Page 34 of Typa
“Thank you, Maui! I’m still somewhat in shock, because I only quit my birth control a couple of months ago. I shouldn’t have gotten pregnant so fast.”
“Well, I guess Asad’s soldiers were glad to be home, girl.”
She fell out laughing. “You’re a nut!”
I laughed, too, thinking about how our kids would be best friends just like we were. I hoped we both either had girls or boys. Our dads were brothers and best friends first. It would make it more ideal if we had the same sex.
“Besides that, I called to ask if you wanted something from the diner. I know Aunt Vida is out of pocket today.”
“God bless you. Can you bring me some stuffed chicken? I’ve been dying for it. Aunt Vida is a great cook, but I miss Aunt Jen’s and Aunt Chrissy’s cooking.”
She giggled. “I got’chu, boo. I can’t wait to see you. Chas been keeping me busy as hell. By the time I get off, I just wanna go home eat, shower, fuck, and go to sleep.”
I slowly shook my head. One thing I could always count on Ashanni to do was keep it real. She never faked anything with me, and I loved her for that. She always tried to see things from my standpoint, even this thing with Mythic. She didn’t understand my feelings for him, but she was willing to accept them. She was more accepting than my sisters . . . than anybody. I was in desperate need of her during the time away from my family. I couldn’t go to Nome just to see her. I really would have gotten dragged. Things were too hot for her to go to Liberty at the time as well, so our bond suffered big time.
At this point, it was like we never had a hiatus. When I came back home, we just picked up where we left off. Although she was a married woman and mother now, she still made time for me. She spent almost all her lunch breaks with me.
“Well, let me get off the phone so I can get to the diner before it gets crowded. See you in a lil bit.”
“Okay. Bye.”
This bedrest stint was going to have me putting on pounds like crazy. Brix’s gym was gonna see me nearly every day once I had the baby. My small frame might have trouble handling extra weight. I grabbed my iPad from the nightstand and pulled up my plans for the house. Ashanni and I had done our floor plans together almost two years ago. They were nearly identical. We were looking forward to getting our money and building our homes next to our cousins in Henderson Village.
That neighborhood was intended for anyone to be able to purchase plots to build homes, but it seemed as though it wasmostly Hendersons there. I wasn’t upset about that, and I didn’t think Nesha was either. Homes were being built. That was the entire goal. They were still talking about building affordable housing on the other side of the area though. After I gave up my initial plans of being a dentist, I thought I would go to the land development portion of the business. They just didn’t seem busy enough for me.
Working in the office with Aunt Chas, Ashanni, Jakari, Uncle Philly, and Rylan was where I was meant to be. Not only did we have endless work, we had fun. We truly enjoyed being around each other. The men tended to steer clear of us most days, but it didn’t make us a bit of difference. We cut up daily in there, especially, Aunt Chas, Ashanni, and me.
I couldn’t wait until my money cleared the bank, so I could start building. I changed my plans to include a nursery. While I knew my baby wouldn’t stay a baby forever, I didn’t plan for this one to be the last either. I’d already forwarded my plans to Nesha. By the time they got to it, my money should be available. Not that they needed it to start anyway. I just didn’t want them to start until I could pay them.
After a few moments of me scrolling my plans and scrolling TikTok, I heard the back door open. “The chicken has made its landing!” Ashanni yelled.
I laughed as I heard her running up the stairs and giggling. It sounded like someone else was with her. There were too many footsteps. When she entered my room, Milana entered right behind her. My smile was wide, happy to see them both.
“Hey, Maui! If I’m ever on bedrest, I pray I get to live it up like this, girl!” Milana said.
I slightly rolled my eyes. “Girl, this gets frustrating. After a week, I was over it. The wedding is approaching fast though, right? I’m excited about it. I mean, I may be in labor or have anewborn at that time, but I know you can’t wait to finally tie the knot with Ferris. Especially since Shani jumped the gun.”
Ashanni gave me the side-eye, then pushed my bed table over my lap. Milana laughed. “Yeah, I should have shot her ass for crossing the gunline. It wasnother turn. That’s okay though. Ferris got at Asad’s ass for even popping the question.”
I chuckled as Ashanni placed my food in front of me with a bottle of water. When I opened it and saw grilled chicken and veggies, I was speechless. I looked up at Shani, ready to cry at any moment.
She lifted her hands in surrender. “It wasn’t me, boo. Aunt Jen said no. Your blood pressure is already too high. She said you didn’t need to add grease and Slap Ya Mama Cajun Seasoning to it. It’s high in MSG. She refused to even give me any to make sure I didn’t give mine to you. So I got the same thing you got.”
“Ugh! My blood pressure is rising as we speak,” I whined. “I guess I don’t have a choice but eat this if I don’t want to starve to death. You hear that Little Semien? No stuffed chicken.”
When I felt the baby move, my eyes widened. “The baby is pissed. I just felt movement!”
Shani laughed, then placed her hand on my belly waiting to see if the baby would kick again. I blessed my food then ate the first forkful of mixed vegetables. It was like the baby could taste it as soon as I did, because he or she moved again. Ashanni’s eyes widened, and she giggled. “She hate that food, sis.”
“She?”
“Yeah. Has to be a girl with that much attitude.”
I giggled and continued eating as she sat at my desk in the corner and did the same. Milana said, “I can’t wait until the rodeo season wraps up so I can start trying.”
“Your mom competed in the nationals not long after she found out she was pregnant with you,” Ashanni said. “My dadtold me that much when we were talking about you possibly going.”
Milana smiled. “It would be so cool for our babies to grow up together. Do you want a boy or a girl, Maui?”
