping son who was clutching his finger, Denzel couldn’t help but hold back his tears of happiness. Charm slid Cadence in his arms, letting him hold both his twins at the same time. He was overwhelmed by the feeling but empowered as well; knowing he fathered the babies of the woman he loved. Denzel leaned over and kissed Charm lightly on the lips and watched as she rested her head against his shoulder and slowly drifted to sleep.
The End
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