merry christmas & happy holidays to you all! love you guys 🖤

Brielle watched the small boy continue to play with his toy truck, likely unaware that the daycare center had been closed for almost an hour and his mother still wasn't there.

"Call her again." Brielle heard Aisha instruct Raelyn, "She's never late."

"How many times you want me to call her ma? She not answering so I don't see the point in that."

A major reason Bri was able to secure a job so easily was because Raelyn's mother owned the daycare center she worked for. It was actually Rae's suggestion that she try to get hired on, and not seeing a downside, Brielle took her advice and got in touch with Aisha to schedule an interview.

"Can I have my candy?" He asked, turning to look at Bri for an answer.

"Uh, we don't have any candy. Just animal crackers."

He shook his head, "I got my own candy. I don't want crackers."

"Okay rude ass lil boy." Raelyn mumbled, before switching to a louder voice so that he could hear, "Where's your candy?"

They watched as he went into his bookbag, pulling out two small packages of Gushers, "My mama said I can have them if I be good today."

"Well, I don't think your mama gone know if you was good or not 'cause it don't look like sis coming to get you."

Bri hit Raelyn's arm, "Don't tell him that."

He seemed to not care anyway, "Sometimes when she with the man it take longer and when she pick me up my nanny tell her, "you better not be pregnant again" and she tell her-."

"We get it, baby." Aisha assured him so that he'd stop talking, "Don't tell all your business."

"You a real decoy." Raelyn complained, "I don't get it so I'm tryna hear the rest of the story. What your mama say after nanny tell her she better not be pregnant again?"

The little boy had already resumed playing with his trucks.

"I might just drop him off." Aisha sighed.

It was always sad to Bri when kids were the last ones to be picked up. It just seemed like the parents didn't care enough to ensure that picking up their children fit into their day. Things come up, and she understood that, but still. She'd only experienced it once right after her dad died, and she hated it.

"You know who 'the man' is, right?" Rae whispered to Brielle.

That part of the sentence went over Bri's head because she just wanted his mama to come get him. She had also become desensitized to hearing stories of various men being put before children just so the mother wouldn't be alone.

So she shook her head, "No."

"It's Hakeem." Raelyn pointed to Jayden, "Jayden is Maya's son."

Raelyn still had a lot of growing to do. Being messy was like second nature to her, and she liked to believe that she wasn't doing anything besides telling what was already public knowledge.

Bri didn't care though, her concern on wanting Maya to come get him, "So should I call Hakeem? 'Cause none of that other shit matters to me right now."

"You think they're together?"

"Rae..."

"Okay, damn. Um, my mama know her mama so she can drop him off like she said earlier I guess."

Brielle nodded and stood up prepared to follow Raelyn as she told Aisha the conclusion they'd come to, only to stop when Maya finally came through the front door, "My bad I'm late I was-." Her words trailed off when she say Bri standing within close proximity of Jayden, "Oh Ms. Webster got homeless people working in here. She always giving back to the community.

If I uppercut this bitch I'll probably lose my job, Brielle thought, But if I stab her I'll probably go to jail... I guess I'll just have to uppercut her.

"Didn't Hakeem give you back to the community?" Rae asked, "Y'all hoes be so mad when a nigga don't want you no more."

"Josiah doesn't want you either. Bitch killed her whole child just to get that man to come back and he still ain't leave. You hate to see it."

What Maya said was what Kyra told her. How Kyra came to that conclusion is anyone's guess, but she firmly believed that this was all a ploy for Raelyn to get Josiah to come back to her.

Either way, her words to Raelyn were unnecessary.

"Rae you literally got 5 seconds to slap her ass before I do it for you."

Aisha wasn't far enough away that she couldn't hear the conversation, "Maya.." She began slowly while entering the room and placing a hand on Raelyn's shoulder, "Please take your child home and show him love."

Embarrassed that she'd been caught, Maya tried to do damage control, "Okay I'll see y'all tom-."

"The devil is a gotdamn lie and we don't let him in this daycare. I'm sorry, but you'll have to find somewhere else to take Jayden."

While Aisha's words put a smile on Raelyn's face, Bri found herself thinking of where Jayden would now spend his days since it was clear to her that he wasn't a priority of Maya's at the moment.

On the ride home, Brielle wondered if Hakeem was the reason behind Maya's late arrival for this particular incident, and she tried to decide how she'd feel if he was. They weren't together, nor did she think she had the right to tell him who he could or couldn't be friends with. She couldn't pull the 'I don't want you hanging with people who don't like me' card, because she'd done the same thing to him and he'd likely call her a hypocrite.

Situations like these only served to prove that until there were clear boundaries established, feelings would continue to be hurt, and questions would continue to be raised.

Because you can't share someone that's not yours to begin with.

• • •

It was quiet in the car, something that wasn't a usual occurrence when Hakeem and Grace occupied the same vehicle.

To be fair, 'usual' was no longer a word that applied to many aspects of the sibling's relationship, which was why Hakeem was making the effort to pick her up from school. Monica's conversation resonated with him, and he felt she was right when she pointed out his forgiving nature towards everyone but his sister.

The hypothetical elephant was still in the room, but Hakeem was determined to get a name out of this conversation.

"It's hot for March," Hakeem stated randomly, pulling off his jacket.

"Yeah, it is. Global warming and stuff."

He nodded, proud of himself for setting up his question so easily, "Save the turtles. Who gave you herpes?"

Grace looked at him in surprise, "Really?"

"Deadass. I'm tryna be cool witchu' again but you gotta tell me where you get that shit from."

"Does it matter, Hakeem? Why everything with you gotta be conditional? It's always a 'but you gotta do this' or 'you gone have to give me this'. Like, fuck you dude do it just because."

Grace's nearly instant hostility caught him off guard because he thought he was being nice towards her and that his approach was as polite as it was going to get.

"I'm the lowdown one because I'm tryna see who fucked your life up? Mama telling me how you be in your room crying and shit but I'm wrong for wanting to know who gotchu' like that?"

"Tell mama stop running to tell all my business."

Hakeem sighed, "I could've been found out myself. I was tryna give you time to tell me, but I'll know in 'bout an hour."

He didn't relish the thought of finding out from the street who gave Grace herpes but it looked as if he wouldn't have a choice in the matter.

The previous conclusion that Grace had come to on the matter was that she didn't want Hakeem to know, something she'd come to when he saw how he treated her for having the disease in the first place.

Her older brother could be said to be prideful, and she knew Hakeem would be far more than angry if he knew she was doing something that he deemed embarrassing.

She obviously didn't think that through though.

"Hakeem you act like you finding out who it was gone make the shit go away. I'm still gone have it, I'm still probably never gonna get married, have kids, none of that."

"You know all that shit, yet you won't let me fix the problem."

"There is no problem," Grace spoke through clenched teeth.

Hakeem's facial expression became disgusted, "You caping for a nigga who can't give no fucks about you. I can't believe you green like that lil bro."

"Take me the fuck home. And like I said, tell your mama to stop telling you shit about me."

"In the morning when the nigga dead on the news know I did that 'cause I love you."

"Confessing to premeditated murder? Let me get this on tape."

Grace would never tell the police that Hakeem killed anyone, she was just trying to provoke him, make him as mad as he'd just made her.

"I, Grace Smith," Hakeem spoke loudly, leaning towards her, "Killed this random nigga who I put before my brother who used to change my diaper when I shitted on myself."

Despite the seriousness of the situation, Grace laughed.

She laughed until she cried, Hakeem looking at her awkwardly from the corner of his eye, "Them happy tears? If not I really don't want no parts."

She sniffed, "Mario."

"Mario?"

A head nod, "Mario gave me herpes."

• • •

Later that evening, Bri was in the kitchen alongside Darnshia, showing her how to properly season chicken wings.

"It's ghetto that you use a grocery bag." Darnisha complained, "And lowkey dirty too. Get a Ziplock bag."

"It's more room in here. I'm not about to listen to you complain either Ms. Queen of the ghetto."

"I want better for you, Bri. That's all."

Her tone was devoid of the previous joking nature that was present seconds ago.

Brielle looked up from the bag, stopping the pouring of the flour, "Thanks?"

"She always on that weird shit." Jacoby spoke from the table, "That's why Ion talk to her ass."

"I can't even show emotion to my brothers and sisters."

"Coby doesn't talk to any of his sisters so we're not exactly shocked or surprised" Bri chimed in.

Jacoby took the opportunity to slide in why he didn't talk to them, "All my sisters freaks except for Kayla. I gotta keep her from 'round y'all."

"You'd probably be a freak too but you couldn't get a crumb of pussy even if you could afford to pay for it, broke boy."

Darnishia snickered, "A crumb."

Letting the voices fade from her ear, Brielle went on with the task of gathering spices to season the chicken while thinking of Darnishia's earlier statement.

She'd taken her by surprise with her words since she didn't usually say things of that nature to her. Brielle wanted to think that maybe she beat some sense into her when they fought those months ago, but knew that wasn't logical.

Over time, Bri had grown to be suspicious of people, and she'd like to exclude her family from that group, but they had the most motive to be in it.

"Oh my God!" Darnishia shouted, "You gotta season the chicken first?"

Bri gave her a look, "What you thought?"

"I thought you just seasoned the flour! I have been awoken."

Jacoby was still laughing when the doorbell sounded, "I'll get it."

"What you doing tomorrow, Bri?"

"Working."

"After that," Darnishia replied with an eye-roll.

Brielle wasn't doing anything but wanted to do nothing alone, not with Darnisha, "I might go to the library or something I don't know."

"Bri some nigga want you." Jacoby told her with a hint of anger in his voice.

Choosing to address it later, Bri went to the door to see none other than Travis standing there with a smile, "Wassup Bri?"

"Damn the devil just letting anybody outta hell. A whole ass demon on my porch right now."

"I'ma angel. You already know that."

It was a mystery to Brielle how she ever thought there was more to him than there was on the surface. She thought they related in how they were both misunderstood by their families while just trying to make the most of a shit situation.

The fault in that line of thinking was now evident, and Brielle wanted him to leave, "Bye Travis. I let you tell your lies and be the good guy so you can be cool with your cousin, now leave me alone."

"I told him what happened." Travis shrugged.

"You told him what you wanted him to know, 'cause if you told him everything, you'll probably be somewhere dead in a ditch."

Her confidence in Hakeem was humorous to Travis, "Them niggas is real dummies. I was tryna see how he ain't know his bitch was doing all this shit, but it's clear they just slow."

"Imagine the nigga who can't read calling somebody slow. 'The d-d-dog j-jumped o-o-over the f-f-ence' head ass dude. Get the fuck on."

Brielle was acting like them in a way because she wrongly assumed that Travis was referring to her and Hakeem when he spoke of 'him' not knowing what his bitch was doing.

Travis laughed, not an actual laugh, but a malicious one that prefaced the words that were spoken with venom, "These niggas done baited your head up to make you think you something more than a slutted out cokehead."

He didn't intend on saying any of that but now Brielle had pissed him off.

"A slutted out cokehead who had you pressed. Let the hurt go Travis."

"On God my girl make you look too weak. Where the hurt come in at?"

"Your girl stay with her baby daddy." Brielle laughed, "She can't even leave the home without making up a lie. House arrest ass hoe."

For two people who claimed to not care about the other, there was a lot of back and forth as well as explaining going on.

"Oh ain't nobody told you the news? I's that baby's pappy."

Kyra had phrased it as a possibility, but Bri didn't realize it'd been confirmed. She should've assumed that they would've found out by now, but for some reason was still hoping Josiah was the dad.

She found herself wishing that even more when Raelyn lost the baby, and now those hopes were dashed.

Seeing that the news bothered her, Travis continued, "These hoes be ruthless, I'm tellin' you. Got mans out here looking stupid."

Brielle agreed with him.

The difference between then and now was that Bri hadn't had the time to reflect on everyone's actions and where she was going wrong in passing judgment. Now, she'd like to think that she was in a better position to observe things from an unbiased standpoint.

As Travis continued to talk, Bri decided that she'd do Josiah the justice that he deserved, and tell him exactly what Kyra had been up to.

• • •

santa delivering some bullets 😅 rip them boys.... possibly. el oh el

thanks for reading 💕