Electric Impulse: A Bond UnBreakable

Chapter 9 | DNA Sequence Part 3/Papaya Falls

The smell of buttered toast and scrambled eggs sizzling in a skillet, greet me when I wake.

Who's cooking in the kitchen?

Turning the corner from my bedroom to the kitchen, Troy's standing near the stove wearing my "Will Cook for Love" apron. I relax and take a seat at the breakfast counter. "Look at you trying to burn!"

He pours me a cup of coffee, adds three spoonfuls of oat milk caramel creamer and a dash of cinnamon.

"Still remember how I like my coffee?" I ask as I take a sip.

"You never change, remember?" Troy reminds me.

"Tried and true. What made you want to play chef today?"

He adds shredded cheddar cheese and folds it into the scrambled eggs. "You were out. Snoring like a whale on Ambien. One of us had to do it."

"You ass!" I smack his hand.

He takes a fork and grabs a fluffy, cheesy morsel. "Taste this."

"Hmm. What's that herb?"

He shakes his head. "My secret."

"My kitchen. So, there's only so many herbs it can be. I'll figure it out."

"Not with my help. Ready to eat?" He takes two ceramic mushroom-colored plates out the cabinet and dresses them with eggs, toast and a bit of parsley. He sits next to me at the breakfast bar.

"Looks delish." I say rubbing my belly.

"I know." Troy replies happily before digging in.

I sip on my coffee. "Hey, can I ask you something?"

"What's up?"

"I'm trying my best to be fair. It's a tough position to be in."

"You're talking about Phoenix?" Troy asks knowingly.

"Yeah, see he spent last night with his soon-to-be-ex and their two kids. They have two daughters back home for the holidays from boarding school. He's telling me he needs time to break the news of the divorce to them."

"And you want to know if you can trust it?" Troy takes a sip of his orange juice. He cocks his head to the side and squints. "Well, it depends. Phoenix has a sketchy track record. Let's be honest. He's been caught in his fair share of lies. But after you dropped his ass, he came correct?" Troy waits for my confirmation.

I nod.

"OK, so he's a 'changed man,'" Troy puts it in air quotes. "You've seen that the divorce is actually going down?"

"Oh, yeah. It's been filed and there's a court date. He says he's trying to make it as smooth as possible. But I just find him doing more and more things that make me uncomfortable when it comes to Nora. It's like he's telling me he's getting away from her, while he's moving closer to her."

Troy takes a bite of toast and thinks for a moment. "The way you describe the situation, bruh's on a tightrope at a thousand feet high. The man has baggage and it sounds like he's trying to let it down easy. If his daughters don't know and he wants to tell them gently, let him. He seems genuine enough. Has he lied to you since you took him back?"

"No."

"Well, until he does, you got to give him that room. I wouldn't worry too hard. Just keep your eyes open, Ari. You've been through it with him, you can smell his lies now!" Troy laughs to himself. "Spend enough time with you, and you'll have a bruh's DNA sequenced down to the letter!"