There weren't any 'assigned' seats, save for the kids table, so people filtered into the dining room, sitting wherever they pleased.

Two people hadn't made their way towards the kitchen, and those people were Brielle and Travis. She'd told Hakeem she needed to use the bathroom, slipping away before he could question it.

Travis went a different way, knowing Brielle would seek him out even if she had to search the whole house. He wasn't trying to get her caught up, so when he heard footsteps, he looked out of the closet and pulled her inside.

"Fuck no." She stated in a low voice, "Let me out."

"You was looking for me, wasn't it? Ion want you to get put out."

"You're so messy man. Why can't you just act like you don't know me? You starting shit for no reason."

Travis continued as if he hadn't heard her, "If he put you out you can stay with me though. You can move in before you get put out forreal."

She closed her eyes in frustration, "This isn't funny. You keep playing but this isn't a game. Hakeem-"

Much like Hakeem had done earlier, Travis put a hand over her mouth, "Fuck Hakeem. Ian worried 'bout a nigga doing shit to me."

"What about me, Travis?" Brielle demanded after she yanked his hand off of her, "Do you think about how it'll affect me when you do lame shit like that?"

His silence spoke volumes.

"Exactly. I'm out here trying to help you, fucking risking a friendship with the only person who probably gives a fuck about me, and you can't stop being a bitch for 2 hours!" Her voice has risen throughout her rant until she was yelling in his face.

"You hear some?" Corey asked as he held a plate in his hand.

"I hear that ham," Josiah responded, "Get out my way."

Back in the closet, Travis stared down at Brielle, "I give a fuck about you Bri."

"Then please just stop."

He pushed the door open, "Go eat."

Travis was counting down the minutes before he followed her to the dining room, making an effort to lower any suspicion that may have been present.

Hakeem was at the table stabbing the turkey with a fork, "This dry."

Kyra snickered, "Get some gravy."

"What you said bae?" Josiah yelled over his shoulder, "You want some gravy?"

"Boy go to hell."

Tamara turned around, "Excuse you?"

Their relationship was never that good since Tamara felt like Kyra treated her son terribly. She'd heard the stories of him being put out of his own house, the burned patches of grass where Kyra set Josiah's clothes on fire, and she heard the way she talked to him sometimes.

"I was talking to Josiah." Kyra responded, "Not you."

"Y'all finna start already? We just got here."

Brielle slid into the chair next to Hakeem, pulling his plate towards her, "Thank you."

"I'm not starting anything. I just said I wasn't talking to her because I wasn't."

Before Tamara could respond, Josiah placed a hand on her arm, "Chill ma. We not on that today."

He then made his way to Kyra, sitting down, "You sure you not thirsty?'

Brielle looked up as Travis sat down at the table, using the Hawaiin sweet rolls to make a sandwich of ham and macaroni and cheese.

"My heart is so full." Monica said as her eyes watered, "My whole family is here."

"Family is def a reach but go off." Grace stated while looking at her phone.

Taking a deep breath, Brielle convinced herself she was mad at Travis and not bump bump.

Hakeem poured more Patron into his cup that held lemonade, "I agree. Niggas ain't my family at all."

"What is the problem?" Monica asked through clenched teeth, "Eat and shutup."

"We can't eat with all this hostility in the air." Grace watched Brielle give Hakeem back his plate, "Want a new fork Keem?"

"Lets fight." Brielle stated bluntly, "Come outside."

Travis looked up from his sandwich, "Grace can't fight."

"How would you know?" Grace asked in disgust, "You been in jail for your whole life."

"Thanks to ya' bro. We ain't gone talk about that today though."

Monica rested her head in her hands while the arguments continued.

"So you coming outside or what?" Brielle demanded, "You talk too much to be scary."

Brielle didn't care about Monica, Hakeem, or anybody else in the room. Grace had been asking to get her ass beat for weeks, and she was finally about to get it.

"Hakeem get your whore."

Kyra choked on the dressing she was eating, slapping Josiah's hand away when he tried to pat her back. Tamara snorted, "Let her choke."

It was taking Hakeem too long to defend Bri for Travis' liking, so he did it himself, "Grace your herpes medicine make you act like that?"

Only close family knew of her condition, and close family was just Hakeem and Monica. Hakeem had told Bri and Josiah, but the rest of the table was in shock.

Travis calmly scooped more ham on his bread, "My bad. Ian know it was a secret."

He'd found out from the same people who told him about her being in videos. A handful of people were aware of Mario's 'condition' and Travis happened to be acquaintances with those people.

Grace was flustered, caught off guard by Travis telling her business to a room full of people. She looked at Brielle who had a small smile on her face, "What you smiling for? You got it too."

Patron smelling Lemonade flew across the room as Hakeem spit his drink out, "Who got it?"

"I don't have anything. I got tested."

"Probably while it was inactive. Go again, sweetie."

Mia was so happy she'd insisted on coming. Her family's thanksgiving dinners never went like this.

The reaction Hakeem gave confirmed that Brielle had lied to him. If they weren't having sex, he would've been more calm. So his suspicion of him only letting her stay there because she was fucking him was right.

That staying quiet shit went out the window.

"STD's be running rampant." He said, staring at Brielle, "I hope you out here being safe Bri."

The thing that saved her is that nearly everyone called her Bri. There were few people who referred to her by her full name.

Monica had since left the table, going upstairs to lie down.

Tamara tried to take control of the situation, "Everybody just make plates and go home."

"Where everybody live at? Bri you still stay with Hakeem?" Travis questioned.

Brielle finally asked, "Why do you keep talking to me?"

Something told Hakeem to let the scene play out rather than intervene.

"I can't talk to you? I'm having a friendly conversation. I'm a nice ass dude, but these niggas and these hoes be trying me like I'ma bitch."

"I couldn't possibly try you, because I don't know you."

He held her gaze for a moment, "Yeah Ion know you. I heard about you though. Trust me," Travis chuckled, "Your name out there."

His words hurt, mainly because she'd hinted at the fact that if Travis tried to say he knew her, she would deny it. He brought it on himself, then got mad that she'd done what she told him she would.

Only to result to calling her a hoe like everyone else.

The plastic cup clattered to the floor as Hakeem abruptly stood up, hating that he'd tried to be respectful in leaving his gun in the car, "Stay right there. Ima be back."

"Stop!" Tamara yelled, trying to grab his arm only for Hakeem to brush past her.

Josiah and Corey were still eating, "Mama sit down and let nature take its course."

Brielle left the table and nearly ran outside behind Hakeem, "We can just go home. It's really no point."

"It ain't no point to you. Ain't nobody finna disrespect me multiple times and Ion do nothing."

"All those people in the house and you tryna kill somebody?"

Hakeem hardly ever got extremely angry, but when he did, it took more than logical reasoning to calm him down.

Ignoring everything Bri was saying, Hakeem went back into the dining room to find Travis' seat empty. He'd left the room as soon as Hakeem did, taking his plate with him.

Mobile was a small city though, and Hakeem and Travis were bound to cross paths again.

• • •

y'all want bri to tell hakeem so bad but then it'll ruin what i have planned. lol nah.

i have a question that i'd like for y'all to answer pls. i am
biased towards my characters bc they're mine, but how is brielle an opp? as i'm writing, i try to portray her as somebody caught in the middle who's trying to ensure everybody stays alive butttttt that ain't working 🥴 so the question is: DO YOU THINK BRIELLE IS A FAKE ASS HOE YES OR NO?

thanks for reading 💕