“You also don’t allow them to continuously mistreat you. But Auntie Ruby, that is in the past. I hope you are okay because I am. There is no love lost.”
“Can I hold Scarlett?” She asked. I watched Crimson briefly hesitate, then she agreed. Ruby took Scarlett out of the stroller and held her close, continuing to gush over her adorable beauty. When she was done, she handed her to me.
“Jahsir.”
“Ms. Ruby,” I replied to her greeting, then she walked away. There were no hard feelings with Ruby. That was Rashad’s mama, and I asked the questions I needed to ask. I know she wondered if I ever said something to Crim, and I didn’t. It wasn’t necessary because Crimson was good, financially and mentally. She’d already made up in her mind to love her aunt from a distance. I didn’t need to add insult to injury.
“How you feeling about that?” I asked as Ruby disappeared into the crowd.
“Bae, I’m not thinking about my auntie. I’ve learned from Hadiya that our relatives pass trauma around because that’s all they know. It’s up to us to do something different. As long as I don’t repeat that same toxic behavior with Scarlett, then I won.”
“Word,” I added, kissing her on her forehead. After placing Scarlett back into the stroller, we were on our way.
We moved through the day, continuing to taste our favorite foods. The weather was beautiful, and as the day stretched on, the crowd got thicker, signaling us to be on our way out.
“Ooh! Kaye’s Kakes!” Crimson beamed as we headed toward the entrance. “I didn’t know they had a location in Mulholland Falls.”
“Me neither,” I added. “I thought she was only based out of Chicago. I wonder if she got some white chocolate chip peanut butter cookies.”
“Let’s check. And I want to get Scarlett’s birthday cake from there, so I’m hoping she has a business card.”
We headed over to the booth and spoke to the owner, Melanee. She gave us samples of her banana pudding cups, strawberry crunch cups, chocolate-covered strawberries, and some cake pops. We took our bundle of goodies to a shaded area with a bench. Crimson moaned as the flavors danced around in her mouth. The day had caught up to Scarlett, and she had finally passed out in her stroller. Looking up, my demeanor changed. I saw Que heading toward us with some woman who wasn’t his wife, another dude, and another woman. I assumed they were on a double date. Crimson looked up, and her mood shifted completely. As he approached, I hoped he’d come correct. I didn’t feel like laying this nigga out on family day.
What’s good, bro?” Que reached his hand out.
“What’s up?” I locked my hands together. It was insane how safe this nigga felt. I ain’t like that shit. He thought we was cool.
“I see lil mama sleeping, so I won’t bother her.”
“As if you could.” I chalked up. “What’s up, nigga? What you need?” I asked, frustrated at his intrusion on our day.
“I wanted to holla at you real quick,” Que replied.
“Me and Scarlett will meet you at the car, bae,” Crimson interjected, catching the attention of the friend.
“Where you going, beautiful?” he asked.
“Aye, nigga, don’t speak to my woman. Pay attention to the bitch on your arm. Fuck you talking to my girl for?” He bellowed.
“Just greeting the lady. It’s a problem?”
“Shit, it can be. Fuck you mean?” I stepped up to him.
“Hollon.” Que stepped between us. “I just wanted to holla at you real quick.”
“Later, I’m with my family,” I replied confidently, eliciting a smirk from Que.
And with that, I turned to walk away. I don’t know what the fuck he wanted, or why he thought I was on board with it, but I killed that shit real fast. I couldn’t stand that nigga, and I was just waiting to take his ass out. What irked me as well was his disrespect and disregard for women. I could have sworn he was married. Every time I saw that clown, he had a new bitch on his arm. And they were all so clueless, thinking they hit the jackpot, when they were signing up to be part of his circus.
Furthermore, I didn’t like the effect he had on Crimson. She didn’t say nothing the entire ride back. A perfect day went down the drain because of his clown ass. When we got back to the loft, I dropped my keys on the hardwood floor, and Crimson nearly jumped out of her skin as if she heard a gun go off.
“What’s wrong with you? You’ve been jittery since we left the Taste.”
“I think I just need a shower, I’m tired.” She lied as she took Scarlett out of the stroller and placed her on the couch.
“Talk to me, Red.”
“Que. The uh, the guy that was with him. I’m pretty sure he’s the one who robbed the bank.”
