Page 2 of Still Made For You

We got ready to head out after Loyal and our dad got their measurements. Since it was still early, we decided to grab a bite to eat. It felt good to unwind with the people who loved me the most.

“Yo, Pops almost blew a gasket when he found those keys in that damn coffee pot! I would have taken that shit to the grave if it hadn’t been for Justice’s snitch ass.”

Loyal had us hollering in the restaurant as we reminisced about old times. We were good kids overall, but we did some funny ass shit.

“Man, I was hot as fish grease. Your mama was trying to convince me I’d somehow misplaced my keys, but I knew one of y’all badass kids had got me.” I laughed so hard tears welled in my eyes.

“I figured if you didn’t have your keys, you would have no choice but to stay.” Loyal shrugged his shoulders. I remembered that day so vividly in my mind. My father worked tirelessly, and often, he’d be too tired to spend time with us throughout the week. He’d promised to play with us when the weekend rolled around, but he’d made plans with the fellas. Loyal and Wise devised a plan to hide his keys so he couldn’t leave; he had no choice but to play with us.

Being the youngest, I went along with it because they were my brothers. When we heard him coming down the hall, Loyal dumped his keys in the coffee pot before we all took off running. We thought our plan would go off without a hitch until he immediately accused us of touching them. He was wrong, but we’d hoped our plan worked. Wise and Loyal were solid, not uttering a word about where the keys were. Unfortunately, I hadn’t acquired my skills for lying, so as soon as he applied pressure, I cracked like an egg.

“It’s one of my favorite memories because I thought for sure we were getting a whuppin’ that night, but instead, Pops pulled out that water gun and lit our asses up,” Wise recalled. I nodded in agreement that it was also one of my favorite memories. Our Queen was so angry by the time we got done having an all-out water gun battle in the house. It was one of the best days because he still stayed with us.

We laughed the whole night, even during the clean-up process. Mama cooked us a big dinner, and we all sat around the table as a family. As Pops said earlier, it’s the little things that matter. I knew no matter what happened, I always had them to fall back on. They were the core of who I am.

“What time are we leaving for the game?” Loyal asked.

“We can leave at five. They get out of school early today.”

We were taking the boys to the championship game tomorrow night. Since it was out of state, we decided to make it a boys’ trip and drive there. Messiah’s team didn’t make it, but one of Cayden’s favorite teams had advanced to the finals. I hadn’t told him we were going because I wanted it to be a surprise. He was sixteen now, and he made me proud every day. Although he was going through the usual growing pains of a teenager, he was responsible. He got a job at fifteen, and they were already trying to promote him.

I’m proud of the man he’s becoming because I can see him coming into his own. Ciyani was an emotional mess about him dating, but it’s all a part of life. I’ve given him all of the talks and tools I know, and now it’s up to him whether he takes heed to the advice.

He wanted to take his girlfriend out on a date a few weeks ago, so Ciyani and I made it a double date to the movies and dinner. We let them sit at the very bottom while we sat at the top level. As soon as the movie was over, I asked Ciyani about the volcano scene, and she told me it was great. The only problem was there was no damn volcano. My poor fiancée watched those kids like a hawk, most of the night. Truthfully, there was no need because Cayden behaved like the perfect gentleman.

He struggled to express his emotions at times, but the smile on his face when he walked her to her door told me he really cared for her. I remember those times; even if it was nothing more than puppy love, it still mattered. Creating a safe space for them to communicate was the main objective. A lot of times, teenagers sneak out because they feel as though their voices aren’t being heard. Although I know we’ll never agree on everything, I hoped that they would always feel comfortable enough to come to me no matter what.

“Alright, bet. I’m going to slide home and take a nap before we leave. You know, this parenting thing is exhausting as hell. Tru’s loose-neck butt thinks it’s okay to be up early as hell. I’m sick of seeing her big, bright eyes ready to play at four a.m. I’m about to start putting some sleepy time tea in her bottle.” I chuckled, shaking my head at him.

“Leave my niece alone. She knows the early bird gets the worm.” Messiah and Rule expressed the same issues with their children, which almost made me want to put off having children even longer. I valued my sleep more than anything.

“Fuck the bird and the worm. I’m too damn fine to walk around with mothafuckin’ bags under my eyes. I stopped by CVS to grab an energy drink, and this little old lady patted me on the back and said, ‘Hang in there, buddy.’ Man, I felt so judged that I wanted to knock her little walker over. Tru’s got people out here thinking I’m on my last leg.” I laughed so hard my stomach started hurting.

“She probably went into an immediate prayer for you. Got you on the sick and shut-in list, too. Damn, bro,” Wise teased him, causing him to flick him off.

“My grandbaby is an angel when she’s with me. Maybe you just don’t have the touch.” Dad gloated, knowing damn well all of the kids loved him.

“Well, since she’s such an angel, I’ll pack her brand-new luggage bag so she can come stay with you.”

“Yeah, right. Have you forgotten about the way you cut up when she stayed over while the two of you went out of town for your birthday? I almost needed to block you because of how many times you called my phone.” We’d learned to tune Loyal out whenever he complained about Tru because we all knew how obsessed he was with her. Tru was a daddy’s girl through and through.

“Exactly. Janae and I kept her last month, and Lo acted as if we’d kidnapped her. Sending us video chat requests every hour like a damn stalker. Meanwhile, baby girl wasn’t thinking about that man.”

“First off, fuck you. My lil’ baby loves her daddy. I’m trying to relax y’all, but it’s not as easy as I thought it would be. Tyeis says I’m a level three clinger, but it’s hard not to be. Tru is my baby girl, you know? I feel like no one can protect her or keep her safe the way I do. Logically, I’m aware that this isn’t true, but I’m struggling. Ty wants to put her in daycare full-time, but I’m not cool with it. I’ve got Jett running background checks on them as we speak. If they even thought about snorting a line of coke, I need to know about it.”

“Seek therapy, bro. At some point, you’re going to have to let go and allow her to explore. Tyeis wants to go back to work full-time, so unless you plan on giving up your career, daycare sounds like the best option for you all. Plus, you’re acting as if she won’t be at a family-operated daycare. I’m there almost every day, not to mention we have cameras throughout the building. She’ll be fine.” I understood his reservations, being that Tru was his baby. However, the time apart would be good for them.

“So, you’re saying I’m the problem?”

“We don’t lie to each other, so you know I’m not going to spare your feelings. It’s time for you to loosen the reins a little. If you’re really struggling, they offer a service where the staff sends pictures and videos to all the parents. It’s mainly new mothers who use it, but it’s available for fathers as well.”

“Thanks, Bro. Even though I feel like you’re judging me right now.” I smiled, thinking about how tickled our Queen would be to see her son in daddy mode. Loyal was always the one least likely to have children, so the fact that he was married with children was mind-blowing. I knew she’d be somewhere, smiling from ear to ear.

“Alright, fellas, I’m going to get out of here. I have a few errands I need to run for your granny, and then I have a dinner engagement I need to get ready for.” The way he spoke caused my eyebrow to raise.

“Are you dating again? You know you don’t need to hide anything from us, right?” We suspected he’s been seeing someone for a while now because when we call him, he’s been out more than usual.

“Do you have a girlfriend, Pops?” Wise inquired. Our father’s face turned beet red, something I’d never witnessed before.

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