I know… I know….

Thank you's going out to the lovely:

Monkey-kun, bunnybabe247, 444teme444, ladyrere1985, anon, taydo-the-potato, Katie, Guest, The lady of Gaia, nanadaprincess08, Jor-El Smith, Tiff, okroniiclez, jazzyhue20, shugosailormewmewz21, Guest, Tamia8, LeftEyeObsession, dbzgirl2003, kingofmonsters1, CatzSpaceShips, razzberry96, Rycrisostomo, lollipop-chan, Misery-of-life, and Valiant Saber.

Okay… so first I'd like to apologize for the lengthy delay. School has been… insane at the very least. I thought I'd be able to stay on top of it and still be able to write, but that didn't exactly work… at all. It was too much unfortunately. And for that I'm sorry. Second, I'd like to THANK everyone for the wonderful reviews, messages, and prayers for both me and my mom:) You don't know how much that means to me. I haven't forgotten about this story, nor have I forgotten about my wonderful readers. I don't plan on stopping writing anytime soon ;)

Getting into it :)

Disclaimer: I do not own any part of Aaron McGruder's The Boondocks or any of his characters.

"Huey, go change your clothes and mow the lawn!"

"Why do I always have to cut the grass?"

"Ah-choo! Ah-choo! I cannot stop sneezing. Ah-choo!"

"Riley's got allergies."

"You just mad cuz you didn't think of it first—ahh! …That ain't hurt, punk!"

Robert Jebediah Freeman (AKA Granddad), Huey Freeman, and Riley Freeman; The Story of Lando Freeman

Week 9
Tuesday, August 14th

Cindy's POV

"I can't believe I have to do this already."

"Oh stop. It's not that we have to. We just want to."

"…We?"

"Hush." Jazmine swatted her arm with a smile. "It'll be fun."

Cindy gave her a look with the slight raise of her eyebrow. She was joking, right? How could browsing through… maternity clothes, especially this early in the development process, possibly be fun? It was practically demoralizing.

"Come on." Jazmine grinned, pulling Cindy into the section of the store, as if she would try to escape at any moment. They were both currently at the mall in Macy's, doing some afternoon shopping. While Cindy was at work earlier doing her job-shadowing, she had become increasingly irritated at how tight her workout bra was feeling on her. The straps were digging into her shoulders and the circumference of the bra itself just felt entirely too tight around her chest. Her breasts ached the worst. She remembered when Riley wanted to "play" and squeezed one of the girls last night, she had initially wanted to "play" and head-butt him onto the ground. That shit hurt. But she refrained herself since she did love him and all.

Regardless, Cindy needed to go shopping for a few new bras at the least. But she also needed to get some looser pants along with them. So after calling Jazmine near the end of work and setting up a plan, Huey, her proclaimed carpool buddy, drove her back to Woodcrest. On the way, they picked up Jazmine from work and Jamilah from daycare (who still couldn't stop asking questions about her baby brother or sister and the future twins). Huey drove them back to their place, took Jamilah, and then allowed Jazmine to take the car so they could go shopping. Cindy hadn't even seen Riley since she left for work in the morning, but had called him to let him know.

"I can't believe I need to be here at this stage," Cindy grumbled begrudgingly as she passed by racks. "Jazmine, honestly… do I really look that fat?" She asked, glancing down. It was official. Her stomach now had a definite curve to it. She was starting to look rounded.

"Cindy, you don't look fat. You're pregnant. You're going to start growing, like it or not. And it's not like you're huge now. I don't think it'd be obvious for those who didn't know."

"Then why are we here? Cuz you sure don't look pregnant!"

"Because Cindy, it's not about that," Jazmine explained with patience. "It's about being comfortable. And trust me when I tell you that these clothes are made for comfort."

"I know that, but come on. We probably ain't gonna find nothin' cute here. I feel like an old woman."

"Stop whining and let me find something for you then. How was your night yesterday?" Jazmine asked, not giving Cindy time to comment on the slight.

"Miserable." Cindy replied with a sigh. "I had evening sickness again."

"Ugh. How many times?"

"Four."

"Oooh. I'm sorry, Cin." Jazmine winced. "I had a few bouts Sunday night after we got home from brunch."

"Bleah." Cindy wrinkled her nose. "How many?"

"Three." Jazmine grimaced. "That is by far the worst side effect. I hate being sick."

"I hate regurgitating the contents of my stomach."

"Eww." Jazmine chuckled. "That's disgusting."

"You're right, the shirt you're holding is disgusting. Put it down." Cindy smirked.

"Oh hush. Try this one on then." Jazmine said, grabbing onto a different shirt. "It's loose and soft material, perfect for lounging or even working out." Cindy briefly examined the red tank top before nodding, taking it from her.

"I'll try it on, I guess." She shrugged. "If it fits, I'll probably get a few more in different colors." Jazmine nodded before letting out a small squeal, stopping at something while she rifled through hangers.

"I can't wait til we're big enough to shop for some of these shirts." She beamed before showing one to Cindy. It was a pink shirt, clearly meant for a woman well into her second or third trimester that said, "BUMP: Baby Under Manufacturing Process" in sparkly letters on the belly.

"That… is so you." Cindy grinned, shaking her head. "But this… this is me." She added with a smirk, pulling off a white shirt of her own that said in bold letters, "DO NOT TOUCH. Under penalty of death."

"Ha!" Jazmine laughed out loud and grabbed them both off the rack. "If you don't get it for yourself, I will."

"I'm not that big yet though!"

"I am not letting you pass up this shirt. It is you."

Cindy pretended to roll her eyes before sighing dramatically. "Fiiinee." She smirked, taking the shirt from her hands as they started to walk.

"You know you love it." Jazmine grinned.

"Shuddup."

"Oooh!" Jazmine ignored her, spotting another rack. "Dresses!"

"You're such a girl." Cindy snorted. "Where are we going that we need a maternity dress right now?"

"These are summer dresses though, Cin. Probably one of the nicest things to wear when it's over 80 degrees like it was yesterday. This heat makes you want to die when you're pregnant, trust me."

"It's the middle of August though."

"So what? It's still going to be hot like this until September, maybe early October!"

"I doubt it—hey!" Cindy said, caught off guard when Jazmine tossed a maxi dress into her arms with force.

"Shut up and come try these on with me! These are about our size." Jazmine said excitedly before speeding off in front of her to the dressing room.

"…You're such a girl!" Cindy said again, following behind her.

Riley's POV

"Yeah yeah! That'll be perfect, man." Riley said into his cellphone, a big smile on his face. "It'll be the shit, yo. No doubt…. Hah, for real though." He smirked as he listened, walking down the stairs. "Thursday right…? It's no problem at all. 'Preciate it, my dude…. Aiight… peace." He replied before pressing the end button on his phone as he continued down the hallway to the kitchen. He was about put his phone away, when he paused his hand at the pocket, noticing Cindy from the entrance of the kitchen.

Riley grinned as he blatantly checked her out. Her back was away from him as she leaned her elbows on the island countertop, taking a bite from the red apple in her hand. Riley slowly pulled his phone back up and quietly stepped more into the kitchen. He snapped a quick picture of her turned away just because he thought her ass looked cute how she was standing, but then got ready for real before he spoke.

"Hey baby." As soon as she turned to look innocently over her left shoulder, he took the picture, before she managed to give him a dirty look.

"Boy, if you don't stop taking pictures of me… damn." She complained in between swallows of the bite she had just taken. "I don't even look photo-ready right now."

"That's a lie." He smirked, eyeing her up and down. He'd barely seen her at all today and she looked fine as always in her workout gear: white muscle tank with pink and black Nike shorts, hair in a sleek ponytail. "You look sexy."

"Not even." She countered, although a smile was creeping onto her face. She let the apple sit on the counter as she turned to completely face him. "But thank you."

"You're welcome." Riley slowly encircled his arms around her waist as he pulled her in. "Hey." He greeted again.

"Hi." She replied coyly, wrapping her arms around his neck as she reached up to kiss him softly. Riley inwardly smirked… he didn't do coy.

Cindy let out a muffled squeal, her lips still against his, when Riley quickly lifted her off the ground and propped her on the edge of the countertop. He ignored any chance of protest by upping the sexy. Riley pressed against her more as he increased the intensity of his kisses while rubbing and gripping and on her exposed legs. It didn't take long for her to wrap them around his waist.

"What was that for?" Cindy asked breathlessly when he finally pulled back. Riley grinned at her flushed face and shrugged in response.

"I missed my babies." He told her before giving her another peck on the lips. Cindy chuckled, nudging him backwards so she was able to slide down from the counter. "How'd shopping go?" He asked as he helped her.

"Uhh… not bad I guess." She replied strangely, stepping around him.

Riley eyed her. "What?"

Cindy stalled as she walked to the table and picked up the shopping bag that sat on top of it, turning back towards him. "I just… ugh. I spent more than I had planned."

"How much?"

"Um, I misplaced the receipt?"

"Right." Riley rolled his eyes, leaning against the counter. "Over or under a hundred?"

She deliberately avoided eye contact while she bit her lip.

"Really, C?" He deadpanned.

"It was all Jazmine's fault!"

"Oh I know it was." Riley scoffed. "She's a shopaholic, you ain't allowed to go wit her no more." Cindy rolled her eyes in response, as in: yeah right. "But for real babe, I thought you was only gettin' a new bra and pants?"

"I did get a few bras, which were expensive, and two pairs of pants."

"Okayyy… that didn't take the total to one hundred. What else you get?"

Cindy hedged with a smile as she twisted side to side, swinging her bag innocently. "They're cute."

"What else you get, girl?" Riley smirked. "Don't be tryna Jamilah me."

Cindy grinned as she approached him again with the bag. She planted a sweet kiss on his cheek before setting the bag on the counter. "You can look inside."

"All you had to do was tell me." Riley nudged her playfully, turning to rifle through the bag. He shook his head as he skimmed through. "Really babe, all these shirts you don't really need?"

"You didn't read them yet!" Cindy pouted.

"No, I'm not going to read them cuz you got plenty of shirts here. All these are extra, girl."

"Do I hear McHater?" Cindy said quietly with a smirk. "Ouch!" She said again when Riley spanked her hard.

"Three bras," Riley counted, ignoring her. "Two pants… six damn shirts… and… a dress… really, C?" He looked over at her.

"One: I needed a few more tanks and the other shirts in there were too good to pass up. Two: That was my first time splurging in a while, I'm not making it a habit. And three: hand me the dress." She told him, an interesting look on her face. Riley raised an eyebrow while he pulled it out.

"Why?"

"Is Granddad home?" She asked instead.

"No, why?"

"Just curious." She grinned right before pulling her white tank over her head, leaving her standing in the kitchen in just a bright pink bandeau and her shorts. Riley almost forgot what they'd been talking about while Cindy took her time examining the dress.

"If you don't like it, I'll return it along with the other extra stuff. Deal?" She asked with a hand on her hip.

Riley nodded mutely and outstretched his hand, even though he knew he already lost. Cindy could wear a trash bag and make it look good. He also knew she wasn't one to buy something unless she really liked it, so he wasn't tripping. He wasn't even angry about her overspending. Shit happens and they've both done it.

Cindy smiled as she shook his hand, then pulled it back and pulled the dress over her head. Riley took the brief moments to admire the shape of her belly. It now looked to have a cute curve to it. Damn, it was sexy.

"Check this out." Cindy said once she had her arms uncovered, right before pulling the dress down over her bust and letting the rest fall. Riley's eyes widened as he stared at the now twice-as-sexy Cindy. She was wearing a strapless maxi dress that shaped her changing body very nicely. It was a turquoise color with an ombre fade, darkest at the top and bottom, but faded lighter and lighter into white in the middle around her tummy area. A braided belt was tied under her bust-line, giving her an empire waist and seemed to help emphasize her belly... and her breasts.

"Now come on… cute or nah?" Cindy grinned, placing her hands on her stomach as she turned to the side.

Riley grinned as he walked over towards her. He slowly squatted down, rubbing his hands down her hips and legs as he came to her ankles. Then he slid his hands under the skirt and rubbed up her legs, standing as he did so, pulling the material higher and higher. He looked at her blushing face before smirking. Then he yanked her shorts and underwear down, making them fall to the ground.

"Cute."

20 Minutes Later

Riley whistled as he tossed Cindy's new dress into their bedroom hamper with ease. She shook her head while she folded the rest of her new clothes and put them in her drawer. She squealed when Riley quickly came up behind her, scooped her backwards, and fell gently onto the bed with her. He rolled her so they were laying side by side facing each other and comfortable. Cindy grinned and kissed his nose.

"I missed you today, babe." She said sweetly.

"So I noticed."

"Hush." She nudged him while he snickered. "How was your day?"

Riley paused a moment before his eyes widened, a look of happy recognition appearing over his face. "Oh shit, I totally forget to tell you!" He exclaimed.

"What?"

"If you hadn't distracted me with dat ass-"

"Reez, what?" Cindy pressed with interest.

Riley propped up on his arm and looked down at her with an excited smile. "I got a friend of mine to help out with a promo idea for my studio."

"Really?" Cindy asked, now sitting up with him. "What? Who?"

"You'd never guess." Riley smirked.

"Who?" Riley chuckled at her impatience.

"Xzibit."

"Shut up." Cindy's jaw dropped. "You're lying."

"Why would I lie about that?" He grinned. "Remember the story I told you about my family's shot on Pimp My Ride? How we got Dorothy fixed up?" Cindy nodded mutely. "Still got his contact info from that."

"Okay, I have so many questions," Cindy now slid herself all the way up so she was now sitting upright. "Why him, first of all? I haven't seen him relevant in anything lately."

"You didn't hear?" Riley asked her.

"Hear about what?"

"X is doin' another Pimp My Ride season."

"What?!"

"I know." Riley smirked. "It's gonna be a Resurrection special season, the very last one for old time's sakes."

Cindy just stared at him. "Okaayy… and no, I didn't hear about that. How did you?"

"Internet."

"Of course." Cindy snorted. "So lemme get this straight. You read it on the internet and just decided to give him a call?"

Riley blinked at her. "Yeah, pretty much."

"Wow."

"Called him up, BS'ed with him for a bit, talkin' about his stuff, what was goin' on, and then basically just asked him for some help."

Cindy looked impressed. "Wow, babe. I'm proud of you. I know it takes a lot for you to ask for help."

"Yeah, well…." Riley shrugged with fake modesty. "Funny thing is that it wasn't completely one-sided. Turns out he could use my help too."

"How so?"

"Being as though this is gonna be his last season of the show, he wants it to be special and is trying to have different people and guests come out on the show to help…." Riley trailed off with a big grin.

"He did not…." Cindy now mirrored his grin.

"He asked me to be one of the guests."

"Oh my God, Riley!" Cindy leaned over to give him an excited hug. "That's amazing! Why you though?"

"Girl please, what you think? My skills… my talent… my sexy-flexy-ass."

"Right." Cindy rolled her eyes playfully.

"Nah, but for real. He knows that I've always been into art. I sent him some pictures of my material and he was impressed. He asked if I'd ever done any design work on cars and I said yeah… even though he don't know I only did it when I was taggin'." Riley smirked. "But he offered me to be one of the guests that would appear on the show and that he'd supply my contact and studio info on screen in the episode."

"I can't even believe that, Reez. You're really gonna be on TV though?"

"It'd only be one episode… ahem, the premiere." Riley added slyly.

"Shut up!" Cindy exclaimed again. "You're going to be in the premiere episode?!"

"Only because I told him that I'd prefer recognition of my show ASAP, so he let me have the top spot. They'll be others in the episode of course, but I'mma be one of them." He smiled.

"When is all of this gonna happen, babe?"

"Well, he told me to come out on Thursday to do a little bit of filming. Just to meet the rest of the crew and introduce myself to them and the camera. Basic shit."

"Where at though? Do you have to go far?" Cindy frowned.

"Not too far, babe. The first episode is being filmed somewhere in Maryland. Only an hour or so away. I'd be home mid-afternoon I think."

"Wow…." Cindy exhaled for the third time. "This is crazy. I'm really happy for you, baby. This could turn out great for you."

"I know. I'm pumped as fuck." Riley told her, trying to contain his excitement.

"Hey… I'm proud of you." Cindy smiled at him, leaning over to kiss his cheek. He grinned and nuzzled against her, now placing an arm around her to pull her closer to his body.

"Prove it." He whispered teasingly into her ear after licking it. Cindy giggled, pulling back slightly to look into his eyes.

"Maybe I w-" Cindy stopped abruptly mid-sentence, her face going pale.

Aw shit. Riley barely had time to think before Cindy was scrambling to crawl over him, off the bed, and bolt out the door. It was only a moment before he heard the bathroom door slam and another before he faintly heard her vomiting.

Riley sighed and slunk back down on the bed, tossing a pillow over his face.

It was official: his kids were already being cockblocks.

The Next Day; 11:15 AM

Cindy's POV

"And four…three…two, last one… done. Good job, Seth." Cindy told her trainee once he finished his crunches. She was sitting beside him on the mats, determined to give him a killer ab workout today.

"Ah, thanks." He replied hoarsely, both his hands on his stomach. "What now?"

"How 'bout some burpees?" She suggested.

"What?" Seth chuckled, propping up on his elbows. "What in the hell is a burpee, McPhearson?"

"You've really never heard of them?" She asked, surprised. He shook his head. "A burpee is when you start from a standing position, drop down into a plank, do a pushup, hop back up, jump into the air, then drop back down to repeat the cycle."

Seth stared at her. "I've definitely never heard of it. It sounds intense though."

"It's definitely not easy. But it does work."

"How do you do it again?"

"I'll show you." Cindy stood up and took a few steps away from the wall behind her to give herself enough room. Right when she was about to demonstrate, she was rudely interrupted by the sharp blow of a whistle that startled her.

"FREEZE."

Cindy bit the inside of her cheek, turning to her right to see her boss, Hawkeye Frank, with that damn whistle, and her boyfriend standing right beside him.

"…Excuse me for a moment, Seth." She told him briefly before stepping away from him, hopefully out of earshot. She wanted to keep her demeanor but Frank and Riley were driving her crazy lately.

"Guys. What the hell?" She snipped quietly, trying to edge them further away from her trainee.

"What the hell were you about to do, White Girl? Burpees are pregnant-women-forbidden." Riley told her.

"What?!"

"It's a fact." Frank added coolly.

"Man, that ain't true. I'm only 9 weeks. Barely showing!"

"That's the problem. People thinkin' you ain't and you sittin' here actin' like you can do more than you should be doin'." Riley crossed his arms.

"Another fact."

"Oh can it, Frank." Cindy glared at him while he smirked. "You guys act like I'm completely overdoing it."

"We didn't say that, but Riley's right. A lot of people here still don't know you're pregnant and without that constant reminder, you do think that you can do more than you should be." Frank told her.

"You guys are my constant reminder."

"You're welcome." They responded simultaneously. Cindy rolled her eyes.

"You're both impossible."

"Eh." Riley shrugged. "When's lunch for you?"

"In an hour."

"Cool. I'll be back for you then. Let's go." Riley nudged Frank before they both turned around, starting to walk away.

"Hold up, where the hell are you both going?"

"Oh, I'm headin' with Frank on his lunch… I'll be back for yours though."

"…What?"

"Ooh, before I go," Frank walked past Cindy and over to Seth. "Hey man. She's pregnant so she can't do this, but…." He paused while he executed a perfect burpee demonstration. "That is how you do a proper burpee."

"Oh…kay…." Seth looked so confused. "Thanks?"

"No problem." Frank replied breezily before he walked away again, past Cindy and headed toward the door. Cindy watched him in bewilderment. Riley grinned and kissed her cheek briefly.

"I'll be back." He told her before turning to head out. Cindy watched them in confusion before turning back to Seth for his reaction. He only shrugged with an easygoing smile.

"Don't look at me for an explanation. I don't even know them."

"You're lucky." Cindy joked with the shake of her head. Nonetheless, she went back to her routine with Seth. It wasn't too long before she heard their voices, one loud one in particular.

"Ayo! C-Murph! Come check this out!"

Did this boy forget that she had a job and was actually working?

"Excuse me again, Seth." Cindy said through gritted teeth. He chuckled in response.

"Take your time."

Cindy gave him a tight smile before getting up. She saw them standing near the front counter, Riley with a hand behind his back. When she approached, she crossed her arms and gave them both a wary look.

"What?"

Riley grinned. "We gotchu somethin'."

"Do I have to take it?" Cindy practically groaned.

"Consider it your new uniform." Frank smirked, nodding at Riley who then pulled his hand from behind his back. He handed Cindy a black shirt. She held it up and read the bold-lettered words on the front.

I'm pregnant.
Don't let me do too much.
OR…

Cindy mentally prepared herself while she spun it around to see the back.

Get that ass kicked by my boyfriend/bodyguard.
Thank you.

Cindy glanced up at them. "Really though, guys?"

"Yup." They responded.

"I'm not wearing this every day."

"We thought you'd say that." Frank rolled his eyes.

"Lucky your man's gotchu, boo." Riley grinned, reaching for a bag on the counter. "We got one for you in pink, a few tanks, and this sticker thing to put on your other clothes." Riley held it up. All it said was I'm pregnant. "It's reusable."

Cindy shook her head, trying not to grin at them. "I hate both of you."

They smiled. "We love you too."

Riley's POV

"Chocolate or vanilla, Mila?" Riley asked, holding up two packs of pudding.

"Hmm… vanilla." His niece decided affirmatively.

"Good choice." Riley handed her the pudding to drop in the cart while he attempted to put back the other one. However, he was intercepted by Cindy who took it from him, handing it to Jamilah as well.

"I'll eat the chocolate." She shrugged.

"Yeah, I know you will." Riley told her lowly, a sneaky grin on his face.

"Watch it." Cindy faintly blushed before turning to push the cart. After work they had picked Jamilah up from daycare, but decided to make a stop at the grocery store before heading home. "What else do we need, babe?"

Riley checked the current contents of their cart. "Other than more orange juice, I think we got it all." Cindy nodded. Riley grinned at Jamilah. "And what's orange juice full of, babygirl?"

"Lots and lots of vitamin C." She answered with a smile.

Cindy chuckled along with Riley. "Granddad's taught her well."

"Yeah he has." Riley said, ruffling her wild and curly hair. She giggled and pushed the hair from her eyes.

"It's gotten so long, Mila." Cindy told her, playing with a few of her curls while she pushed the cart. "Want me to braid it for you tonight?"

"Yes please!" She responded with a smile. She loved to watch Cindy's magic with Riley's hair and even more when she played with her hair.

"Sure, sweetheart. Right after we eat…dinner…." Cindy stalled off and they all looked at the sound of the loud and incessant wailing. It came from a mother passing in front of their cart, her young daughter in tow behind her screaming. The mother was pulling the girl's hand, but the child snatched away from her.

"But I… want… ICE CREAM!" The girl screamed at the top of her lungs.

"Angel, I already said no ice cream today. Now come on-"

"NOOOOO!" Her child bellowed, her face bright red.

Riley and Cindy blinked at the scene before they slowly maneuvered their cart around the girl. As they passed, the child laid down on the dirty floor and continued to wail and scream. Riley and Cindy glanced back at the spectacle in silence, glancing at each other. Even Jamilah was mutely staring.

"I really hope that little girl's name wasn't Angel." Riley muttered to Cindy.

"Angelica maybe." Cindy snorted lowly.

Riley just smirked and looked down at Jamilah. She had never once in her life, thrown any type of wild tantrum. She knew better. When her parents, or even Riley and Granddad, told her no about something, that was it. She occasionally would pout her lip for a moment, but that was as far as she went. They were so lucky with her.

When they got far enough away, but still in range of the faint wailing, Riley shook his head and grinned over at Cindy. "So how would you handle that, big mama?"

She giggled with an eyeroll. "You're asking my technique?"

"Yeah yeah. I need to know these things. What's your parenting style?" Riley asked while opening the freezer door that held the orange juice. Cindy smiled, reaching in to grab Granddad's favorite.

"Let's just say I'm a firm believer in the WDA principle." She winked. Riley grinned even harder. He didn't have to think very hard to know that she was down with whooping dat ass.

"What does WDA mean, Aunt Cindy?" Jamilah asked innocently.

"Something you will never have to worry about, Mila." Cindy brushed off, kissing her forehead. Surprisingly, this was a good enough answer for the child… for once.

Riley in turn kissed Cindy's temple before reaching out his fist for dap. "I'm soooo lucky to have a down baby-mama."

Cindy laughed, touching her fist to his. "Heck yeah, you are."

Later That Night

"What are you workin' on, babe?"

Riley glanced up from his laptop and over at Cindy who sat on the other sofa, Jamilah in her lap. She had just finished braiding her hair, even though the child had fallen asleep almost an hour before she was done.

"Not really working on anything. Just reading over some stuff."

"For what?"

"These stupid online classes I have to take." Riley made a face. He'd never done any classes online before so wasn't really sure what to expect or how he'd do in them. "You sure I can't just drop out?"

"No. Don't even joke, Reez. You've come too far." Riley grumbled at her in response. "When do you start?"

"Monday."

"Wow, that's soon."

"I know."

"Are you sure you can juggle that and work, babe?"

"Yeah. From what I read, it's mostly a go-at-your-own-pace kinda deal. There are certain deadlines for homework and tests, but other than that, I shouldn't have much of a problem. I'm gonna start taking my laptop to work though. In the event that it's a slow day or somethin', I can at least act like I'm doin' shit."

"Shh." Cindy grinned, gesturing towards his sleepy niece. "Do you need to order any books?"

"Most of them are already online. There's only one that I wanted the hardback for. It should be delivered tomorrow."

"Okay, good…. I'm so proud of you, babe." Cindy smiled at him.

"You've been tellin' me that a lot lately." He smirked, shutting down his laptop and putting it aside.

"Because I am. You're just really in the zone."

"I'm looking at my three biggest motivators right now."

Cindy smiled and rubbed a hand on her stomach. Riley stood up and walked over to her, kissing her on the lips as he kneeled down. He glanced at Jamilah cuddled against Cindy and stroked her back lightly.

"I'm gonna take her upstairs."

"Okay. Are you all ready for tomorrow?" Riley nodded. "What time are you leaving?"

"Around 9. I'm not expecting to stay any longer than a few hours. I should be home way before dinner."

"I'll hold down the fort for you." Cindy grinned.

"Please do. Keep Granddad in line. That's all I'm sayin'."

Cindy giggled and kissed him again. "Go 'head and put her to bed." Riley carefully scooped his niece into his arms before standing tall again. Cindy got up with him and began to follow him. "Maybe after you put her to bed you could, uh… do the same to me." She proposed quietly. Riley paused right before he got to the stairs and turned around, a smirk on his face.

"Oh yeah? Whatchu want me to do, girl?"

Cindy chuckled and leaned near his ear, not wanting to wake Jamilah.

"Pimp me." She whispered huskily, right before brushing past him and heading up the stairs in front of him, making sure to sway her hips seductively.

"…Girl, you don't have to ask me twice." He mumbled, hurrying right behind her.

Once again, I'm really sorry about the long break, guys. This year was rough. Like no joke. I don't even wanna talk about it. And it didn't help that I had writer's block on this damn chapter forever. Like damn, I can't catch a break to save my life lol.

I'm gonna start combining weeks/chapters though. I wanted to do it for this one to make it longer, but there wasn't enough material to go on, so I might do it for the next chapter. Either that, or I'm gonna start by-passing weeks. This shit is hard, yo. But I'll get through it. I promise not to quit

Thank you so much for hanging with me, guys. It means the world to me. It still melts my heart to see notifications and reviews for my stories, even after my long and shameful disappearance. Your support and kind words motivate me to no end. And I am truly grateful, guys.

The next chapter will be longer, guys. Sorry this was kinda filler-y. But next chapter will be important and the chapter following that one will be especially important ;) ;)

Love you guys soooo much. Thanks for everything. I am alive. I am back. And I am gonna be back soon with an update for ya.

~Schweetie