"I'd be lying if I said I ain't lonely." - Kevin Gates
JESSICA
I'm so excited right now. We're around the corner from the mansion I once lived in. Yes, we're finally in California. I said I'd go back for my stuff later. I woke everybody up thirty minutes after he gave me the key and we left. I can't quit smiling right now. It feels good to know I'm literally around the corner from my kids.
"What the hell?" I mumble as we pull up to the house. None of the cars are here and my roses I had growing in the front are gone. Something just doesn't seem right about the house. "Drive to the gate." I tell Montana. He drives up to it. I get out then put the code in. "Hey, what are you doing here?" an old, white man yells at us as he opens the gate. "This is my house, what the fuck are you here for?" I ask. "No. This is my house. Aren't you the guy with the curly hair's wife? He lived here with a lot of children." he says. "Wait, so he moved out?" I ask. "Yeah, almost a whole year ago. He put it up for sale. I asked why he wanted to get out of a beautiful house. He said it didn't feel beautiful without the woman he loved and that he couldn't stay anymore. Poor fellow." he says.
I look down, wiping the tears out of my eyes. "Do you have his number?" I ask. "No ma'am." he answers. "Well, thank you." I say, walking back to the truck. "I know you know where they live." I say as Montana drives. "I can't pop up to that nigga house, Jessica. I don't have the patience for the drama that'll come with it." he says. "Speaking of drama, I heard you punched Tae. What the fuck are you punching my son for?" I ask.
"I hardly touched his ass. He was bent all over crying like a female for no reason so I lightly hit him in his chest and told him to straighten up because he was acting too feminine. Jessica, I ain't explaining the way I discipline him. It'll all pay off when you see how well off he is by the time he sixteen." he says. "Discipline and abuse are not the same." I say. "Drop it." he demands. "No, you drop it. I will cut your ass if you punch him again. I play about a lot of things but my kids ain't one of em. I will hurt you before I let you do that again. That boy was hurting yesterday, Montana. He didn't flip like he did for no reason. He was scared you'd hurt him bad so he was looking out for himself. The only reason I didn't stop you yesterday is because what he did was wrong. You need to pull your head from out of your ass and realize what you're doing." I go off.
He looks at me. "I apologize. I would never abuse my son and I'll never abuse my daughter neither. I want the best for my kids, aight? I didn't have nobody to teach me how to be, I molded myself into what I am. I made a lot of mistakes in my life and I'll be damned if I let my kids do the same shit when I can prevent it. I'll try not to be so rough though, alright?" he asks. "You not gone try not to be, you just straight up gone stop being rough with my son. That's all I know." I say. He nods his head then kisses me on my cheek.
"I know where Reign is right now." he says, breaking the silence. "Where?" I ask. "She at the mall with her friends." he answers. "Go there." I say. "You sure?" he asks. I quickly nod my head yes. Hopefully, she'll hear me out.
I take a deep breath as I walk around the mall pushing Dream in her stroller with Tae right beside me. Montana stayed in the truck for safety reasons. "Is that her?" Tae exclaims, pointing at a girl who's sitting in a boy's lap at the food court. "I don't know." I answer, walking over to her. My eyes widen. This is definitely Reign and she's sitting in Jah's lap.
"Get your ass off of this grown ass nigga, Reign." I demand. I know I haven't been around but I'm still her mother and I still don't like his ass. She jumps then covers her mouth with her hand as she stands. "Oh shit... Tae? Jessica?" Jah asks with his mouth wide open. Reign snatches Tae in a hug, crying hard on his shoulder. "I missed you so much." she cries, holding him. "I missed you too." he answers.
