The One She Loved

Chapter four,

happy Saturday babies! 🫶🏽

     "Boy, you should know that, I got you on my mind! Your secret admirer! I've been watching you!" Tyra had her arms wrapped around Faven, singing in an offkey note.

     "At night, I think of you! I want to be your lady, baby!" Faven sang along, snapping her fingers. "Oh, look! She's here!" she pointed to someone behind the boys.

     They all turned to look, seeing Luvie rolling over to them in her skates. "Sioni, hey pretty girl!" Tyra cheesed, waving at her.

     "That's a cute outfit!" Faven gestured her finger towards Luvie's clothes. She wore a short, taupe two piece fleece set, half of her locs tied up in two space buns as the rest of her locs hang freely in the back.

     "Thanks," Luvie half smiled, steadying her balance on the skates. Tyra and Faven got up, their fingers interlocked, as they skated up to Luvie.

     Tyra held her arm out for Luvie, who was now sporting a puzzled look. "If I remember correctly, you don't like people touching you, so I wasn't trying to grab your hand or anything without your permission," she explained, as Luvie nodded in understanding.

     Luvie wrapped her hand around Tyra's arm before the trio skated out onto the rink with the others. Asanté, Mali and Easton all remained seated at the table, watching the three girls.

     "You know," Easton started to say, smacking his lips a few times after drinking some of his lemonade. "She's actually a cute girl, I just think she's weird,"

     "How is she weird?" Mali ripped his attention away from the girls and redirected onto his friend. "You don't even know the girl,"

     "She be stuttering and shit, like we make her nervous or some," Easton replied, Asanté glancing over at him with a frown.

     "So? She might have a speech impediment. She seems like a shy person and probably stutters when she's nervous. You don't get nervous around new people? That happens wit' socially awkward people," he defended her, returning his attention onto the girl.

     Easton hummed, grabbing his cup to take a sip from the straw. Asanté's eyes darted over to him, his eyebrows furrowed. "What?" Asanté asked him.

     "You must like her," Easton grinned, leaning against the short wall, resting his arm on top.

     "And you figured that, how?"

     "You always defend her, the last time you went that hard behind someone was Jaliyah," Easton replied, shaking his cup, the ice rattling around.

     "So, because I'm always defending her, you think I like her? Yeah, that makes perfect sense—like niggas haven't been harassing her lately." Asanté spoke in an utter deadpan.

     "I don't know, Tay, I kinda agree wit' him—and you know I don't usually agree wit' this nigga on anything," Mali added his input, Easton pointing at Mali with an even wider grin.

     "Come on, Mali, don't entertain that shit man," Asanté groaned, tipping his head back. Both Mali and Easton laughed, as they got up, Easton patting Asanté's chest as he skated past him.

     Asanté got up from the table, and skated behind them onto the rink. On the other side, the girls had formed a small circle, holding hands. Faven and Tyra were still singing in an off key pitch, Luvie trying to hold back her laughter from how horrible they sounded.

     However, Luvie's laughter quickly seized when she felt herself losing her balance. Her hands slipped out of Tyra's and Faven's hand as she fell onto the floor. The girls immediately stopped, their eyes growing wide before they started to skate over to her.