Page 97 of Just Listen
“So, I aint supposed to have a life no more, just because I got kids?”
“Mannn,” I drawled. “After finally experiencing what being a father feels like…I feel that if your life don’t drastically shift, after having a baby, then you aint committed to being a parent. You aint supposed to live the way you lived, before having kids. And if that’s how you wanna do it, then wrap it up, nigga.”
“Yeah, okay, nigga. I guess we just gotta agree to disagree. If you ask me, you just pussy whipped for the time being. Shit, and if I was in your shoes, fucking a Braxton girl, then I might be singing a different tune too. Cause lil’ mama is badder than a muthafucka. On a lot of niggas’ wish list too. So, I salute you for that.”
“Yeah.” I absently stroked my goatee, as my mind drifted to Jaylah. I had been gone most of the day, and I’d sent a couple of texts that she hadn’t responded to.
If I had to guess, she had a little attitude. The night before, I came in at like five in the morning. I thought that she would’ve been sleeping, but she was wide awake, and had mentioned that she didn’t like the hours I was keeping. We went back and forth about it, but I remained firm on the point that my hours were unpredictable, and I couldn’t always commit to coming in by a certain time. After that, she really didn’t have a rebuttal, and maybe I had prematurely assumed that we’d gotten past that.
To go all day without hearing from her wasn’t the norm. We’d always check in throughout the day, however, today had been different. And now, I was thinking about the statement she’d made, right before we both fell asleep.
“You know.” She’d rolled over in bed to face me. “Paisley would call and vent about y’all problems all the time. One of thebiggest issues she had with you was the lack of time you had for her. I told her to meet you wherever you were at…but that was because I wasn’t in her situation. So, it was easy for me to tell her to practice patience that I didn’t even have. And now, you should know that I aint her. Which means that when I don’t like something, you’ll feel it. Trust me.”
“I probably need to head in a little early tonight,” I thought aloud. “Cause she a lil’ mad at me.”
PJ was now scrolling through his phone. “Head home for what?”
I yawned again. “To kick it with my family, nigga.”
He smirked. “You must be talking about the baby, cause ole girl is outside.”
I frowned. “The fuck is you talking about?”
“Ya gal, nigga. Jaylah is in the club, with some good fucking knees.”
“What?” I hooded my eyes.
“I’m following this broad named Talia. She must run with Jaylah nem, cause they’re all in a section together, cutting up.”
“Let me see.”
He nodded, before scrolling and tapping, and then handing his phone to me. The back of my neck grew hot, as I watched Jaylah drop it low and twerk for ole girl’s camera. She was really throwing that ass, while everybody hyped her up. Then she had the audacity to stand upright, before seductively gazing into the camera, while biting her fucking finger.
“Mannn,” I drawled, while tapping to report that bitch’s story. And then I commented on the story from PJ’s page:
Say take this bullshit down! ASAP! Before I air that muthafucka out! ~Malice
“Here.” I handed PJ’s phone back, before grabbing my own to call Jaylah’s ass. “She got me fucked up.”
Jaylah
Glancing around, I took in the scenery. We were in the club, and had been there since five that evening, and were having a blast. My cousins and a couple of friends had called me about going to a day party, and with a little chip on my shoulder, I immediately agreed to pull up. With Malice around, my social life had tremendously shifted, and clubbing hadn’t been a priority of mine. However, after seeing how ole boy was beginning to get comfortable, and coming in at all hours of the night, I felt like I needed to rethink some shit.
When I was with Zae, him staying out late was never really an issue. Not that he didn’t do it, it was just that I didn’t care. Hell, I loved running the streets, and would often be out late myself. Naturally, me having Khari had slowed some things down, but with the support system I had in place, there was nothing preventing me from going out regularly. I had just been chilling, feeling out my relationship with Malice, but perhaps I was taking things too seriously, with a certified street nigga.
Yeah, Malice swore up and down that he was ready to be with me. But I never claimed that I wanted to be with someone who lived that unorthodox type of lifestyle. When a man was doing business in the streets, it seemed like there was no way to create healthy boundaries. He could come in whenever or be unreachable, all in the name of hustling, and I was quicklyrealizing that it wasn’t going to work for me. Especially not when my heart was at stake.
I think that Zae was getting away with so much in our relationship, because I ultimately just didn’t give a damn. With Malice, I paid attention to everything. Everything affected me…and sometimes it felt like I was wearing my heart on my sleeve. I was so sensitive, and whenever my feelings were hurt, then I reacted.
That’s why I was in the club, popping this pussy. I know that it was childish of me, but oh well. If that nigga wasn’t pressed to make it in at a decent hour, then I needed to make sure that I wasn’t at home, waiting on his ass.
“Come on, Jaylah, take another shot,” Tootie encouraged, as she held up a bottle Don Julio.
“Now, girl, you know that I didn’t Uber here today, so I gotta slow it down,” I told her, before I felt my phone buzzing in my Goyard handbag. “Hold up.”
Reaching down, I opened the flap of my bag to grab my phone. Peering down, I realized that Malice was calling.
“Pssh.” I rolled my eyes, before pressing reject.
