Page 74 of All The Smoke
All of us around the table bowed our heads while she prayed over the food then began to dig in. Kaori piled food onto two plates and even added some shit to mine with her greedy ass.
Her grandmother asked a lot of questions about our future plans as parents and as a couple, and we were pretty much able to answer them all effortlessly. Kaori and I both knew we had a lot to learn, especially with her being a new mom, but we would figure it all together.
They also asked questions about my other son and Bri. The questions weren’t really about me and Bri’s personal relationship, but more about how we coparented our son. I had to keep it light and say that shit was smooth unless she was in her feelings and there were times she pissed me off, like the shit with Solo’s cavity, but my kid was always happy. I at least had to thank her for that considering she had him most of the time.
“What about your parents?” Big Mo asked. “Bishop Tate and Jewel?”
“The first lady and Bishop?” Ms. Gladis asked incredulously. “Small world. We attend their church.”
Great.
“Wow, the world really is small,” Ice agreed. “Are you an only child? I don’t remember them ever even talking about kids.”
Shit like this was why I resented my parents. I didn’t know K-Dot and Ice had a kid, but there was a legitimate reason for that.There was absolutely no explanation for why mothafuckas didn’t know my fucking parents didn’t have kids. They weren’t trying to protect us from no street shit or nothing like that. They just truly didn’t give a fuck about anyone but themselves.
“Naw, I got an older brother,” I answered. “He down the road though.”
“Really, where?” Big Mo’s wife asked.
“Diamond Falls Corrections.”
“Oh, you know that’s where my husband is,” Ice responded.
“I told him that, Mama,” Kaori added with a mouth full of food. “I even told him to call daddy’s attorneys to see if they could help.”
Ice nodded then looked at me. “Did they say they could help you?”
“I don’t even know,” I answered honestly. “I spoke to the paralegal up there but never called back.”
She angled her head to the side and asked, “Why not?”
“Yes, why not, babe?” Kaori quizzed. “I figured they were working on it which is why I haven’t asked anything else about it.”
I released a heavy sigh as I shook my head. “To be real, I can’t really afford the seventy five thousand dollar retainer,” I admitted. “I mean, I got the bread, but I also got two kids and a girl to care for on top of making sure my brother keeps food and all the shit he needs. I can’t really afford to kick that out off top.”
“Bryce and Miles will work with you though,” Kaori countered. “They’re practically family to us now and all of the money my parents pay them and the clients they’ve sent their way…”
“KK,” Ice interrupted.
“Sorry,” she sighed, clearly bothered, making me feel bad.
That was a reason I hadn’t said shit to her too. She worried about every fucking thing, even the shit she couldn’t control ordidn’t have shit to do with her. I wanted her to stress free. If I said I couldn’t afford the attorneysright now,because I would be able to one day, she would worry herself to fucking death and blame herself for being pregnant. I couldn’t have all of that going on.
Tossing my arm around the back of her chair, I pulled her close to me and kissed her temple, whispering to her that shit was cool and to relax.
“I’ll take care of the lawyer fees,” Ice said, catching me completely off guard.
“We will,” Ms. Treva added, then looked to her husband. “Right, baby?”
He smiled at her and nodded. “If that’s what you want, babe.”
“Well, it’s settled then.” She beamed, looking my way. “We’ll handle it.”
“I can’t let y’all do that.” I chuckled.
“You can, and you will,” Ms. Gladis added. “Unexpected blessings are God’s way of demonstrating His love for you. He commands us to bear each other’s burdens. We’re told to encourage one another and build each other up.”
All I could hear in my head was my brother’s voice telling me to be obedient. He often told me that I questioned myself and God too much. I didn’t agree because in my mind I never questioned Big G but hearing Ms. Gladis’s words made what he always said make sense. I needed to just allow things to happen and accept the help. My brother deserved it because I knew he was innocent.
