Page 13 of Scribbled Excellence

He tittered. “That’s what’s up. You know I love my sister, right?” He waited until I acknowledged his statement to continue. “Kyro, I’m far from some thug nigga or gangsta, but I will knock anyone off behind my sisters. If I can’t do it, I know someone who can get it done.”

I wanted to think that he was joking. The fire in his eyes told me that he was serious. “I respect that. I have no intention of hurting your sister. You have no reason to believe me right now, but you will when we’re at that altar.”

Before he could respond, Tuesday walked into the living room with a notebook clutched under her arm. She looked between me and her brother. “What y’all talking about?”

She shrugged when neither of us answered. We watched her open her notebook and flip to the page that held the sketch that she wanted to show me. With pride, she handed me the notebook.

My eyes bucked at the sketch. It was the perfect complement to the sketch that she created for her brother and sister. “Okay, so if your sister is the lighthouse and August is the voyager, what are you?”

“She’s the harbor. She’s the reason that me and August will always fight to come home. She’s where our story ends and begins anew.” Tomorrow’s voice was soft.

All our attention turned to her.Damn!She was beautiful. The dress that she wore fit her like a glove that I wanted to take the hell off. With her heels on, we might have been the same height. That wasn’t a problem for me at all. “Hey, beautiful.”

My feet moved toward her before my mind told me that they would. It felt like second nature to wrap my arms around her, so that was what I did. She welcomed and returned my hug. Her smile was wide when she pulled back. “You look handsome.”

“Thank you, love.” My body slightly turned to face August and Tuesday, but I didn’t release my hold of Tomorrow. “So, we have the lighthouse, the voyager, and the harbor.” I nodded my head. “That’s dope that you came up with that, Tuesday. I’d be honored to tat you when that time comes.”

Tuesday’s cheeks rose. “Yes! Just to let you know, I know it’s illegal to tat me before I’m eighteen, but if you choose to . . . I won’t tell a soul.”

“Well, good thing it’s not his decision to make whether he will do it or not,” Tomorrow quipped. “August had to wait until he was eighteen, and so do you.”

I made sure to keep my mouth shut in this matter. I was just the tattoo artist here. Even if Tomorrow told her that she couldget it, she wouldn’t have gotten it from me. I was very strict about not tatting anyone that wasn’t supposed to be tatted.

Tuesday rolled her eyes. “Yeah, yeah. You can’t blame a girl for trying. Y’all be safe and have fun. See you tomorrow, Sis.”

See you tomorrow.It was clear Tuesday had high hopes for my date with her sister. She walked toward the back of the apartment before Tomorrow responded to her parting comment.

August shook his head. “Y’all be safe. Kyro, remember what we discussed.”

I chuckled quietly. “I got you. Are you ready to get out of here, love?”

Tomorrow walked over to the entryway table, then picked up her purse. She glanced at the mirror over the table and fussed with her curly hair for a second before she turned to me. “Ready.”

I had something special planned for Tomorrow. I hoped she liked it, and something told me that she would. I curated this evening just for her.

“So, what did you and August talk about? It seems like it might have been an entertaining conversation.” Her eyes were zoned into the side of my head from her place in the passenger seat of my car.

I answered her question but didn’t face her. “We just had a conversation among men. It’s nothing for you to be concerned with, love.”

“Mmm, . . . okay. I’ll let you have that,” she said. “I guess I don’t need to know.”

She said that as if there was another option on the table. It was cute. I felt her eyes still on me. When we came to a stoplight, I glanced at her. “I already knew you were beautiful. Now I know that you’re nosy too.”

When she gasped, I chortled. My hand reached across the center console and landed on her thigh. She gazed down at my hand on her thigh then back at me. The smile gave me the permission I needed to keep my hand there.

About twenty minutes later, we pulled up to the venue for the night.Break The Fourth Wall Art Gallery.Tomorrow’s head snapped in my direction. “What are we doing here? Are they open?”

It was understandable why she’d asked that. The parking lot was empty, and the lights in the building were low. I turned off the engine of my car, then shifted in my seat to face her. “I wanted to do something special for our first date. This will be the first of a lifetime of dates if I project correctly.”

Her focus bounced between me and the art gallery. “I thought this gallery only did private type shows. All their shows are invite only.” Her eyes lit up. “Did you get an invite?”

The excitement in her voice excited me. “You can say that. Let’s get in here.”

After we got out of the car, we walked to the front door. The door immediately opened, and we were greeted. “Good evening, Mr. Goings and Miss Bennett. Welcome toBreak The Fourth Wall.My name is Amanda, and I will be your host tonight.”

Amanda moved to the side so that we could go inside. I allowed Tomorrow to step in first. The perfume that she wore today was head turning. When she gasped with amazement, I knew that I had done the right thing.

The art gallery was in a two-story building that had an open concept. Black art littered the walls and sculptures throughout the floor. The most captivating part of the gallery was toward the back.