Page 44 of The Prodigy

14

Malika

Iwasn’tdressednicelyenough for Briar Lake Baptist Church.

It was like a fashion show, and every female congregant I saw was flyer than the next. I was hella self-conscious in my skinny jeans, sweater, and flats, but it was all I had. I couldn’t fit anything of Jaz’s, hard as I tried.

Apparently it was the one day a month when the whole family went to church with Gab. No exceptions. I couldn’t believe all these grown ass adults let themselves get roped into it, especially since it was clear none of them wanted to be here. but there we all sat in the pew, playing the role while Gab smiled and waved and acted like the queen of everything.

The pastor—Pastor Franklin—called Jakari out by name to welcome him home. I still wanted to know why he left and what the big deal was, but I made peace with the fact that he might not ever tell me. Why would he? Despite our kiss the night before, we were still strangers. He had no reason to trust me.

After the service, we had to greet and hug a bunch of people. Jakari was gracious through it all, and it was interesting to watch. He was skilled at making each person feel like he missed them the most. Like he was super interested in what they’d been up to while he was gone. He was charming and kind. Nothing like the scary man I saw outside of Sliders that night.

Although…maybe that man wasn’t scary at all. Maybe he’d really just been defending himself. And isn’t that what you want? A man who doesn’t back down, who doesn’t let himself get caught slipping, a man who’s one step ahead. Doesn’t every woman want a man who knows how to handle himself?

Gab wanted everyone to go to brunch after church, and I was relieved when Jakari declined the invitation. Once he said no, she immediately changed her mind and decided to cook brunch for everybody at the house.

Their dynamic was so strange to me. There was something there, I just wasn’t sure what.

On the car ride home, I turned off the radio and turned to my on-paper husband.

“You didn’t introduce me to anybody.”

It was a statement, not an accusation. I was relieved when he took it as such.

“Yeah, I didn’t wanna lie in church. Besides, you didn’t seem like you wanted to be there anyway. If I’d introduced you as my wife, we would have been there another two hours.”

“Well then I appreciate it.”

He chuckled.

“You like going?” I said.

He shrugged. “I don’tdislike it. I really only go for my mother.”

“Yeah. I get that. That’s how it was for me. I grew up going to Lindell Street Baptist. I stopped going a few years ago, though.”

“Why?”

I shrugged. “It didn’t feel the same without my mom.”

“Yeah, what’s the deal with that? You said she left, but like, where’d she go?”

I let out a sigh. “I have no idea. One day she was there, the next, she wasn’t. My dad…” I trailed off. The pain was still fresh, and I wasn’t sure I wanted to share it with him. I didn’t really talk about it anymore, with anyone. Not even Dionne.

“What about him?” Jakari asked.

“He…he never even looked for her.”

“Why not?”

“Well, she was…erratic.” I stared out the window, dreading the next part. I didn’t like thinking about it, much less saying it out loud. “She’d been on drugs before, but I’m pretty sure she was clean by the time she left. I don’t know.”

“She never called? Texted? Nothing?”

“Never. And I always got the feeling my dad knew what happened and didn’t wanna tell us. The way he acted…it was weird.”

“Damn. I’m sorry.”

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