Page 82 of All The Smoke
Solomon and his father stood there holding one another’s glare until his father finally nodded and left us there. His motherkept trying to plead her case, but Solomon ignored her. I felt a little bad for her because she was literally begging him but he was acting like it was just the two of us there.
Solo rounded the corner a few minutes later, rubbing his little eyes. His father picked him up and asked if he was good. He confirmed he was then spoke to me before closing his eyes again as he lay on his father’s shoulder. Solomon looked down at me and told me that we were gone before he started for the door and I quickly followed.
“Wait, Kaori.” His mother grabbed my wrist to stop me.
“Now, you know my name?” I asked, pushing her hand off mine.
“Look, my son doesn’t know all of the behind the scenes stuff nor does he understand why I act the way I do…”
Is this lady seriously about to ask me to help her or for sympathy?
I cut her off. “Mrs. Tate, I don’t care. You talked to and treated me horribly only hours ago and now you’re about to ask me to help you in some kind of way?”
“Please, I…”
I didn’t even allow her to finish her statement before turning to leave. I didn’t even recognize her from the first encounter. She seemed so headstrong and confident before, but now she was begging me to help her ass. Solomon must really be her kryptonite.
“I don’t know,he said Mase wants him to mass distribute it.”
“And he doesn’t want to?”
“He’s unsure.” I sighed. “I just want him to think about it, but I also don’t want him to think I’m getting in his business.”
Solomon had a meeting with Mase about the wax he made. According to what he told me, Mase had been asking him for a while to sell in not only his Crescent Falls location of High Timez, but in all of his stores and potentially other places. I thought it was a great idea, especially considering it was legal. I wouldn’t have to worry about him being in any kind of trouble or worse, away from our child.
“Why are you concerned, Kaori?” my mother asked as we took a seat at the table close to the park Solo was playing in.
Solomon asked if it was cool for him to stay with me while he went to meet with his people. I told him yes, of course, and when my mother found out I had him, she wanted to take him out. Even though she and my father only had me, they loved children so she was stoked to find out there was already a child here for her to spoil before we had Silas.
I shrugged. “I don’t know. I just want him to have some kind of legitimate business and part of me wants him out of the streets. Like he can still be a part of the business but just with the legal side.”
“KK, Smoke is not your father.”
“I know that.”
She smiled. “Do you? Because if I know you, then I know you’re worried the same thing that happened to him will happen to Smoke.”
“I mean a little,” I admitted. “I had Daddy my whole childhood, but I’d be lying if I said it still didn’t affect me and my everyday life when we lost him.” Reaching across the table, she grabbed my hand and gave it a gentle, reassuring squeeze. “I know I still have him, but I wish he was here. I’m about to have his first grandchild,his grandson, and he isn’t here.”
Holding my tears at bay was impossible. I was normally able to keep my emotions intact but being pregnant made it impossible. I was used to having both of my parents wheneverI wanted them, even when they lived in Georgia and me in CF, they came running.
“What would he say to you right now, Kaori?”
“I know, Mama, but?—”
She cut me off. “What would he tell you?”
“Be strong, be beautiful, be fearless. I only survive off of your strength.” I sniffled.
He had been telling me that since I was a little girl. He didn’t expect me to never cry or show emotion, he just didn’t want me to be vulnerable to other people. My father was a protector through and through and he always told me he would crash out if anyone ever hurt me. I couldn’t have that so I always held my own.
“That’s right, and you know that I’m doing everything in my power to get him home, so don’t worry about that.”
“I know.” I sniffled again. “Sorry, I just miss him. This whole thing is scary and I just want to have you both here with me when the time comes for me to have him.”
“Let me handle that.” She winked. “And when Solomon goes to see your father, we’ll have him talk to him about the business side of things.”
My father had finally gotten his privileges reinstated so Solomon was going to visit him next weekendwithoutme, per my father’s request. I didn’t want that at all and had been very vocal about it, but Kadeem Randall wasn’t budging. According to him, he needed to have a talk with the little nigga that had gotten his baby girl pregnant with no distractions.
