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“Nah, I don’t feel right leaving all them on you. Zee be chilling by himself but he gets hyper with his brother. We might as well go to Chuck E. Cheese or something.”

“Yayyyy! Chuck E. Cheeses!” Zee did a lil dancey dance in his seat.

“Ooouu yes,” I said excitedly as I thought of their pizza, hot wings, and salad bar. “I love their food. What time are we going to go?”

“Maybe around 3 or 4. I’ma shoot my mama a text right now and tell her to start getting the kids together,” he said while unlocking his phone. I watched his energy shift within seconds.

“What’s going on?” I asked.

He glanced up. “Huh?”

“You looked annoyed.”

“It’s nothing you need to worry about.”

“Let me decide that.”

“Nah, I can handle it.”

“It must be work related?” I guessed.

“Uhhh…” he hesitated. “Fuck it, you might end up seeing it anyway.” He got up and walked over to me. He handed me his phone before returning back to the table.

The group chat with his sisters was opened and Aneesah had sent screen shots from Naz’s IG story five minutes ago. She’d evidently gone on a rant because it was nothing but black screens with white words. I instantly knew she was addressing Armias’ IG post from the night before. Before I went to sleep last night I scrolled through the comments and I saw nothing but support from family and friends. I reposted one of the pictures to my story and went to sleep. When I woke up this morning Dream had sent me a screenshot from Lyss’ IG story. She wrote “Having a baby for somebody else’s nigga is not a flex. Cute pictures tho!” Then Kayla commented on the story “No fr!!! Cause what was that supposed to prove? I hope that man’s gf beats her ass since she wanna be cute.” I laughed that off and didn’t even bother hoping on IG to respond. As much as my mom aggravated me last night, she was right about one thing, I didn’t need to engage with those hoes anymore. I literally didn’t have a real reason to be arguing with them. Kayla had obviously been on some weird shit with my ex, but he was my ex for a reason. I wasn’t pressed about Kenny or who he’d chosen to move on with. I was just happy his loser ass had stopped bothering me. My cousin siding with a bitch who had secret animosity towards me was hurtful, but it was painfully clear that Lyss felt the same way about me. She had obviously stopped caring for me a while ago and that’s why she was eager to beef with me over her bird ass friend. I was done fussing with them online, but if they wanted to bring smoke my way in real life then it was up.

I thought Naz would be the one to start popping her shit immediately after the pictures were posted, but checking her page became an afterthought to me with the night I had. Even when I woke up this morning she wasn’t on my mind, and that there was another sign from the universe that she was a non-factor. Based on the time stamp on the story, she had posted around 3 AM. I thoroughly examined all the screenshots and by the end I was amazed at the things people would say to save face on the internet.

Screenshot 1: I’m just getting inside from Treehouse & y’all keep sending me them pictures. Y’all probably sending it in y’all broke ass group chats bc I know half the hoes in this city can’t stand me. Bitches from the same hood as me that be dick riding are up under that post with heart eyes and shit, lmao. Y’all think y’all got some tea on the queen but y’all really got PISS!!!! My man told me the truth second he got those DNA results like the real nigga he is and I told him to take care of his business like the real bitch I am! I know y’all hoes wouldn’t understand bc y’all men be lying to y’all and living double lives like Hannah Montana.

Screenshot 2: It’s y’all really thinking I’ma be in my feelings over a maternity shoot. I would’ve thought he proposed to somebody or something the way y’all weird hoes is acting. Mind you, he also told me he was doing the maternity shoot! ALI TELLS ME EVERYTHING!!! I’ll never be in the dark with him bc he lets me know what’s up.

Screenshot 3: Now it’s bitches saying I’m accepting the fact that my nigga had a baby on me, lmao. Y’all heauxs are fans!!! Y’all don’t know shit! Y’all just sitting at home trying to figure out my life. Well let me tell y’all the real…he got that young lady pregnant during the spring. I was in jail and very much single! I didn’t get with Ali until I came home, but iykyk…we’ve been in each other’s lives since been and that will never change. Idc who he has a baby with. And nobody can refute anything that I’m saying because it’s facts. Now screenshot and send this.

Someone would have had to put a gun to my head for me to have posted any of that embarrassing shit. She was bragging about staying with a man who had willingly created a life somewhere else. If what they shared meant that much to him then he would’ve made things official with her a long time ago. She was right though, no one could refute the things she was saying because it was from her pov. I wasn’t about to argue with another woman about how I thought a man felt about her. At the end of day I was only making educated assumptions based on the information that was available to me. The only thing I needed Armias to do was cut her off. She may have not been willing to leave him alone, but he was going to leave her alone if he wanted to be with me. I didn’t do love triangles.

“I’ma fix this, Lourdes.”

I glanced up at him and he appeared to be on the edge of his seat. I guess he thought I was going to go off at any second, but I wasn’t getting myself worked up over this. I’d opened my legs last night knowing he still had lingering situations with other women. Naz was undeniably the most invested, but as I scrolled through his i-message thread I counted three girls that were in consistent rotation.

“Are you sure you want to be with me? I wouldn’t want to tie you down or restrict you from doing your thing.”

His face scrunched up and it looked like he wanted to say a lot, but he glanced at Zee who was eating and watching his iPad. He wiped his hands with his napkin and threw it on his empty plate before getting up from the table. He walked over to the living room and sat right next to me on the couch. He wasted no time telling me what was on his mind in a hushed but stern tone.

“Say, go ‘head with that dumb shit, Lourdes. I never wanted to be set free from you in the first place. None of the girls in my phone can say that we share anything meaningful or deep because I laid my cards on the table for them. Kind of how I did with you the first night we met. I don’t go around playing with people’s hearts and making them feel special.”

“I would believe you if Naz didn’t exist. She’s talking real tough on IG like you just can’t leave her alone. She’s obviously ready to put up with whatever you throw her way as long as she has access to you. I can’t compete with a doormat, baby.”

“Who said you had to compete with her or anybody else?” His eyes bulged. “Look, if you tryna find a way out then let me know but don’t use Naz as an excuse. If being with somebody I could walk all over impressed me then I would’ve made Naz my girlfriend years ago. And yea, I did give her false hope when she got out of jail. I was in this weird place where I resented and missed you at the same time. I was getting on myself for giving you the world without really knowing you like that when I’ve known Naz for years and gave her nothing but hard dick.”

“Then go give her more,” I snapped.

“Let me finish,” he held his hand up. “I was lying to myself and trying my hardest to forget about you. I was trying to duplicate what we had and I quickly learned that was impossible. Naz or nobody else is you and can make me feel how you do. My heart knows what it wants, so this ain’t bouta be a situation where I’m back and forth between y’all.”

“Oh, I knew that already,” I huffed. “So what are you going to do about her? She called you last night and this morning. She also texted and asked if you could come over.”

“You went through my phone?” He asked like he was shocked, but he started laughing a few seconds later. “Nevermind, of course you did. And my dumb ass just handed it to you without even thinking about it.”

“I know, I couldn’t believe it,” I giggled even though I thought that was such a green flag.