Page 8 of Love You Like That

Then I did the most and hit the corner store for a bottle of red wine and a small-ass cheese board they sold in the fridge section. I didn’t even eat cheese like that but it looked like a date move. Yavanni had me acting like I hadn’t been heartless since a youngin’.

T h eU b e rr i d ewas quiet. My driver didn’t say shit, just the way I liked it. I didn't drive and it wasn't that I couldn't. After everything went down with my eye and shit, I chose not to. Maybe that would change over time. Maybe it wouldn't.

I went to pull up my playlist just as my phone buzzed with a text from this nigga Mekai.

You link with Afro beauty queen yet?

I shook my head, smiling.

Omw to meet her now.

Two seconds later, my phone rang. This nigga was calling me. I answered on the second ring. “What up?”

“Bruh,” he laughed. “You really out here goin’ on dates and shit.”

“Relax.”

“Nah. She got you movin' different already. That's what's up.”

I couldn’t help the laugh. “It’s just a vibe, bro. Chill.”

“I’m hatin’ but lowkey proud.”

I looked down at my phone as a text came through from Yavanni.

Should be there in 15.

My stomach did that thing again. “Aight, I’m gone,” I said. “She on the way.”

Mekai paused. Then, real quiet, he said, “Don’t fuck it up, E.”

I didn’t answer that. I just hung up and sat back, letting that sentence hang in the air.

FlorenceHill Park was peaceful by the time I got there. The waterfall by the stairs was running soft while kids still played in the distance, and old heads playing chess under the trees. East Hollis in the summer had this peace to it if you caught it at the right hour.

I found a shady spot under a tree near the top terrace. Then, I laid out the blanket, set the bottle and cups down and cracked the seal on the cheese. After, I took a minute just to breathe but I kept my eye on the hill though. And when I saw Yavanni?

Fuck.

She floated like some shit out of a dream. She wore a brown halter top that hugged her just right with a cream skirt brushing her ankles. Anklets catching the sun. She had her locs styleddifferently, earrings swaying. Her skin was damn near glowing like she walked through honey before she got there.

I stood up, slowly. Heart doing too much. Eyes locked. She smiled when she spotted me. That soft one. “Hey,” she said, walking into my space like she belonged there.

“Damn,” I murmured, stepping back just enough to look at her fully. “You look… unreal.”

She laughed low. “You trying to out-romance me?”

“I ain’t even started yet.” I held her gaze, then motioned to the blanket. “This cool?”

“It’s perfect,” she said. We sat, legs brushing slightly. I poured the wine and handed her a cup. “You really brought wineandcheese,” she teased.

“I know. I hate myself too.”

She laughed. “It’s cute. Unexpected.”

“You nervous?”

She took a sip. “A little. What am I walking into with you?”

---