Page 63 of I Need It

I took a deep breath again and decided to respond. Hey. Thank you.

I slid my phone back into my pocket and made my way to my baby. Before I could sit though, I saw AJ walking through the patio door. I smiled slightly as Rylan and Jakari froze. He looked just like J and our dad, so there was no mistaking who he was. I wanted to believe that we’d all forgotten he even existed.

When Avery went to court and was convicted, he wasn’t born yet. My mama surely wasn’t trying to have a relationship with his mother. He came to me and smiled. I’d gotten Mya to get his number from his sister so I could invite him. His sister had finally told him what went down and had somehow gotten Mya’s number to tell her about it. He went off on his mother and moved out to live with his sister. He’d also distanced himself from Avery. I hated that they had kept that shit from him.

When I reached out, he was extremely receptive and looking to establish a relationship with his brothers. Of course, I’d talked to my mama beforehand to make sure she wouldn’t be uncomfortable. She’d smiled big and hugged me tight. She said she expected Rylan to be the one to do that, not me. But since my talks with Karima and Serita, I had to put things into perspective. AJ didn’t have shit to do with any of that. Just like us, he was born to a fucking pedophile.

I shook his hand and brought him over to Jakari and Rylan. Before I could even introduce him, J said, “My fucking twin. What’s up? I’m Jakari, the oldest.”

They shook hands. “I’m Avery, but these days, I prefer being called AJ.”

J hugged him, and then Rylan did the same. “I’m Rylan, the youngest of the three of us. Nice to meet you, man.”

AJ nodded then turned to me. “Thanks for inviting me. My sister went to Beaumont to shop until I was ready.”

I nodded as my mama approached. His eyes widened at the sight of her. I knew that he knew who she was because I looked like her. When she got closer, she wrapped her arms around him and kissed his cheek. He was dark complexioned, but his face turned red. I chuckled at how flustered he was.

“It’s nice to meet you, baby. Welcome to our family.”

He hugged her tighter, and I couldn’t help but admire my mother and how gracious of a woman she was. Taking him in as her own… a son of her ex-husband… a child who was conceived while they were still married. She was amazing. When he pulled away, he asked, “What’s your name?”

“Mama.”

AJ broke down as he fell against her. I took a deep breath and hugged both of them. Jakari and Rylan joined us. I could see Mya snapping pictures with her phone as she and her dad looked on. When we pulled apart, my mama wiped AJ’s cheeks.

He quickly did so too. “I’m sorry… Mama. I didn’t mean to break down on you. I just… after everything I know now, it felt like I no longer had a family, other than my sister, Amelia. Going from thinking you had the world to being enlightened with the truth is messed up. It’s a tough journey. I know it’s the past, and maybe I’ll get over it, but it feels good to know I have people I can lean on while I work through my issues.”

My mama leaned against him and hugged him around his waist.

“Okay, everybody! It’s time to eat!” Aunt Tiff yelled. “And y’all hurry up because I’m anxious to see if this baby is a boy or girl.”

My mama laughed and grabbed AJ’s hand to lead him to the food. Everything was set out buffet style. I turned to Mya to see she was standing from her seat and yelled, “I got it, baby.”

She nodded and smiled then sat back down. When I turned back to go fix our plates, I nearly ran into Karima. “No, you don’t. I got it. It’s already fixed. Go sit by your baby.”

I chuckled and headed back to the table to do as she said. When I sat next to Mya, she smiled. “Thank you, Karima!”

It seemed as if Mya went deaf after Karima set that plate in front of her. I chuckled, watching her salivate over the barbequed sausage, chicken, and venison, along with the rice dressing, baked beans, green beans, and potato salad. I wanted to fuck with her and take her plate before she could start eating, but I knew baby girl would literally try to fuck me up if I did.

By the time we were done eating and had greeted everybody that showed up, Uncle Jasper came over with a hunting rifle. “Since we like to hunt and shit, I thought we could use this. You just have to shoot at that target in the pasture, and the color will splatter all over it. What you hoping for?”

“I don’t know. I don’t guess it matters. I’m just happy I get to be a father.”

“I feel you on that, man. Well, go on over there before Tiffany has a fit.”

I chuckled as I glanced back at her. She was standing there with her hands on her hips, watching us. I tilted my head so Mya could join me. “You want me to hold it with you?”

“Naw, baby. The power may take your shoulder off. I just want you next to me.”

“Oh. Well, you must be a good shot if they got you shooting a target.”

“Mm hmm. You ’bout to find out.”

She smiled and fixed her eyes on the target as I lifted the gun. Everyone else was doing the same, anxious to see what we would be having. I lowered the gun. “You know, I think we gon’ wait.”

“Nigga, if you don’t shoot that gun, I’m gon’ shoot yo’ ass,” Aunt Tiff said.

I chuckled as I lifted the gun once again. Instead of fucking with them again, I went ahead and shot out the target. When pink covered it and pink powder filled the air, I smiled big. After laying my rifle on the ground, I turned to Mya and picked her up.

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