Page 125 of A Kingpin's Weakness
The whole crew of siblings was deep. I liked that about them. It reminded me how powerful sibling bonds could be. King and Dee Their bond was real. E, Alden, Ivan, Iva, and Balbir… their bond was unmatched. I wanted that for S3 him and his sibling, locked in like that. A lifetime kind of loyalty.
I looked over at Stormi again, her hand resting on her belly, smiling at a gift someone had just given her. My chest warmed.
We built this A real family, and I wasn’t letting nothing not people, not history, not even myself get in the way of that.
“Okay, everybody it’s time to find out the gender!”
Ari’s voice rang through the mic, and the whole room buzzed with excitement.
“Can we have the parents to the front?”
I reached for Stormi’s hand and kissed her knuckles before leading her to the stage. She looked up at me with that mix of nerves and joy that made my chest tight. Her bump was poppin’, and her glow was unreal my baby was carrying life, and I still woke up every day wondering how I got lucky enough to call her mine.
“Boy, was keeping this secret hard!” Ari laughed, mic in hand. “I had to avoid Seth these past few weeks like my life depended on it.”
“I knew you was dodging me,” I said, grinning. “Ain’t no way somebody work that much.”
The whole crowd cracked up, just how I knew they would.
“Okay! Where’s S3, Ms. Jo, and Ms. Serena? We need y’all up here too.”
Stormi’s mom walked up first and pulled her daughter into a hug. Seeing them like that, tight, connected, healing… I couldn’t lie, it hit me in the chest. Jo had been showing up for Stormi in ways she never had before. They talked every day. Started therapy together. Rebuilt, brick by brick. I respected the hell outta that.
My mom came up next and stood on my side, smiling at me like she already knew what color smoke was about to fill the sky.
Ari positioned us. S3 stood between Stormi and me, tall and proud like he already knew he was getting promoted to bigbrother. Jo flanked Stormi, my mom beside me. The camera crew moved closer, lenses pointed right at us.
“Okay, family. It’s time.”
“Wait, wait, let the goddaddy get to the front!” Rich pushed through the crowd, grill shining like always.
“Man, you not the only goddaddy,” Southside called out.
“Yeah, the real goddaddy right here,” RJ said, posting up right next to Ari. I looked over and squinted. “Let me find out she told you the gender.”
“Hell naw,” RJ laughed. “She kept this one tight.”
“Alright, goddaddies, calm down,” Ari said with a smirk. “Stormi. Seth. Y’all ready?”
I looked at my girl and she nodded, her hand squeezing mine.
“Let’s count it down, fam!”
Everyone joined in. “ONE… TWO… THREE!” We twisted the cannons.
BOOM.
Blue smoke exploded into the air. Fireworks lit up behind us in bright, electric blue. And just like that, I could finally breathe again. Another son. Another king. My legacy doubled in real time. Stormi turned and looked at me, her smile soft and full of something that hit me right in the soul. I pulled her into my arms and kissed her neck.
“Thank you,” I whispered in her ear.
She leaned into me, eyes shining. “You owe me a daughter.”
“I got you. Soon as you heal, we goin’ for her.”
We laughed into each other’s embrace.
“I love you,” I said, forehead pressed to hers.
