Page 41 of Hood Legacy

“Keep her suburban ass sleep, then,” Pop mumbled. I looked up to see his eyes closed and a smile on his face. “She good people, but I ain’t trying to share my woman with another person right now. It's bad enough yo ass in here right now.”

“You a hater,” I laughed. “And I’ma tell Point Guard you called her suburban.”

“She ain’t gonna believe you,” he replied with a shrug. “She likes my ghetto ass for some reason.”

“Shit beyond me,” I said, closing my eyes and getting comfortable.

“It’s cuz I’m a hood nigga, and the good girls love hood niggas,” he answered.

I climbedout of the bed and looked around the room. When we returned from swimming with the rays, I showered and told Aceyn I wanted to take a quick nap. I was fast asleep by the time he’d gotten into the shower. I didn’t plan to sleep long, but apparently, I was tired and needed rest. I went to the bathroom, peed, and handled my hygiene.

“Took you long enough to wake up,” Aceyn said when I entered the living room. He was stretched out on the couch in ball shorts and a tank top.

“I didn’t mean to sleep that long,” I yawned, and he waved me off. I tried to walk past him, but he grabbed the hem of my shorts and pulled me to him. I climbed onto him and rested my head on his chest. “Are you hungry?”

“Yeah, the food is on the way,” he answered. I rested my chin on his chest and stared up at him. His eyes were red and puffy like he’d been crying.

“What’s wrong?” I brushed my thumb over his bottom lip.

“Nothing,” he answered. I twisted my mouth because I didn’t believe him, and I sat up.

“Aceyn,” I sighed. “I can tell from how you sound and look that you’re lying. What’s wrong?”

“I’m cool,” he laughed and smiled, but the smile didn’t reach his eyes. “Now, stop trippin’ and enjoy your vacation.”

“Is it Mercy?” I panicked and stood. “Or something with the team?”

He sat up and grabbed my wrist to stop me from pacing. “Point Guard, Mercy, and the team are cool. Stop trippin’.”

“Then, why do you look like you’ve been crying?” I looked down at him and lifted my brow. “Your eyes are low.”

“They are always low,” he chuckled and shook his head. “They have been like that my entire life.”

“Lower than normal,” I sighed. “And red and swollen.” I pulled my wrist from his grip and crossed my arms. “Just tell me what’s wrong.” I didn’t know what I could do, but I would try my hardest to fix his problem.

“I ain’t ready to talk about it yet,” he said, shaking his head. “But understand, when I am, you’re the first person I’m coming to, okay?” he pulled my shorts to make me come stand between his legs.

“You sure?” I asked, and he nodded. “Alright.” He rested his head on my stomach, and we stood there for a while. I would respect his wishes and not hound him about whatever bothered him. When he was ready, I would hear whatever he had to say.

The doorbell rang, and Aceyn sighed before he stood, making me step back. He kissed my forehead and then patted my side for me to move. I stepped out of his way, and he walked to the door and pulled it open. A woman pushed a cart into the room and quickly exited after Aceyn tipped her.

“I didn’t know what you had the taste for, so I ordered a few different things,” he said, pushing the cart into the living room.

“Can we sit out on the terrace?” I asked as I pointed outside. “It's pretty out there, and I don’t want to waste too much time indoors.”

“Yeah,” he answered, then pushed the cart outside. He pulled a chair out, then sat and pulled me into his lap. “I’on want you too far.”

“Okay,” I replied, taking the lids off the plates to see what he’d ordered. Aceyn wasn’t as adventurous as I was when it came to food, so he went with what he knew and ate a burger and fries while I had Lawar. We ate in silence, enjoying the peacefulness of our surroundings.

“You full?” he asked after we were done eating. I nodded, and he sat back, pulling me with him. “You excited for the season to start?”

“More nervous than excited,” I answered, and I felt him chuckle.

“The fuck you nervous for, Point Guard?” he inquired, and I shrugged. “Nah, talk to me. What’s got you questioning your ability? Because I don’t think you realize how amazing you are on the court. Ever since Pyrite announced his lineup yesterday, the net has been buzzing. When we talked earlier, he said your jersey has sold out already. The fans are hyped to see you and Mercy back together on the court.”

“Which is a part of my fear,” I laughed. “Mercy and I were amazing in college; I can't deny that. We have four championship rings to prove it, too, but I don’t want the fans to have this expectation of us being those same young girls.”

“They don’t,” he said, shaking his head. “They expect to see two grown-ass women with amazing chemistry on the court play together again. Like you said, y’all were amazing then, but now?” he kissed my cheek. “Baby, y’all about to be phenomenal.”

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