Arm Candy

by T. C. Littles

  “You have my word on that, T. I done fucked up enough for my li’l one already.” How could my life be going so great and so terrible at the same time? I need to get faded to stomach this craziness! It was hard keeping my balance and my head high while walking what seemed to be the green mile toward Rayna’s room.

  “We can blow a blunt in the car after you handle ya business if you need to,” she said, reading my mind. “But be cool. Li’l man is the most precious baby I’ve ever laid eyes on.” She smiled.

  If only you could always be this pleasant to be around. I nodded and returned the smile. It was refreshing to have a dose of her lighthearted personality. I just wished it wasn’t under these circumstances.

  “Congratulations, K.P.” Turning around and opening the door, Tiana walked in, holding it open for me to finally meet King Wallace and to hopefully make amends with his mother.

  Rayna

  They say the person you loved to hate most during your pregnancy is the one your child will come out looking like. Caught up staring at my and K.P.’s creation, I saw that King Wallace Jr. looked just like his father at only a few hours old. All of this seemed so surreal. I was a mother and King was a father. For the first time, we both were parents.

  “I love you K.J.,” I spoke softly, kissing my son on the forehead. I’d been practicing being peaceful, calm, and serene so my vibes could pass to him. According to the midwife, babies can nurture and thrive off a mother’s good spirit.

  When his tiny eyes drooped low and closed, I gently laid him in the hospital’s bassinette then rolled over to get a few winks of rest myself. My body was exhausted and still heavily doped up from the draining delivery, which scared me half to death. It would be a cold day in hell before I bred again.

  My head snapped toward the door when my roommate and baby daddy walked in. “Really, Tiana? Are you serious? I told you to get rid of his ass, not have him trailing behind you looking like the pathetic piece of shit that he is.”

  “Come on now, Rayna, don’t trip on me. I’m just trying to be helpful. That’s li’l man’s daddy. He got the right to at least meet him. King’s coming back in peace, so at least offer him the same platform,” Tiana fronted me off, then took a seat in one of the visitor chairs.

  K.P. thanked Tiana for speaking up for him, which pissed me off even more. King was the last person who needed another ally, especially when the chosen one was my best friend. In girl world, Tiana knew the rules were designed for her to ride with me.

  “So clue me in.” I looked at each of them, dumbfounded. “Since when did y’all become cool enough to come in here tag-teaming me? Did ten minutes of solo time make y’all official comrades? I’m so confused.”

  King threw his hands up defeated while Tiana continued to do the talking. “Calm down, sis, damn. You’re blowing everything out of proportion. Me and King are both trying to be here for you. Don’t play me short, and try giving King a little credit. At least he did show up.”

  Tiana was making me feel more than a little betrayed. Just a few hours ago, she was the main advocate in the “Hate King” campaign. Now it seemed to be she’d fully crossed over to his side. That was phony of her to me, but my friend pool was too scarce to be picky.

  “I’m the one who needed a blood transfusion for losing so much on that table, and he’s the one who is only five pounds, underdeveloped, and lost a lot of oxygen to his brain.” My emotions poured out. “Neither of you went through shit, so don’t tell me to calm down.”

  Tiana looked to the floor, biting her lip, meaning she had something smart brewing inside but was holding it back. King stood speechless. What could he say? If T hadn’t spilled the beans already about what drove me into labor early, he should’ve been smart enough to put the pieces together by now.

  “So now nobody has anything to say?”

  “Okay, let me think about it. No. What can either one of us say to you that won’t get us ridiculed?” Tiana spoke up first, finally leaning back in the chair, crossing her legs. “I guess you’re the boss to call the shots. You’ve earned the right.” She made the “matter of fact” face. I could tell she wanted to say something clever but knew this wasn’t the time or the place.

  “Listen, Ray, don’t be mad at Tiana. She’s only trying to help me right my wrongs—” King started to speak, yet I threw my hand up quickly, cutting him off.

  “You’re gonna need Jesus Christ Himself to jump off of the cross and counsel you twenty-four hours a day to right your wrongs, King. I was supposed to mean more to you. Your son was supposed to mean more to you.” Sniffling and trying to hold it together, I was two seconds from putting him out of my room. As inevitable as it seemed, I didn’t want to emotionally go back on the roller coaster K.P. kept me on.

  A volunteering minister at the hospital offered prayer over me and K.J., motivated me with an inspirational pep talk, and left me with a lot of reading material to help lessen my fears and woes. Still feeling empowered, I wished to be a strong single mother. And everything about King the Producer made me weak.

  “Come on now, Rayna, you know I meant every word of love and affection. I’m sorry for what went down. Shit got crazy, and I’m man enough to say today I didn’t know how to deal with it. But I ain’t trying to keep fucking up your and li’l man’s world. That’s my word. Let me hold him. Let me be his daddy please.”

  Walking toward me, no longer waiting at my mercy for an invitation, King knew I didn’t want to turn him away. I’d been nagging him about being a family with me since day one. He was wrong as it was to walk in two left shoes for putting both me and Junior in this situation. However, if he was willing to put our relationship in a better place, I was willing to let him.

  “You can’t do him like you’ve gotten so comfortable doing me. He’s your son, your DNA,” I spoke dramatically.

  I was trying to make sure King understood how serious his bond to this child truly was. In return, I knew, he’d automatically be linked to me. K.J., as I nicknamed him already, meant a lifetime for King Wallace and Rayna Robinson. In time, I’d share the same last name as my son. Trust that!

  “I got you, Ray. I got my bloodline, too.” He reached down, picking his son up from the bassinette. I noticed a look of contentment on his face. In just a split second, King was locked in and in love. I’d never seen him look so calm, happy, and peaceful in all of the months of us messing around.

  King had me glowing with stars in my eyes. Not one single day of my pregnancy did I think he’d be coddling or accepting our baby as much as he was doing now.

  As he walked around the room whispering to K.J. about being sorry and promising to right his wrongs, I detected Tiana discreetly taking videos and pictures with her phone. I had the slickest bestie ever! When she noticed I’d caught her red-handed, she winked and smiled. “Thank you,” I mouthed to her. If it hadn’t been for Tiana going against my initial wishes to get rid of King, I wouldn’t have this chance at a family and a one-up on Samira. Yes, even after birthing a premature child with major complications, ol’ stank ass Mira was still on my mind.

  “Time for a feeding.” The nurse walked with a bottle in her hand, all the while giving King the side-eye. She’d struggled with him first-hand in trying to get his paws from around Dr. Wang’s throat. “Mom or Dad? Which one of you will do the honors?”

  I nodded my head toward King, who didn’t look like he was gonna give K.J. to me anyway. “Dad can do the honors. Mom will try to get a little rest. I’ve got a feeling he’s in good hands.” Smiling from ear to ear watching King sit in the rocking chair next to the bed, the nurse helped him hold K.J. the right way, then put another blanket over him for extra warmth. “You’re off to a good start King, a real good start.” I wasn’t above giving him credit for a good beginning, even though it was hard acting like Samira’s fragrance wasn’t still banging off his clothes.

  “Yeah, King, what Rayna said. A real good start. Now smile for the picture.” Tiana brought her camera phone out of hiding.<
br />
  King surprisingly grinned real hard for the picture while holding the small bottle of milk to K.J.’s eager mouth. My son might’ve been a preemie, but he was definitely latching on. And his dad was dropping my jaw in awe by being such a stand-up guy. Life was good, at least for now.

  “Send me a copy of all the pictures you’ve been snapping, T. You haven’t been slick. My son just isn’t a secret.” King never looked up but gave Tiana a half but genuine smile.

  The nurse sat in the far side of the room in the corner, making sure everything continued to go smoothly. Dr. Wang agreed to give King a pass but not for a second occurrence. As she watched the little makeshift family I’d created bond with one another, even her smug, unconvinced expression started to lighten seeing King so overwhelmed with the son we shared.

  Taking a few glances back and forth between Tiana and King, I thanked God for delivering K.J. and then closed my eyes to rest up for the game ahead of me to be played. Something told me things were about to get hella real.

  Chapter Ten

  Samira

  Sprint must’ve had Jamila’s phone tripping. As of late, they’d been notorious for having the worst service in metro Detroit. After calling back a few times and not getting an answer, I rolled over on the bed, staring at the ceiling with a mind full of thoughts. Once she texted back that her ex had popped up, I knew the vent session I needed to have would have to wait even longer.

  How did my world go from sugar to shit so fast? What bullshit did I put out in the world to deserve this karma after being so good to King? I’d been that man’s fucking lifeline. I guessed my loyalty to him had been in vain.

  Shifting my wedding ring around in circles on my finger, I began to feel more vindictive than ever. Running a mental tally up in my mind, I’d been digging deep in my pocket for years to keep his ass fresh to death on these Detroit streets. Sneakers, loafers, fitted caps, custom outfits, jewels, King had it all to floss because of me. I’d made that nigga into the man Rayna had her teeth sunken into. Rolling over and snatching my phone back up, I scrolled down my call log to his name, hitting SEND.

  King’s got the game fucked up for real if he thinks I’m ever gonna play stepmomma. Let me be sure to make myself perfectly fucking clear.

  King

  “Hey, lil’ man, Daddy loves you. No matter what happens in this world or goes down with me and your mommy, I need you to know that Daddy loves you.”

  I held my son close to my body like the nurse directed. Already he was getting spoiled because I hadn’t put him down. I couldn’t. He weighed only five pounds eight ounces and was thirteen inches long. Tiny but a slugger no doubt, he was breathing on his own, eating on his own, and was projected to stay in the hospital for only a few days longer to make sure his vitals remained normal. I’d witnessed blessings before to recognize that God was working in my child’s favor. Rayna had taken a beating but still managed to deliver a tough kid. He was definitely a Wallace.

  Ring. Ring. Ring.

  Feeling my phone vibrate in my pocket, I hurriedly moved to snatch it out, hoping not to disturb K.J. too much. I already knew it was Samira calling or messaging again, with every right to. Silencing the vibrating, I thought twice about answering. Jamila’s words from her suspicious phone call earlier clouded my judgment because all I could hear was her begging me to speak with her first. Damn, how should I play this? Mira is my wife, so don’t I owe her some loyalty? How are we ever gonna be right if I keep doing her wrong?

  Rayna was fast asleep, and Tiana was gone to the car for the smoke session I no longer needed. Besides K.J.’s virgin ears, there was no one around to hear my conversation. “Hey, what’s up?” My whispers hadn’t fully left my mouth before my mind registered that this was a bad idea.

  “Are you serious about greeting me like ‘hey, what’s up?’ What the fuck is that about?” Samira was screaming at the top of her lungs. Even K.J. squirmed in my arms. “And why haven’t you been answering my calls and texts? Don’t make me feel froggish enough to leap my ass down to the hospital,” she warned.

  “Chill out screaming, Mira. I’m sitting here with the baby.” I tried remaining cool. “This ain’t the time or place to be beefing with you, so I thought it was best to let you cool down. I don’t mean to keep pissing you off, but I’m doing the best I can. I’ll be home in a few.” Samira deserved comforting, so I was trying to give her just that. But like Rayna was giving me credit for coming through, Samira should’ve been extending the same olive branch.

  “It ain’t never the right time for you to leave your wife out in the cold, King. That’s some bullshit you selling and I’m not interested in buying it! You’ve always had me by your side.” She sounded heartbroken.

  I was still talking low and trying to rock K.J. at the same time. Samira wouldn’t take a break long enough from calling me every name but the child of God to hear me begging her to settle down. “Mira, can you stop two seconds to listen?” Where is Johnie? Why did this nigga text me that Mira had been pacified for her to call me turning up? This shit is wild! I ain’t gonna keep fooling with this convo.

  Li’l man was squirming with a balled-up face. My discomfort was rubbing off on him, and with his health risks, I wasn’t having that.

  “Naw, I can’t stop two seconds to listen to whatever sorry excuse you’re gonna try running. If you only want to talk about that bastard baby of yours—” Samira’s harsh words had crossed the line.

  Hanging up in her face, turning the ringer down to silent, I wasn’t about to give Mira’s scorned ass any extra energy. She was entitled to be upset with both me and Rayna. However, K.J. was off-limits for her and any other bitch jealous of my seed. If they couldn’t accept him, they couldn’t have access to me.

  “Don’t let that ho catch the business speaking ill about my son.” Rayna’s eyes were wide open, staring straight at me. “You’ve got some nerve answering the phone to her up in here in the first place.”

  “Settle down and be cool, Ray. That’s the last thing you’ll have to worry about, so take yo’ fiery ass back to sleep.”

  Johnie

  My and King’s mixtape was getting major hits on internet soundboards. As a lover, King might’ve been the messiest man I knew. But as a businessman, he had his record company rising in the rankings. K.P. was making a name for himself around Detroit as the hardest working hit-maker close to the greatness of J. Dilla. My skills as an artist made us a powerful combo, but my greed behind the scenes was much more forceful. No one did their research on me. Being the quiet, pretty boy was my superpower in the game we all were playing.

  People loved our style and were steadily downloading our songs, which was money in the bank for both of us. I’d been waiting on an opportunity to be bigger than the game for years. Now that everything was falling into place just right, my swag felt like a boss.

  Geeked about the positive feedback new and old fans were hitting our website with, I sent King a screenshot so he could celebrate our success. With all the drama going down, I knew the mere mention of getting more bread would lighten his burden. Besides, K.P. was gonna need to capitalize off me for as long as he could. Once shit hit the fan about me and Mira, which it would, bridges would be burned and never rebuilt.

  You’ve got to be kidding me. She can’t be serious right now with all this thick dick I just shoved up her juicy behind. Samira’s piercing, loud voice interrupted me checking my social feeds and contacting DJs on the solo tip for interviews. I might’ve been blowing up because of K.P.’s skills when it came down to producing, but I was gonna surpass him by far by staying on my grind.

  Jumping up and pushing the vertical blinds to the side, I checked to make sure K.P. hadn’t gotten back then jetted up the stairs two at a time headed for their bedroom. Me and King were already sharing profits, so we might as well share pussies, too. I’d been wanting to stroke Samira’s fat kitty ever since seeing her tenderness hugged up around King anyway. My dick was a happy boy. He’d knocked two pretty bitc
hes down in less than two hours.

  Samira

  “Hello, hello, King?” Pulling the phone back from my face, seeing the call duration timer blinking, I tossed it across the room out of anger. “Damn it to hell, fuck him and that illegitimate child,” I shouted into our bedroom I sat in alone.

  Once again, my feelings were put on the back burner while Rayna and that entrapment baby I was bitter over got put on a pedestal. No matter how many times I tried coming to grips with my reality, King’s disrespect kept hitting me in the head. This wasn’t an ordinary situation for me to adjust to. So it was even more frustrating that King was backing me into a corner to respond with compassion. He truly deserved something more heart-wrenching than me banging his boy to prove a point. Nevertheless, I was too whipped in love to put him out and change the locks.

  Beep. Beep!

  Recognizing the Facebook notification alert, I went from zero to one hundred quicker than Drake. King had big balls to be posting status updates when there was a conversation to be had with me. For a moment, I fell back and watched my phone light up from across the room. In my mind, I was trying to prepare myself for what I was about to see.

  Waves of relief shot through my body when I saw it was just Johnie tagging King in music links. He was more than holding his right-hand manz down on the promotion tip when it came to hyping their songs up, but him hitting me raw let me know his intentions came with shade. On every level of K.P.’s life, his rising-star artist was taking the lead. If my husband weren’t so consumed with hiding bitches and babies, maybe he could’ve seen the power shifting in their business relationship.

  Like the redundant Kermit meme jokes flooding every social network nowadays said, it wasn’t my business. I was gonna sip my tea and watch the bullshit unfold. Me making sure King stayed taken care of was what enabled him to dip off in the first place. Every time I gave him cash toward building his dream, I was really giving him a crutch to stay off his own two feet. I wasn’t gonna be the fool to put myself in the same position twice. Keep telling yourself that Mira. Put that shit on repeat.