Page 37 of Haze
“Aye, man. She gonna be okay,” Haze said, alarm evident in his tone.
Devyn laughed through her tears. “I know. I know. Ignore me. I’m just emotional.”
“I get it, man. Hazel got a way of pulling emotion out of niggas, huh?” Haze joked.
“That she does. She’s so loved.” Devyn agreed as she glanced back at their daughter.
Hazel smiled at her happily, which melted Devyn’s heart.
“Look, why don’t you leave ya people’s number with my mom so she can call them if she needs anything. We a village now, so it’s only right they know how to get in touch with each other in the event that we aren’t close by.”
Devyn nodded, the weight on her heart lifting slightly. “That’s a good idea.”
“I have a few of those from time to time,” Haze replied with a crooked grin.
For the rest of the ride, they sat in comfortable silence. When they pulled up to a cute home in a nice neighborhood, Devyn breathed a sigh of relief. She had no clue where his people lived or how they might be, but this felt like a really good start. Devyn could picture Hazel playing outside on the porch or front lawn safely, which meant the world to her.
Haze opened her door for her and then got Hazel out of the car.
“Can I hold her?” Devyn asked with an ache in her heart. It was going to be hard for her to leave Hazel.
“Of course,” Haze said. He handed Hazel over and walked them toward the front door. Devyn snuggled Hazel the entire way.
Before they could reach the first step on the porch, the door swung open.
“Mama! They’re here!” Kyomi shouted. Her smile was a mile wide, and tears immediately fell from her eyes. “She is so cute.”
“Here she go,” Haze joked.
“Shut up, Henry,” Kyomi snapped as they reached the top of the porch. “Hi, Devyn. Hi, Hazel.”
When she said Hazel’s name, her voice cracked. Although Kyomi’s tears didn’t necessarily make Devyn happy, she could see the love in them. Kyomi clearly cared about Hazel a great deal already, which gave Devyn a lot of relief. Her baby would be surrounded by love.
“Hey, Kyomi.” Devyn offered her a small smile.
“Can I hold her?” Kyomi asked as she wiped her tears. “She’s so beautiful.”
“Hazel, this is your auntie Kyomi. Do you want to say hi?” Devyn asked.
Hazel peered at Kyomi for a moment before she reached her arms out to her. Kyomi beamed as she settled Hazel onto her hip and kissed the top of her head.
“She’s literally a doll. Oh my God, I can’t believe I’m an auntie.” Kyomi gushed.
Devyn’s heart ached. She had taken so much away from so many people.
An older version of Kyomi walked out of the house with a big smile on her face. Her eyes zeroed in on Hazel and Kyomi. “There she is. Give me my grandbaby.”
“I just got her, Mama,” Kyomi whined.
“Aht aht. Hand her over,” the woman demanded.
Kyomi reluctantly handed Hazel over, and Hazel beamed at her grandmother. It was like she had been knowing them their whole lives.
“This is exactly what the weekend is going to look like. A whole lot of crying and them fighting over who gets to hold Hazel,” Haze leaned down and whispered in her ear.
Devyn cheered up at that some.
“I’m sorry for being so rude. I’m Charlene, Haze’s mother.” Charlene took a step forward with her hand outstretched.
