• • •

"Hiiii." I squeaked out, "Dad. How are you?"

Elijah realized then that he should've moved faster.

My dad didn't even acknowledge my hello, staring at Elijah, "Who's this?"

"Oh you know, nobody. He was leaving."

Elijah smiled politely, "Nice to meet you. Bye, Kensley."

He would've been better off being quiet because any chance I had of passing him off as a friend went out the window when he called me 'Kensley'.

Can't do shit right.

He was a grown man and didn't have to stay when my mom pranced out the door to invite him to stay for breakfast, but he was also too polite and wouldn't decline the invitation.

Jailyn gave me an apologetic glance and leaned over to whisper, "I tried to call."

"My fucking phone is dead. I should've just spent the $6."

There technically was no problem because we were two consenting adults. The only issue I thought of was that my dad wasn't stupid, and he would probably know the nature of our relationship.

If you couldn't tell, I planned on going with the "We're grown' approach.

Not that it'd matter to him.

Coby was shoving food into his mouth, "Ms. K. I love these pancakes."

"Ken knows how to make them." She looked at me, "You don't eat breakfast anymore?"

"I got a new job." Jailyn interrupted, "At the gym. Isn't that great?"

Nobody replied to her, so Elijah stopped pretending to be interested in the food, "Why a gym?"

"Jai he finna bash the minimum wage workers. I'm prepared to drag him for you."

Elijah did a combination of a scoff and a laugh, "Here you go. I wanna know why y'all getting degrees to not use 'em is all."

"Where do you work, Elijah?" My mom asked as she sat down.

"Eli." I corrected without thinking.

Everyone at the table looked at me, and I went with Elijah's strategy of staring at the pile of pancakes. I was talking shit about him but apparently neither one of us could do anything right.

My dad decided to answer Elijah's question, "They're young, 22, and 21. They have time to put their degrees to use."

That's the logic we used, anyway. I didn't want to get a job I hated just to have an income. I'd despise waking up on weekdays, probably wouldn't put a lot of effort towards it, and I just thought I'd be miserable all around.

Though I'd never tell my dad, I didn't even know why I got a degree in political science, and I only went to college because I knew that he'd be disappointed if I didn't.

So, the reason I worked in a coffee shop was because I didn't know what I wanted to do with my life right now.

"You got a job plug, Eli?" Jai asked.

"I don't have a plug, but depending on what you looking for I might can help you."

"I'm looking to make the most amount of money for the least amount of effort."

This wasn't their first time meeting, but it was their first time having a conversation. Elijah looked at me then back to Jai, "Start selling coke."

Everyone laughed except my dad who still wanted to know where Elijah worked, "So you work..."

"I'm a lawyer. About 3 years in."

I watched him try to do the math in his head, and I decided to spare him the trouble, "27."

My dad locked eyes with me, "Hmmm."

"Well, the food was great. Thank you." Elijah glanced in my direction, "I'll see you later."

I stood up to walk him to the door, knowing as soon as we were out of earshot they'd begin talking about us.

"Sorry," I whispered when he stepped outside.

Elijah was once again unbothered, "You good. I understand."

"It's just- okay. Sorry."

As I was walking back to the dining room, I felt my irritation begin to grow. It was my apartment, my company, and he was being rude for no reason.

"She's an adult, Michael." I heard my mom say in a tone that told me she was upset with him.

"And? I come here to visit and somebody damn near my age walking her up the stairs."

I stopped by my chair but didn't sit down, "You're almost 50. Now maybe the math they teach us these days is off, but 27 is not almost 50."

"You're proving my point right now by thinking I just meant his age. You haven't seen shit and he looks like he's seen too much."

"He's literally my friend. You keep tryna' make it into something it's not and that's why you have a problem."

"Friend? Kensley, I've met nearly every friend you have. Ain't no fuckin' friend." He spat the word, "You can be as mad as you want, but It's my job to look out for me."

"I don't need anybody to look out for me!" I yelled, "We fuck and he goes home! There's nothing to look out for!"

Jailyn knocked the fork out of Coby's hand and pulled him from the table, "We'll be outside."

My mom's mouth dropped but she quickly recovered, "Kensley, apologize."

"Don't worry about it." My dad stood up, "Jailyn, thank you for letting us in. We'll see you guys next month."

I felt like I was pushed to this point. I keep asking that my boundaries and space be respected and they continue to intrude and overstep. Not just in this scenario, but in general.

I'm sure his words were meant to make me feel like shit, and they did, "You don't have to leave. Sorry."

After he gathered his and my mom's plates from the table, my dad stopped to give me a hug, "I always tell you to never apologize for saying how you feel. We'll go back to the hotel, and you and I will talk tomorrow. We won't get anywhere if you try right now."

I returned the hug and continued to apologize anyway, "I'm really sorry I said that."

He gave me a tight-lipped smile and walked down the hall, leaving my mom to glare at me, "I'll be damned if you ever talk to him like that again in front of me."

I nodded, "I know. I'm sorry."

What started as a great morning, ended in an unnecessary altercation.

• • •

Elijah Baker

I quickly changed clothes, looking down as my mom texted to ask where I was.

"Where are you going?" Leah asked, breaking my concentration.

"It matters?"

"Yes, Elijah. Yes, it matters."

She watched me respond to the message, likely thinking I was texting Kensley, "It's Sunday. Where do I go on Sundays?"

"Can I go?"

She hadn't been to a Sunday dinner since the first years of our marriage, presumably when she was still happy and wanted to be in it.

"If you want to."

Leah whispered her next words, "Do you want me to?"

I took a moment to think about it, wanting to answer truthfully. I finally turned to look at her, "Not really."

The look that went across her face didn't affect me as much as it used to.

"How long are you going to punish me?" She asked, "I apologized a million times and I'll do it for the rest of our lives but you won't even give me the chance."

"You ain't give me a chance, Leah. I tried, right? You was all outta chances then, right?"

"Get the fuck over it! I can't keep doing this!"

"Watch how you talk to me." I spat, "And leave. Nobody's keeping you here."

She laughed bitterly, "I hope she makes you happy. Since I can't. You walk around like you're this great person when really you're a piece of shit like the rest of your family. You hate your dad so much 'cause you act like just like him. I give it two more years before you say fuck being a lawyer."

I knew she was trying to get a reaction because she hated it when she was upset and the other person wasn't. Instead of giving her that, I got my keys from the nightstand.

But something she said rubbed me the wrong way, so I had to respond to that one part, "How am I like Christian? You cheated. Not me."

"What are you doing now, Elijah? We're still married."

"I told you months ago I was done. You asked for time to get your shit together. I felt like I could give you that since I loved at one point or another." I paused, "But don't compare me to you when I tried to give you everything you asked for, and you wanted another nigga."

Leah fully planned on leaving me for the OB who delivered our stillborn son, but despite what he must have told her, he had no plans of being with her. Once she accepted that, she tried to be a wife again but it was too late.

"You talk to me like I'm nothing," Leah observed quietly.

I shook my head, "You're not to me."

There was never a reason to cheat. Especially not when that's the only thing I asked you not to do.

"Like I said. Hopefully, Kensley makes you happy. I wonder how her parents would feel about her being with a married man?"

My hand wrapped around her neck, yanking her towards me. I was about to threaten her, for threatening Kensley, until she started laughing.

"There he is." She smiled, "There's Elijah."

Taking a deep breath, I let go of Leah and stepped around her to leave the room.

"You're just like them. You can go to college and wear a suit, move us out here." Leah followed me down the hall, "But you won't ever be shit. Just like Christian."

• • •

um. lmao.

how do we feel about Elijah now?

thanks for reading 💕