“And I’m sayin’ don’t act on it if you know you’ll regret it later.”
I finally turned my head, just enough to look at her. She wasn’t comin’ at me with no attitude. She was calm like she actually gave a damn about what I decided.
When we got to my floor, she stayed on my heels all the way to my room. I dropped down on the edge of the bed and reached for the blunt I left burnin’ in the tray, still not sayin’ much. She stepped up, her hand warm when she reached for mine, pullin’ it toward her and lacin’ her fingers between mine like she had every right to.
“Lola was wrong,” she said. “She lied, and she played you, but don’t give her… or him the power to decide how this ends for you. You know what you want. You know what you’re here for. Don’t throw it away because of Lola.”
She was quiet for a minute then looked at me, “There’s nothing more that I want than to be your wife. Please… don’t throw away what could be our future… your future just because someone else is fighting their own demons. We’ve come too far, and I know you feel that.”
I didn’t say nothin’ right away. Her words sat heavy, but not in the way the rest of the night had been sittin’ on me. I ain’t wanna admit it but, it was somethin’ that made sense. She was right. That nigga bitch wasn’t about to be the reason I backed away from somethin’ my family had built this whole process for. The whole point of this shit was to secure my family’s legacy and to be honest, I had fallen for these women and didn’t know if I could start over with a new batch.
I took a slow pull from the blunt and handed it to her. She accepted it without hesitatin’, took a hit, and blew the smoke toward the open balcony doors. We passed it back and forth, the room quiet except for the faint sounds outside.
At one point, she leaned in, her lips brushing mine in a way that was soft but sure. “What’s meant for you will be meant to be,” she murmured, pullin’ back just enough to look me in the eye before she took another pull.
We finished the blunt in silence, and when she finally stood up to leave, I didn’t stop her. She walked out the same way she came in—calm, and without rush.
When the door clicked shut behind her, I realized I was sittin’ lighter than I had all night. It wasn’t gone, but the weight on my chest had eased up. That was the kind of energy Pluto brought with her, and I couldn’t deny it even if I wanted to.
Trill-Land, Jungle Estate,
As I made my way to the elevator, my nerves were still on edge, but a small part of me felt like I’d managed to talk Pressure down from that ledge. He was pissed and ready to send every woman in this house packing, but something in his eyes told me he was listening to me, even if his pride wouldn’t let him admit it. My mind was still on the conversation we’d just had, and even though I wanted to believe I had gotten through to him, I wasn’t about to get too comfortable.
The elevator doors slid open, and I stepped in, pressing the button for the first floor. My reflection in the mirrored wall caught my attention, and I could see I still looked a little flustered. It wasn’t just from the tension in his room, but from trying to push down everything I felt about him taking Kashmereout of town for the weekend. I didn’t bring it up because it wasn’t the time, but deep down, I couldn’t shake the thought that the only reason she got that trip was because her ass threw a tantrum last week. I knew she was in her feelings about him taking me to meet his mama, especially on her birthday. It was a jealousy thing. Kashmere knew how to work a situation, and that little scene she caused… To me, it looked like a move to get exactly what she wanted, and she did.
The elevator stopped and the doors opened to the wide hallway that led to the main living area. As soon as I stepped out, I spotted Chanel and Imani lounging on the couch like they’d been waiting for something to happen. Chanel was sitting there, smirking like she had a secret, and Imani had that same sharp, unimpressed look she always gave me. The second their eyes met mine, I could tell there was about to be an issue.
“Well, look who finally decided to come back down,” Chanel said, dragging her voice like she had all day to be petty.
Imani didn’t even give me the courtesy of a smile. “Mm-hm. This bitch stay running behind that man like she on payroll.”
I didn’t respond. I learned quick that not every comment needed a reaction, and I wasn’t about to feed them the attention they wanted. I kept walking toward the kitchen, but their voices followed me like an echo I couldn’t shake.
“She swear she the favorite,” Chanel’s tone was syrupy sweet with a fake laugh underneath.
“Nah, she swear she his bodyguard,” Imani chimed in, the words sharp enough to cut. “Always up under him, acting like his long lost puppy or some shit.”
I didn’t slow down. My focus stayed straight ahead, but I could feel both of them getting up and falling in step behind me. Their presence was heavy, and the way they moved was too calculated to be random.
“Where you headed?” Chanel’s tone was sharp. “Don’t tell me you on your way to sit up under him again.”
Imani smirked, trailing close behind. “Girl, ‘cause you know she live under that nigga’s nuts.”
I stopped by the counter to grab a bottle of water, and before I could twist the cap, they were leaning in on either side of me like vultures circling. My patience was paper-thin now, and I could feel my pulse thumping in my ears.
“So, what is you bitches really on?” I turned to face them, my voice filled with enough bite to let them know I was done playing nice.
They exchanged a quick look, like they wasn’t expecting me to actually respond. Chanel tilted her head, smirking. “Why you so defensive? We just talking.”
“Yeah, just saying what everybody’s thinking,” Imani added, crossing her arms like she was ready to stand on whatever came next.
I set the water bottle on the counter hard, then turned fully toward them. “Y’all messy as fuck,” I said, my voice sharp and unshaking. “Always in somebody’s else’s fuckin’ business. Don’t worry about what the fuck I got goin’ on with Pressure. If y’all had anything going on with him, y’all wouldn’t even be worried about me.”
They both blinked, their smug expressions faltering just a bit. I stepped forward so there was no space for them to think I was backing down.
“Get the fuck up off me with that weird-ass energy,” I continued. “If y’all wanna compete for his attention, go do it. But following me around the house, tryna poke at me all day? That’s some high school shit, and I don’t play those games.”
Chanel opened her mouth to respond, but before she could get a word out, a deep voice cut through the air behind us.
