A droning noise was in Hakeem's ear as he sat in the booth at Red Lobster staring down at his plate of food. The longer the droning went on, he soon realized that the noise was Maya talking.

"-and I told her we'll see, but I know you not really into that kinda stuff so we don't have to go."

Hakeem's focus shifted from the plate to the little boy who was beside Maya, "I'm straight on going."

He wasn't even sure where she wanted to go, but nine times out of ten she'd be bringing her son and he didn't like kids.

Swallowing her disappointment, Maya remained nonchalant and nodded her head, "Yeah, I figured."

Maya wanted him to come to her mama's house for a small get together so that she could introduce him to her family. She knew he hadn't made an attempt to be her boyfriend, but she thought it was because she wasn't being forward enough.

The truth was Hakeem didn't want to be with her. She could've walked around with a sign on her head that expressed her interest and he still wouldn't have acknowledged it.

"Fries." The small boy small mumbled while looking at his now empty plate.

A waitress appeared as if she'd been waiting for a reason to come back by, "You want some more fries sweetie?" She cooed at him before looking at Hakeem, "Dad what do you think?"

Hakeem looked on either side of him, "Who his daddy is? Ian got no kids ma'am. Don't put that on me."

Maya again had to force herself to not show any sign of emotion, faking a laugh, "Yeah we can get some more fries."

After throwing an awkward smile their way, the waitress receded from the table, leaving Maya to stare at the napkin holder and wonder what she'd have to do to get Hakeem to show interest in her as more than a friend. Shit, she didn't even think he thought of her as a friend, but rather a piece of pussy that he tolerated because he was nice.

Instead of forcing conversation, Maya quietly played on her phone the rest of the time in the restaurant, only looking up when Hakeem called her name, "Huh?"

"You ready? I gotta go do some real quick."

Hakeem had been anxious all day, and he knew why but didn't want to address it because then that would make it real.

After paying the bill, Hakeem followed behind Maya and the child while checking his phone yet again for a.... something.

But then again, why would Brielle have anything to say to him after he let her mama come and take her to the youth center she was so intent on avoiding. He didn't care to explain to her at the moment that he was lowkey helping her even though she didn't deserve shit from him.

Today was Brielle's 18th birthday, and she'd be able to leave the facility since she wasn't there for a violent crime, and was no longer a juvenile.

As Hakeem drove towards Maya's house, she took a small intake of breath to ask, "Are you busy tonight?"

He looked at her out of the corner of his eye, "I might be. Wassup?"

"My mama said she was gonna keep Jace tonight so I can get a break." She paused to let those words sink in before continuing in a lower voice, "You can spend the night if you want to."

"I...Ion really like sleeping in other people bed. You can pull up on me though."

Maya smiled to herself, "Cool."

• • •

"She been in your shit for how long now?" Josiah asked through a cough, "She would've been had to get the fuck."

Kyra threw a plastic fork at him, "Shutup! You act like she not in the living room!"

"I wouldn't care if she was sitting in front of me. I'm sick of my brother taking care of these bitches."

Hakeem didn't seem that concerned with keeping his voice low either, "Ian taking care of nobody bruh. She spent one night over here, what you mean?"

"That's one night too many. Tell that hoe go home."

If there appeared to be hostility between Maya and Josiah, that's because it was. He didn't like how she tried to talk shit about Bri in what he believed was an attempt to bond with Hakeem through a mutual dislike of a person. His feelings toward's her intensified when she tried to make a crack head joke.

He felt like only he and Hakeem could make those typa jokes.

"Okayyy." Maya laughed, "I can't smoke anymore. I legit can't even feel my face right now."

Corey looked at her with slight irritation, "You hit the blunt like once bro."

Hakeem laughed quietly to himself while reaching to take it from Maya's fingers. That's what they got for showing up unannounced at his house.

"She probably a rookie." Travis volunteered, "Or ain't used to smoking no real gas."

After telling Hakeem everything, he and Travis were on the way to being like they once were: cousins who were more along the lines of brothers. Yeah, he was mad at him also, but at least Travis wasn't in his house on some opp shit. He made it known that he felt a way about Hakeem and was never sneaky like Bri was.

"I smoke gas. This just hitting different."

Hakeem nodded,"You good. They just talking shit."

"We can't all be crackheads." Maya joked.

He'd been quiet since they got there, but after that sentence, Josiah lowered his phone to stare at her, "What you say?"

She glanced around at everybody, noticing that they were all watching her, waiting for an answer, "I was just-."

"Ion really give a fuck, to be honest. I'ma gone tell you now Ian going for that shit."

Hakeem was surprised by how quickly Josiah grew angry, "Chill. It's a joke. A lil kikiki."

As hard as he tried not to, Travis laughed into his hands while Corey pretended to be looking into his cup, "Damn I'm outta ice. Let's run to the store real quick."

"You still got animosity about that shit huh?" Josiah questioned, "Gone get it off ya' chest 'cause I can't be around no nigga who acting like a hoe all the time."

It would seem as if Josiah now occupied the spot once held by Travis, only he was taking an entirely different approach since he didn't exactly see what he did wrong. Brielle was gone get the shit from somewhere, why not him?

"I can't have animosity about some shit Ion care about."

"You so cap on God. Nigga they said you was in tears playing Fantasia on the way home."

While Corey and Travis laughed, Hakeem simply stared at Josiah, "I can't cry about a bitch who don't mean shit to me."

Corey let out a heavy sigh, "Man y'all gone chill."

"I'm chilling." Hakeem replied calmly, "Ion think it's no problem."

Tensions had lowered since then, but Hakeem had yet to address what Josiah told him about the role he played in her lies, choosing to ignore it instead.

After another shush from Kyra, Maya entered the room to sit at the kitchen table, "Let's go do something. I'm bored."

"You got some 'go do something' money?" Josiah asked, "We broke baby we can't go nowhere."

"Oh yeah. I forgot you gotta take care of two children."

"Please don't start." Kyra groaned.

Kyra and Hakeem looked at each other with the same expression of annoyance as they listened to them go back and forth, "Where your son at? You don't never have that lil nigga but wanna bring up my situation. We past that now messy ass girl."

"Just don't say none back." Hakeem instructed Maya.

Ignoring him, Maya responded to Josiah's words, only stopping when Hakeem put his hand on her lower back, letting his fingers roam along the skin her shirt exposed.

Her head turned towards him, and he didn't even have to repeat what he'd said. Kyra watched the display through narrowed eyes.

For some reason, she didn't like the thought of them being together.

"I'm still surprised y'all talk." Kyra mentioned causally.

"Surprised why?"

"'Cause you sat in Bri face and listened to me try to tell her how to get with Hakeem. That's why you was talking about a "natural queen" when I was tryna teach her how to do her makeup. Fake ass."

"Damn... Tell her ass again bae."

She was prepared to do it but was sidetracked by Hakeem standing up, "iight get out. Ian in the mood no more."

"What's wrong with him?" Kyra whispered as she followed Josiah to the door.

"You know Bri get out yesterday. Y'all call me slow but he out here sending folks to prison and expecting a phone call."

She was still laughing at her chosen baby daddy when the person they were talking about walked up the steps at the same time they were walking out.

Brielle paused on the porch, letting her eyes fall briefly on Maya, then travel to Hakeem who was staring at her emotionlessly.

Rather than think about that, she got straight to the point of why she came here, "Where's my shit?"

Hakeem's face remained blank, "I threw it away."

• • •

*clears throat* y'all asked for the ain't shit hakeem? if i can't do nothing else i can write a toxic ass nigga. HEARD YOU 🗣

i'm joking. my bby is a sweetheart & i like him being soft.

bri out the feds & she popping up at the spot. maybe she gone beat maya ass. maybe hakeem's. maybe both 😅