MISSED YOU ALL.
SERIOUSLY.
My thank you's go out to the greats (proper thank you's coming soon):
AyazakaSan, clockwork'sFinest, King Kroniiclez, Cartoonlover187, KateyBee42, anon, Guest, PippElulu, hue is bae143, Guest(2), Guest(3), jazzyhue20, Jazavelli, YAYA IS KING, natasha annalise, niav2017, From A Friend, and Katie.
And a special happy birthday shout-out goes to clockwork'sFinest! I'm updating a day late, but this chapter is dedicated to you, girl!
It's been a minute…. Seriously. And I've missed writing for this story so much. Life has been a whirlwind of good things, bad things, and everything in between. But I'm glad to be back. It is quite literally my escape and therapy.
Let us resume :)
Disclaimer: I do not own any part of Aaron McGruder's The Boondocks or any of his characters.
"Watch closely. You are about to experience a 'nigga moment.' Webster defines the 'nigga moment' as a moment when ignorance overwhelms the mind of an otherwise logical Negro male, causing him to act in an illogical, self-destructive manner… i.e. like a nigga."
Huey Freeman; Granddad's Fight
Week 16
Friday, October 5
Riley's POV
"Why do I have a feeling this isn't going to work?"
Riley smirked at his fiancé in response. It was a fair question to be honest. Riley had contemplated a similar thought earlier. Especially given that it was Ed's suggestion… rather insistence.
He and Cindy currently sat in a small office waiting for their host to arrive. The receptionist had insisted that she'd be assisting them in a few minutes, that she was getting done with a very important client. They had both tried and failed to restrain their eyeroll at that; neither of them wanted to really be there anyway. They already had more than enough of their own shit to deal with. The last thing they wanted to do that day was sit through a meeting with a wedding planner.
"Ed says she has the highest rating in Woodcrest." Riley shrugged, glancing at the wall of plaques and pictures behind her desk.
"And we trust his judgement? Not to mention the standards Woodcrest sets." Cindy snorted, gazing at the photos as well. "Look at these Kardashian-ass people she's conducted weddings for. That sure as hell ain't us."
"Not even close." He answered with ease. "I only told Ed that we'd come to this damn meeting so he'd stop sweatin' me about it. We don't have to hire anyone. I honestly think we can plan most of it on our own."
"Damn straight." Cindy agreed seriously. "I ain't about no bougie broad tellin' me what and what not to do. Got me twisted, yo."
"Easy, boo." Riley snickered, stroking her thigh lightly. He already knew that she had a tiring day at work and wasn't feeling the best mood-wise either.
So this should be fun. Riley thought wryly as he heard the office door starting to open.
"Knock, knock!" A voice that was way too chipper for the time of day that is was chirped loudly as she entered. In walked a brightly dressed woman, donned in a flared white dress, a turquoise blazer over top, and a pair of nude strappy heels.
"Hiii!" She greeted girlishly. "And oh em gee, you guys are so freakin' cute! Ah, I can't wait!" She squealed, practically bouncing over to her desk in excitement.
Riley and Cindy shared a brief look in disbelief before turning back to the woman. This was their host? The acclaimed wedding planner of Woodcrest? This girl/woman-child? Riley couldn't even tell how old she was. If he had to guess, she had to be in her late-thirties, but damn! The botox, the plastic surgery, and her damn voice had her looking like she was barely over twenty.
"I'm so glad you guys could make it today," She spoke again, setting her pink clutch in the drawer of her desk. "My name is Kirsten Banks and I'm sooo happy to be helping you both for your special day!" She exclaimed again, making Riley slightly grind his teeth. The pitch of her voice was like nails on a chalkboard.
"You must be Mr. Freeman?" Kirsten asked, smiling widely as she offered her hand to shake.
"Yeah. Riley though." He replied as he shook it.
"So nice to meet you, Riley!" She beamed before turning to Cindy, a bigger smile taking over her face if possible. "Which makes you, Mrs. Almost-Freeman!"
Cindy gave her a light nod as she extended her hand. "Cindy."
"Congratulations, Cindy!" She cried, shaking her hand enthusiastically. "You guys are such a cute couple and this is gonna be so much fun! You guys are going to have the best wedding ever!"
"Do you say that to all your clients?" Cindy asked dryly, making Riley shoot her a glance to behave.
"Absolutely!" Kirsten replied as she sat down in her chair, completely missing the sarcasm. "And they all do! In their own special way of course. But you guys…" She paused to glance at them both dramatically. "Yours is going to be epic. I knew from the moment Mr. Wuncler contacted me."
"How you know him again?" Cindy asked, raising a brow.
"Ed and I are just old friends." She answered simply, her head suddenly down as she started sorting through some files. Riley glanced at Cindy again, who was now giving him a pointed look while she mouthed: friends with benefits. Riley gave her a light flick on the leg and mouthed: be good, but Cindy shook her head no.
"Now then," Kirsten spoke again, bringing them back to attention. "Mr. Wuncler has told me a lot about the two of you."
"We can only imagine." Riley restrained his sigh. "How does this work though?"
"Oh! Getting right to the point I see." Kirsten said with interest.
"I mean, Ed insisted on getting us a planner but to be honest, you might be getting more than you bargained for with us."
"Nonsense!" Kirsten giggled with the toss of her hand. "He definitely made the right choice for you both. I'm here for all your wedding needs to make this as easy as possible!" She said with a bright smile. Riley couldn't keep up with her enthusiasm.
"We'll see." Cindy muttered under her breath.
"Gesundheit!" Kirsten grinned at her, once again clueless. "So, let's talk some themes! I heard you two like basketball, right?"
"Yeah, she coaches." Riley supplied.
"Would you maybe want to incorporate it into the ceremony?" Kirsten asked, glancing at both of them.
"Huh?" Riley asked in confusion. He couldn't tell if she was joking or not. "Uhh how?"
"However you'd like! We can have jerseys as placeholders, maybe a scoreboard guests can sign, even a carrot cake for the sake of the orange ball!" Kirsten explained with that constant smile, completely serious.
Riley didn't even have to look at Cindy to know she was probably giving Kirsten the same dead-ass look that he was. And hers was probably worse.
"Is Ed punking me?" He asked instead, trying to keep it light.
"What do you mean?" Kirsten asked dumbly.
"Jerseys as placeholders? A scoreboard? We ain't that ghetto!" Clearly he had to break it down for this chick. "We'd be lookin' like damn fools with basketball shit everywhere."
For the first time since their meeting, she seemed flustered. "Oh, um, well… you could always be original and start the trend?" She suggested with a hopeful smile.
"WHAT trend?" Riley demanded in all seriousness. "Tacky?"
"Oh! Uhh… well I-I-" She stuttered in surprise.
"Where they do that at?"
"I-I suppose it is a little… garish." Kirsten was now blushing as she quickly shuffled through more papers in her hands, not looking at all like the bubbly shell that she was a bit ago. The girl was borderline looking like the blurred Mr. Krabs meme.
"Just a little." Riley resisted his eyeroll, trying to calm down. And here he was telling Cindy to behave. "Can we try to decide on a different topic?"
"Okay, how about we discuss the flavor of the cake then?" Kirsten asked, seeming more composed as she glanced at them both.
"Now you're talking. I'm hungry as hell."
"Well, we already know what flavor you have a preference for, Cindy." Kirsten giggled, giving her a wink.
There was a tense moment of silence as they both strongly glared at her, making her about choke on her laughter. Riley didn't want to make eye contact with whatever daggers Cindy was shooting her with.
"We're gonna pretend you ain't say that." He intercepted calmly.
"Uh, right…." Kirsten's head was back down again flipping through more notes.
"So cake flavors." He prodded.
"How about a swirl? Chocolate and vanilla?" She glanced up hopefully.
"Lady…" Riley warned, instantly back to glaring.
"Okay, okay, nevermind the cake!" Kirsten cut him off quickly. "We could just have pie?"
"What?"
"Oh! Uhh-"
"In what world do you have PIE at a wedding?" Riley asked incredulously.
"I-I thought we were being edgy!" Kirsten tried to explain, once again flipping through her papers. "It says here-"
"We want a damn CAKE!"
"How about food?" Kirsten suddenly changed the subject, her smile looking a little forced. "What type of food would you like to have catered? How about-"
"If you say chicken, we're walking out. Just sayin'." Riley interrupted her. Kirsten blanched and snapped her mouth closed, clearly on that train of thought.
"Oh, of course not." She recovered unconvincingly. "Chicken is overdone anyway. We could do barbeque food. Or maybe seafood?"
Riley sighed, rubbing his temple. This woman was trying him. "Listen. Let's just go back to the cake. We want to get at least one thing set."
"Yes of course!" Kirsten agreed, excited again as she flipped onto a blank page of her notebook. "Ideas?" She asked, clicking her pen.
"Well for starters, what flavors do you offer your regular clients? You know, clients that don't look like us… me specifically." Riley hinted sardonically.
Kirsten blushed again, not meeting his eyes for a moment. "Oh, um, w-well to be honest, I've only ever catered to clients that look like the um… the bride." She admitted feebly, glancing at Cindy.
"I never would've guessed."
It was an awkward moment of silence as Kirsten fiddled with a lock of her hair. "I mean, I have attended a black wedding once." She said out of nowhere. "I believe they had a yellow sponge cake."
"Okay?" Riley raised a brow. "That's nice, but what flavors can you offer?"
"Well chocolate of course, vanilla, lemon cake, red velvet, the possibilities are endless!" She began, sounding excited again.
"Do you have a favorite that people like?" He asked.
"It might depend on the bakery, but I'm fairly certain they can make a little pumpkin spice!" She eluded with a big smile. "A beautiful white fondant and then bam! A surprise orange center for your basketball!" She explained enthusiastically. "How does that sound?"
Cindy, who had been texting on her phone for the majority of the meeting, finally looked up at her. "…What did you just say?" She asked blankly after a beat of silence.
Kirsten met her gaze with a smile. "About the pumpkin? The cake can be dyed orange to represent the basketball and… and then…." She began to trail off after noticing the blank expression on Cindy's face slowly morph into a stony glare.
"I… HATE… pumpkin…." She seethed between her teeth, making even Riley tense up. "Why the FUCK would you even offer that, huh? Cuz I'm white?!" Cindy barked, her voice now raised.
"Oh, no, no!" Kirsten quickly shook her head back and forth. "It's just that-"
"What kinda SHIT?!"
"I-I-I was just thinking about it being autumn and in season and it-it would go well with the orange-"
"Who in the FUCK gets a pumpkin spice cake for a wedding?!" Cindy cut her off again in hostility. Riley wanted to intervene but didn't even know how. He'd seen his girl go off multiple times, but this was on another level. And frankly, he wanted to stay out of it.
"Uhhh, edgy couples?" Kirsten squeaked.
"What's next, you're gonna as if we want Starbucks for our drinks?" Cindy demanded angrily.
"Definitely not!" Kirsten answered, violently scratching something off her notepad.
"I outta slap the damn taste out your mouth!"
"Would… would that really be necessary?"
"Oh, this BITCH!" Cindy yelled, suddenly making a lunge to go across the desk on Kirsten, making her let out a shrill scream. Riley caught Cindy by the waist just in time and pulled her back.
"Yeah, we'll see ourselves out." Riley said as explanation, pulling her backwards and away to the door.
"Oh my." Kirsten said, now standing as she clutched her chest.
"She really hates pumpkin." He shrugged, ignoring Cindy's determination to free herself.
"I see-"
"Let me catch your ass outside!" Cindy shouted at her as Riley towed her along, opening the door. "Throw a pumpkin at your peanut-ass head! Goofy smiley-looking-ass bitch!"
"Oh dear." They heard Kirsten say as Riley pulled the door closed behind them.
35 Minutes Later
"Which is why we're here to see you." Riley explained, grinning across the dining room table at Jazmine. Cindy sat next to him, Jazmine at the head of her table looking speechless after getting a summarized earful of what happened. Riley and Cindy had decided to visit before heading home since they had to pass their house anyway. Huey had taken Jamilah upstairs to get her ready for bed, which just left the three of them to talk.
"Wow." Was all Jazmine seemed to be able to say.
"Obviously we can't do wedding planners." Riley shrugged.
"Not that one anyway." Cindy spoke up with an eyeroll.
"She did sound like a bit of a train wreck." Jazmine admitted, shaking her head slightly.
"Which is where you come in." Riley grinned at her, causing her to raise a brow at him.
"Okay…?"
"You know us. You get us. You've been through this already and obviously love this kinda thing." He smirked. "We mainly want to get most of the planning and details worked out on our end together but… can we just come to you if we have any questions or need feedback or whatever?"
Jazmine playfully rolled her eyes, not being able to hold back her smile. "I guesssss." She dragged out dramatically.
"Girl bye." Cindy snickered. "Like you ain't all about it."
"Like you even have to ask." Jazmine smiled, then paused slightly. "…You really tried to jump her though, Cin?"
"Talk about your first real mood swing." Riley smirked.
"Who said anything about a mood swing?" Cindy shrugged. "I just really hate pumpkin."
Cindy's POV
"I'm starting to realize how violent you are." Anthia giggled.
"If you think she's bad now, you should've met her back in grade school." Jazmine grinned.
"Hey, I've toned down a lot since then."
"Says the girl who went across a table on someone, fought someone in a public restroom, and didn't you beat on both Riley and Caesar in a boxing ring recently?"
"…I've toned down."
Cindy stuck out her tongue when her friends laughed at her about her most recent incident. She had decided the next day to invite them out for a girl's day since it was Saturday and Jazmine's parents had Jamilah for the day. They were currently at lunch at a new restaurant about an hour outside of Woodcrest. Their men had decided to do their own thing and hang out as well back home.
"You girls are too much," Anthia said, still chuckling. "And this is so much fun. We need to do this more often."
"Definitely." Jazmine agreed after sipping her tea. "It's nice to get away. A change of scenery is always nice."
"A break away from the boys is nice too." Cindy smirked.
"Amen, amen." Anthia nodded. "I adore my Caesar, but it's nice to just to have some girl time."
"It'll be wonderful to not hear complaining every five minutes while I'm shopping." Jazmine added.
"You'll only hear that every ten minutes from me if you take too long." Cindy told her sweetly.
"Oh whatever." Jazmine smiled. "What do you think they're doing?"
"Video games." Anthia supplied easily.
"Drinking on our behalf." Cindy added, slightly bitter.
"Probably gossiping. You know they're worse than us." Jazmine shook her head.
"I know that's right." Cindy smirked. "Enough about them though. What else is new?"
"New with us, what's new with you Miss Fiancée?" Anthia grinned. "How's the planning go so far? Other than your almost brawl of course."
"Still sorting out the basics. Trying to get a count of who's all coming for starters. Riley finally told his Aunt Cookie and was talking to her more this morning about getting a flight out."
"Did he tell her about the upcoming wedding yet?" Jazmine asked.
"Yeah, he did. She took it alright. Obviously shocked that it's coming up so soon. He's still convinced she'll beat his ass." Cindy snorted.
"I wouldn't be surprised." Jazmine said, looking like she was trying to hold back a smile.
"Did you and Huey tell her that you're pregnant yet?"
"Yup."
"When'd you do that?"
"The day after Riley told her." Jazmine grinned cheekily.
"…Y'all are some biters, man." Cindy deadpanned while they laughed.
"Hey, the ice was already broken and we took the opportunity. She took it well." Jazmine shrugged.
"Must be nice." Cindy smirked. "I'm just hoping she even remotely likes me."
"What's not to like?" Anthia smiled warmly. "It'll be fine."
"Here's hoping."
"What other plans have you made so far?" Jazmine asked.
"Nothing super concrete yet. I'm working with Ed, mind you." She paused to give them a look. "I've been researching a few local places and would love to do something outdoors. Keep it simple."
"Do you have a date in mind yet?" Anthia questioned.
"Tentatively… either the first or second week of November?" Cindy confessed, smiling sheepishly at their expressions.
"What happened to a month being too soon?" Jazmine exclaimed in surprise.
"I know. And originally, it would be too soon. But yo… Ed wasn't playin' around. If I wanted to, he could get this wedding banged out within the week. All the resources are there and available, it's just about picking and choosing. Other than a few separate details, we'll be able to have all the necessities."
"That's awesome." Anthia seemed impressed. "Whatever works for you, girl."
"Starting to feel real yet?" Jazmine beamed.
"Not quite. I'm sure it will hit me sooner or later." Cindy shrugged with a grin. She paused as the waiter came to deliver their checks and take their plates away. "Oh, before we head out, I almost forgot that I was working on these." She began as she dug into her purse.
"What's up?" Anthia asked while laying a tip down on the table.
"Trying to decide on invitation styles." Cindy sighed, pulling two different envelopes out of her bag.
"Ooooh!" Jazmine said with excitement.
"What did you do for your invites?" Cindy asked her. "Did you make them yourself, buy generic ones, go through a specialty service?"
"Well, Huey and I had a lot more time so we made them ourselves and then had them printed." She explained. "What are you thinking?"
"I'm honestly not sure. It's something I might need your help with. I was playing around on the computer the other night and drafted two different designs if you want to look."
"Duh." Jazmine instantly held out her hand. Cindy snorted before passing her the pink envelope and Anthia the purple envelope.
"Be honest if it looks like shit."
"Oh Cindy, hush." Jazmine chided as she pulled out the invitation. "It definitely doesn't look…. SHUT UP!" She blurted loudly, eyes now wide as she took in the words on the card. Cindy smiled as she looked from her to Anthia, who mirrored a similar expression as she stared at her own card.
"Y'all are pretty quiet, practically making me nervous." Cindy smirked. "What do each of yours say?" She played dumb.
Anthia finally glanced up from her card, looking very touched. She cleared her throat before she read. "Obviously you're going to be my bridesmaid,"
"Matron of honor." Jazmine added, reading from her own card. She looked at Anthia and they both finished reading together.
"And no, that wasn't a question."
"Glad we got that settled." Cindy said simply as she rose from her seat. "All set, ladies?" She asked nonchalantly, grinning when she noticed they were still seated in their chairs, shell-shocked.
She grinned and pretended to let out an impatient sigh. "Bridesmaids? Let's go, we've got stuff to do-"
She chuckled when she was cut off by Jazmine and Anthia as they squealed, just before hopping from their chairs and rushing to smother her in a group hug.
"YES!" They told her in unison as they squeezed her, almost bouncing up and down. Half of the restaurant was looking but they paid them no mind.
Cindy laughed, hugging them back. "I appreciate that but I told y'all I wasn't asking." She teased. "Now come on. We're gonna be late."
"For what?" Jazmine asked, briefly wiping away a stray tear.
"We've got an appointment."
"An appointment?" Anthia echoed in confusion.
Cindy grinned. "I can't do my first dress-fitting without my girls."
In hindsight, she probably should've waited to tell them that outside. The excited squeal/scream from her matron of honor was practically deafening in the small-ish restaurant.
"This is so exciting. I've never been a bridesmaid before." Anthia admitted.
"I've only been once for another friend, but I wasn't able to go with her when she tried on dresses. But I. Can't. Wait."
"As long as y'all don't act like the crazies on Say Yes To The Dress, I'm good." Cindy smirked, tying her hair up into a high bun. The three of them were currently in a large dressing room waiting for one of the dress consultants to return with a few styles. Cindy wasn't exactly sure yet the type of dress she wanted, so was open to trying different options.
"Of course not." Jazmine giggled. "I'm so honored."
"Same here." Anthia added sincerely.
"Neither of you should be surprised. You both are like fam to me. I can't picture you not being a part."
"It's going to be so perfect." Jazmine sighed happily. "So will it be just us and the guys then I'm guessing?"
"Us, the guys, and one more bridesmaid that I sent an invite out to a few days ago."
"Oh nice. Friend or family member?" Anthia asked.
"Family member." Cindy told her before turning to grin at Jazmine. "Jazz knows her."
"Who?" She asked, tilting her head slightly. When all she got was the same mischievous look in return, she placed a light hand over her mouth and shook her head. "Omg." She uttered in playful distress.
"You know who it is already?" Cindy's smirk got wider as Jazmine nodded slowly.
"How could I forget?"
"Who is it?" Anthia spoke up with a questioning smile.
"Just my baby cousin." Cindy supplied innocently enough, but Jazmine snorted and turned to give Anthia a look.
"Remember how earlier we were talking about how violent, wild, crazy, et cetera, Cindy is?"
"Et cetera?"
Jazmine ignored Cindy, simply gesturing over to her. "Cindy is Thing 1. Her 'baby cousin' is Thing 2."
"Oh Lord." Anthia laughed.
"So melodramatic." Cindy brushed off.
"She single-handedly corrupted her cousin and led her down a violent path of misbehavior, much like herself." Jazmine continued. "You'll see soon enough, just wait till you meet her. They're like twins."
"What's her name?" Anthia asked Cindy, still giggling.
"Lorena." She told her with a grin. "That's my girl. We always promised we'd be in each other's weddings. We were hella close growing up."
"How old is she now?"
"Seventeen."
"Wow, I can't even believe that." Jazmine smiled. "I haven't seen her in ages."
"Me either. Not since she and my aunt moved to Florida. We've been keeping in contact though. I told her last week about Riley and I, and the fact that we're pregnant."
"As long as you don't corrupt her on that." Jazmine said pointedly.
"Oh hell naw, I'd kill her." Cindy told her easily. "She just graduated high school a few months ago. She's taking the year off and then going to get her degree."
"Good for her. I can't wait to meet her." Anthia smiled.
"I can't wait for Huey to meet her." Cindy grinned even wider.
"Please don't break my husband." Jazmine groaned. "One day he's just going to snap and they'll be nothing I can do but watch."
"Sit back and watch the show, girl." Cindy shrugged, making Anthia laugh. Jazmine was about to respond, but they quieted at the sound of knocking on the door.
"Are you ladies ready to see what we've found so far for the bride?" The consultant called.
"Yes!" Anthia and Jazmine answered for her.
Cindy chuckled. "Come on in." The consultant, Deborah, did so and entered with a handful of various long dresses on hangers. And Cindy had to admit... she did feel a hint of butterflies in the pit of her stomach at the thought of trying a wedding gown on.
"Okay!" Deborah began, after hanging each dress upon the hooks and closing the door shut again before turning back to Cindy. "Let's get started."
Riley's POV
"Put up or shut up, punk."
"…Fold."
"Pussy."
"Really nigga?"
"Call."
"He bluffin'!"
"Didn't you just fold?"
"So?"
"So worry about the money you're about to lose out on."
"Man bump this, call!"
"Nigga, you can't take back a fold!"
"Why? Let him lose his money."
"…You right."
"Can't we all just get along?" Hiro smirked, quietly folding as he placed his cards face-up. He along with Riley, Huey, and Caesar were currently in the basement of Granddad's house playing cards while having a few beers. After Cindy and the girls left, Riley figured he might as well follow suit and spend time with his niggas. They had finally gone to that arcade Caesar had mentioned a few weeks ago before eating out, going back to Granddad's to play video games, and now were sitting through their second round of poker.
"What were you saying about me bluffing?" Huey innocently asked Caesar.
"Man whatever." Caesar pouted at him taking away his money.
"Stone-ass-lookin' nigga." Riley smirked. "Bet I win next round."
"Put your money where your mouth is."
"Eww, nigga you gay."
"As much as I'd love to play another round, I should probably head home soon." Hiro spoke up while he texted away on his phone.
"Man what? Already?" Caesar questioned him. "It ain't even late yet! The girls ain't even home yet, bruh!"
"For real." Riley agreed with a furrowed brow.
"Guys, I'm still exhausted." Hiro chuckled tiredly. "I barely got three hours of sleep last night."
"If you don't Jackie-Chan it and man the hell up," Caesar rejected him with the shake of his head. "Deal the cards, Huey."
"Ceez!" Hiro groaned with a grin.
"The girls should be on their way back soon. Just leave when they get here. Tighten up, son." He dismissed as he started to accept the hand being dealt. Hiro glanced at the others in complaint, but Riley and Huey simply shrugged.
"You might as well stick around until they get back." Riley mused as he looked over his cards. "You never told us about the rest of your New York trip though."
"Or who caught you by the balls while you were there." Caesar added as Hiro glanced at his phone again, snorting at the comment. Hiro had just gotten back from a three-week tour gig in New York City that had apparently been pretty successful for him.
"Like I said before, it was dope as hell. We had an awesome turn-out at each performance, I got to network and meet a bunch of people, including the girl I'm talkin' to now." Hiro implied pointedly, just as Caesar was about to interject.
"Who's the lucky lady?" Caesar grinned. "Groupie or future wifey material?"
"Uhh, too early to tell." Hiro lifted a shoulder. "We're just chillin'… vibin' for now."
"Is she from New York or somewhere else?" Riley asked.
"She's living there right now."
"What part, Brooklyn?" Caesar demanded seriously, almost laying his cards down to squarely face Hiro.
"Queens."
"Oh." He responded in disappointment, turning back to his cards.
"She's visited Maryland before though. Woodcrest even." Hiro added, scratching the back of his head.
"Oh word? Recently?" Riley questioned.
"Uhh, it's been a few years."
"You got a picture?" Caesar asked curiously. "We need to see this chick."
"I don't have a picture of her on my phone yet." Hiro seemed to hedge. "But she's beautiful. Asian and bad with long silky hair, a tiny little body, and gorgeous dark eyes that get me everytime."
The description seemed to catch Huey's attention as he glanced up from his cards. "…Who is she?" He asked suspiciously, causing the others to look up as well.
Hiro seemed to fidget slightly at the question. "Sorry?" He replied in confusion.
Huey gave him a level stare. "What's her name?" He clarified, giving him a look that Riley was familiar with all too well.
The question seemed to stress Hiro much more than it should have as he fidgeted even more, clearly avoiding too much eye contact. "I just wanna let you know that she's changed." Hiro mumbled so quick Riley didn't catch it.
"What?" He leaned forward.
"Who is it?" Huey questioned again.
"And I didn't know who she was or what had happened until after we had already been intimate."
"Y'all got intimate? My mans!" Caesar exclaimed, lifting his hand up for a high-five. But Hiro ignored him, still staring at Huey's stoic face.
"Who… is it?" He asked again, unwavering.
Hiro sucked in a deep breath and let the answer fall out with his exhale. "Ming." He finally blurted.
It took a moment to register for Riley, but when it did he could hardly believe it as he sat there, dumbfounded. He turned to glance at Huey, whose face had hardened slightly at the reveal. Caesar looked confused by the whole thing, since he hadn't been there the summer of that dreaded kickball game all those years ago.
"Fuck, man…." Riley said in disbelief, not really knowing what else to say.
"I need another drink." Huey said more-so to himself, a rarity for him.
"Who's Ming?" Caesar asked them both.
"Long story." They replied simultaneously. Caesar turned to Hiro who put up his hands.
"I don't even know the full story." He shrugged.
"It's one for a different day." Huey commented, laying his cards down before getting up to grab another beer from the mini fridge.
"Definitely." Riley agreed. "That reminds me, I almost forgot something." He said, standing as well to go to the shelf across the room. He lifted the box that was lying on top and brought it back over to the table, setting it in the middle near the small jackpot of money.
"What's that?" Hiro asked, eager to change subjects.
"Just a lil somethin'-somethin' I picked up the other day." Riley smirked before lifting the lid, revealing a row of four nicely packed and rolled cigars.
"Ooooh shit!" Caesar exclaimed, quickly scooping one up.
"Damn Reez, where you get these at?" Hiro said with interest, picking one up and sniffing it.
"Y'all know how I do." Riley shrugged, pretending to be modest. Huey returned to the table and lifted one from the box, but not without raising his eyebrow as well.
"What's the occasion?"
"Sit yo ass down and I'll tell you." Riley smirked, taking his before sitting down again. Huey rolled his eyes but did so anyway.
"Can we start lighting this shit up or what?" Caesar already had his Zippo out and ready to go, the game clearly paused for the moment.
"Don't get the ashes everywhere, nigga." Riley told him, pulling an ashtray from the box and setting it on the table.
"Leggo." He smirked in return, starting to light up. Hiro had his own lighter to light his, offering it to Huey right after. Riley was almost surprised when he accepted it and started to light his own, as was everyone else.
"Look at my brotha, partakin' in shit." Caesar grinned, extending his lighter to Riley to use.
Huey rolled his eyes after he successfully lit his cigar, blowing out a small puff of smoke. "I'm assuming there's a reason."
"Whatever the reason is, I'm with it." Hiro said after a long drag. "These are dope."
"Word." Caesar stated, blowing out a cloud of smoke. "So what up, Reez? And what's up with the treat?"
Riley shrugged, puffing a bit on his own. "Y'all my niggas." He answered vaguely.
"Boy, we been your niggas." Caesar snorted.
"Practically blood." Hiro added.
"I'm waiting for the bomb to drop." Huey spoke dryly, giving him a look.
"No bomb, just a favor." Riley replied innocently.
"Exactly. What?" Huey prodded, looking ready for him to spit it out.
Riley smirked, first at him then at the others. "Even real niggas need they groomsmen."
He smirked even more in satisfaction at the look he got in return from his brother, clearly caught off guard.
"Yooo, time out!" Caesar said loudly, already hype. "You really asking us to be in the wedding? Your groomsmen, Reez?"
"Nah, I'm asking the brick wall over there." Riley quipped lightly. "And I prefer the term 'groom-niggas.'"
"That's tight, man. I've never been in a wedding before. Aside from DJ-ing obviously." Hiro grinned.
"Please, you still DJ-ing at the wedding. The hell you think this is?" Riley smirked. "All y'all gonna be put to work."
"Do your worst." Caesar egged him after letting out a large puff of smoke.
"Don't worry, I'll think of somethin' for you."
"Bachelor party, got it." He smirked instead.
"Man whateva." Riley rolled his eyes with a grin. He turned to Huey who was now glancing at him expectantly.
"Best man?" Riley stated in question, wanting to keep it brief and to the point.
"Done." Huey answered simply with a slight nod.
"Really, that's it between you two?" Hiro snickered at the brothers' exchange.
"What's understood doesn't need to be explained." Riley smirked while Huey shrugged.
"Y'all weird." Caesar grinned. "But for real, I'm pumped as hell. This is about to be epic."
"Damn straight." Hiro agreed. "Are Ed and Rummy gonna be in the wedding?"
"Please no." Huey muttered.
"They didn't wanna be in the wedding all like that, said they'd rather work. They're my honorary groom-niggas and hired security instead." Riley explained.
"Nothing better happen during their watch then. Otherwise they'll need 24/7 security from me."
"Who's gonna be the other bridesmaids?" Caesar asked, ignoring Huey.
"Jazmine obviously, Anthia, and her younger cousin that she invited."
"My baby's gonna be in the wedding?!" Caesar exclaimed.
"Who's her cuz?" Hiro asked over him.
"I only met her once a long time ago. She's a trip." Riley told him, turning to slyly look at his brother. "I'm sure y'all two will hit it off just fine."
Huey eyed him skeptically. "If she's anything like her cousin, I highly doubt it."
"You'll see." Riley smirked.
"I dunno about y'all, but I can't believe we're even sitting around talkin' about this, yo." Hiro said in between his smoke. "Riley getting serious? Proposin' and shit? Talkin' bout marriage?"
"Thought I'd never see the day, that's for sure." Huey commented.
"Feel real yet or nah?" Caesar grinned before taking a drag.
Riley smirked and rolled his eyes at his friends, in the midst of taking a few puffs of his own. "Listen niggas," He began, breathing out a small cloud. "I ain't worried about nothin'. I already know Cindy's the girl for me, she's havin' my kids, and shit's already real. I don't know how much realer it's supposed to get than that."
"Wait on it." Huey snorted, lifting his cigar to his lips.
"Spoken from the wise-ass nigga himself." Caesar approved, resting his cigar in the ashtray holder and picking up his bottle of beer. "But aye. Congrats man. And thanks."
"What he said." Hiro smiled, lifting his beer as well. "To the groomsmen."
"Groom-niggas." Riley corrected as he lifted his beer. Then he nudged his brother who had yet to follow suit. "Best nigga?" He smirked, nodding to his beer.
Huey finished taking a long drag off his cigar, holding in the smoke for a few moments while he slightly raised his bottle along with the others.
"To my sanity." He finally breathed out raspily.
Cindy's POV
Her mind wandered as she drove the car through the neighborhood while Jazmine and Anthia chattered excitedly to each other. She was only taking in snippets of their conversation as she was lost in her own thoughts.
"The most gorgeous one…"
"…my favorite!"
"So beautiful…."
"…only the first shop!"
Possibly the last. Cindy thought to herself, thinking about the amazing success they had at Deborah's bridal boutique, the first real dress store she'd ever been in let alone shopped in. She couldn't believe the beautiful selections they found, especially in the maternity section. Here she thought she'd have to get the most basic and simple dress, one that may just fit her. But damn… she was proved wrong.
To Cindy, she felt and looked beautiful, and dare she even think it, glowing. There was one dress in particular that stood out among the rest, that made her feel and think the way that she did. The butterflies she had felt when Deborah initially brought the dresses into the room reappeared and intensified the moment she looked in the mirror as she wore that dress. She couldn't turn away. Deborah looked in awe. Anthia and Jazmine both seemed to fan at their eyes. Cindy managed to keep her composure… until… Deborah went to grab a veil to put on her.
Cindy made them promise, even Deborah… not to tell anyone that she had shed a few tears along with them at the feeling she got as she stared at herself in the mirror… looking like an actual bride.
Cindy was in love with the dress. It was within the budget she wanted to spend on it, along with the alterations that would have to be made. She thought that the style was appealing and unique to her, almost like it was made for her. And dammit, she wanted more than anything to see Riley's reaction from down the aisle at the sight of her in that dress, just for him.
She was more than thankful that Deborah had agreed to hold the dress for her for up to two weeks. Cindy didn't want to be impulsive and buy the dress from the first store without checking anywhere else, but she couldn't leave it up to chance. Because she knew she would be heartbroken if she went back to find her dress gone.
Her dress…. She couldn't even lie, she was already claiming it.
"Cindy?"
"Hm?" She snapped out of her thoughts, glancing towards the passenger seat at Jazmine.
"When's the next time you want to go dress shopping? I'm free tomorrow if you want to shop local."
"Me too." Anthia added.
"Sure, we can check what's in the area sometime after brunch." Cindy agreed. "We also should probably start looking for bridesmaid dresses."
"Can't wait." Jazmine beamed.
"By the way, Lorena texted and told me that she'll be coming to Woodcrest soon, so we'll be able to shop with her too." Cindy grinned.
"How soon?" Jazmine asked, pretending to be nervous.
"Within the week she thinks." Cindy chuckled when Jazmine groaned. Her cousin had called her while they were in the dressing room to let her know she got her invitation and would be there, come hell or high water. She was completely over the moon and was even talking about getting to Woodcrest a few weeks early and then leaving after the wedding was over.
But Cindy didn't want to ruin that surprise to her friends just yet.
"Have you thought more about any particular colors?" Anthia questioned from the backseat.
"Just a little bit on the drive back." Cindy admitted, thinking back towards the dress. "I was thinking maybe champagne and burgundy?"
"Oh Cin, that sounds gorgeous." Jazmine gushed.
"Especially with that dress." Anthia commented. "The underlay shade of it would be perfect."
"I know." Cindy couldn't fully fight the smile. "But listen. Not a word of this to Riley or the boys. I don't want them to know I've been shopping just yet." She told them as she pulled up to the house.
"Absolutely." Jazmine replied, finishing a message on her phone. "I just texted my parents to let them know that we're back. Hopefully they can have Jamilah ready by the time we walk over there so we can get home."
"It's been a long and busy day." Anthia said as they all got out of the car. "I can't wait to go home and wind down."
"Who you tellin'?" Cindy agreed, stretching while they walked to the entrance. "I'm hoping for a massage tonight."
"I'm guessing we could all use one of those." Anthia chuckled.
"Add that to the list of things we need to plan tomorrow." Jazmine suggested with a smile.
"Hell yeah." Cindy grinned, opening the door and stepping into the foyer. She wrinkled her nose shortly after. "What's that smell?"
"It's not cigarettes." Anthia said, sniffing as well.
"It'd better not be." Jazmine frowned, closing the door behind her. After passing by the empty living room, the smell got slightly stronger. "I think it's coming from the basement?" She said, not seeing or hearing any noise coming from the kitchen. Cindy led the way to the downstairs door to open it, getting hit in the face with the smell once she did so.
"Yep." She confirmed taking a step back.
"Ugh, really?" Jazmine sighed. "I'm not going down there and neither are you. It's probably like a chimney down there." She said, walking in front of her to the open door. "BOYS! We're back, come up here please!" She called down loudly.
"Coming angels!" They heard Caesar's voice call back, making them roll their eyes with grins. A few minutes later, Huey, Riley, Caesar, and Hiro emerged from the basement smelling like smoke and a lingering hint of beer.
"It's a good thing I drove." Anthia smirked, playfully glaring at Caesar.
"What were you guys smoking down there?" Jazmine asked Huey, covering her nose in the process.
"Hooked em up with some of that good-good, ya feel me?" Riley winked.
"He bought us cigars." Huey rolled his eyes at his antics, starting to head towards the door. "You ready to get Jamilah?"
"Very." She nodded, walking along with him and the rest of the group.
"We'll probably head out too then." Caesar yawned, wrapping an arm around Anthia.
"Same." Hiro stifled his own yawn. Riley and Cindy followed them all to the door. When they got there, they smiled at seeing Tom and Sarah already sitting on their front steps with Jamilah across the street.
"Oh that reminds me, I'll be right back. I need to grab somethin' for Mila." Riley said, mainly to Cindy before he headed back down the hall.
"Okay?" Cindy chuckled, starting to hug Caesar, Anthia, and Hiro before following Huey and Jazmine across the street.
"Mama, Daddy!" Jamilah exclaimed, seeing her parents first as they approached. Sarah who was holding her set her down to run towards them. She was dressed cutely in a faint pink cable-knit sweater and white print leggings with small gray boots. Her hair was pulled up into one large bun at the top of her head.
"Hey sweetie!" Jazmine smiled, scooping her up to hug her. Huey kissed her forehead.
"Did you have fun?"
"Uh-huh!" She nodded happily, just before noticing Cindy behind them. "Hi, Aunt Cindy!" She smiled, waving over her mother's shoulder.
"Hey babygirl!" Cindy slid in between Jazmine and Huey to give the child a kiss. "How's my favorite girl?"
"Good!" She gave her crooked grin. "Where's Unca Reezy?"
"Right here, baby." Riley spoke up, coming in behind Cindy with his hands behind his back. Cindy moved out of his way so he could steal a kiss. "Hey princess, I missed you." He grinned, taking a step back.
"I missed you too, Unca Reezy!" She beamed up at him.
Riley cleared his throat and glanced at Cindy, hands still behind his back. "You got your phone on you?"
"Always." She said in confusion, trying to eye what he had but he was no longer focused on her, now turning to Jazmine.
"If you could put my niece down for a minute Jazz, I gotta talk to her real quick. And you may wanna get this on camera." He smirked at her. She and Huey shared a look, but she set Jamilah down anyway and they stepped back out of the way. Riley squatted down at Jamilah's level, still concealing what he had for her, but it was then that Cindy and the others could see the object and smiled. Cindy instantly pulled out her camera and started recording.
"Now Mila, I got an important question to ask you alright?" Riley began, already grinning at his niece.
"Okay." She replied easily, brushing her bangs out of her eyes.
"You know Aunt Cindy and I are getting married soon, right?" He asked.
"Yes, and then having my cousins!" She beamed happily.
"Right." Riley chuckled. "It's gonna be a big day with a lot goin' on, but I really want you to be there, okay?"
"I'll be there Unca Reezy, I promise!" She assured him sweetly.
"Aw, thank you baby." Riley grinned widely. "That means a lot to me. But I have one more thing that I need from you on that day."
"What is it?" She asked, blinking her large doe eyes at him.
Riley took one of her hands lightly in the midst of shifting himself so that he was kneeling down on one knee. Then he brought the other hand from behind his back to reveal the small bouquet of pink roses he had gotten for her.
"Will you be my flower girl, baby?" He asked her with a big smile, handing her the flowers. Jamilah's eyes and face had already lit up when she saw the flowers. When he spoke those words, it almost took a moment to understand before her face lit up even more if that were possible. She was eagerly nodding her head at once, accepting the flowers before bouncing into her uncle in a hug that nearly tackled him.
"Yes, yes, yes!" She exclaimed with joy, slightly bouncing up and down.
"Oh thank you, thank you, thank you!" Riley hugged her back while he kissed all over her cheek.
"Darn it, Riley." Jazmine muttered beside Cindy, making her turn to see her wiping beneath her eyes. "This is like my fourth time today."
"New record. Usually it's over that amount." Huey smirked from beside her.
"Shut up, Huey." Jazmine swatted at him while her parents and Cindy laughed.
"That was really sweet." Sarah smiled, still watching the two have their moment. "Now all you have to do is find a ring bearer."
"Oh Cindy, how about this week we get together with Trey's father?" Jazmine suggested.
"That's a good idea, we should mention it to him soon." Cindy agreed.
"I'm sorry, who?" Huey rose an eyebrow to the two of them.
"Aye, what did y'all just say?" Riley seemed to hear that as he was now staring down Jazmine.
"Don't worry about it." She brushed off.
"I'mma worry about it-"
"Are you and Mom coming to brunch tomorrow, Daddy?" Jazmine ignored Riley as she spoke to her parents.
"Uhh well honey, we're probably gonna have to miss out again." Tom replied sheepishly.
"Why though? This is like the third time." Jazmine questioned.
"We're sorry pumpkin, but there's been a reason for each time. It's not that we don't want to come." Tom tried to explain.
"Okay, well what's the reason this time?"
Tom seemed to sweat. "Oh… well um, it's uh… Sarah?" He rubbed the back of his neck and glanced towards his wife who was now shooting daggers at him.
"Just another meeting out of town, honey." She said smoothly.
"For both of you?" Jazmine asked, unconvinced.
"Unfortunately. Lawyering stuff, insurance, 401K, the usual. There's a lot to keep track of and as usual, I'm the glue." Sarah seemed to bare a forced smile in Tom's direction before turning back. "But it is getting late and we've got an early morning tomorrow. We'll text you when we can." She said, seeming to usher Tom to the door.
"Okay?"
"Bye, sweetie!" Sarah blew her an air kiss. "We love you!"
"Love you all!" Tom added as they waved, heading inside.
"Love you guys too…." Jazmine waved slightly before turning around, hearing the click of the door close moments after.
"Was that weird or was it just me?" She asked the others.
"Weird." All but Jamilah replied.
"Is your dad on that good-good?" Riley questioned, semi-serious.
Jazmine gave him a look but didn't comment. "Oh well. We should probably head home. I'll take my daughter now." She said, reaching so Riley could hand her back to her.
"I'll see you later, Flower Girl." Riley told his niece before kissing her cheek and handing her to her mother.
"Okay! Bye Unca Reezy!" Jamilah could barely contain her smile as she waved her bouquet.
"And I'll text you later about setting up a meet this week." Jazmine told Cindy quietly, trying to be subtle in front of the boys.
"Who?" Huey demanded again.
"Oh uh-uh! Y'all have any type of meeting and you KNOW I'm there!" Riley spoke up loudly. Cindy sighed.
No such luck.
We're back into this. And I'm so glad. I've missed this story so much y'all don't even know.
But how's life everybody? Mine's been crazy, busy, up, down, fast, exhausting, wild, unpredictable and everything in between. Trying to be patient and find the moment in between all the crazy where I actually have a moment to breathe and take my time to write. It doesn't come as often as I like, but once I'm in my zone, it's so hard to stay away. Because I don't want to disappear again. Life has just been a rollercoaster lately, my goodness. I miss this site soooo much.
Disclaimers: I own nothing. Pinky swear.
Another special shout-out to clockwork'sFinest for the realest of help for the very first scene of this chapter with the disastrous wedding planner. I don't know if any of you watched the last season Big Brother (18) on CBS (my favorite reality show ever), but the description and character traits for the wedding planner was highly inspired by one this past season's housemates. Let me know if you guess, I'll tell you if you're right (mini-disclaimer: I did like the housemate I'm referring to and don't think she has a mean or ignorant bone in her body, but her mannerisms and some of the stereotypical blonde-moments that she had on a regular basis were OMG-worthy).
Ish is getting real over here. #HereComesTheFreemans. What types of crazy shenanigans are you all hoping for? I've got some fun ones up my sleeve but I'm always interested to hear and take suggestions. Let me know!
As per usual, the next update will mostly be from Friends First, Benefits Second unless I hit a massive writer's block and I bounce back to this one, but I'll try really hard not to let that happen. I miss both of my stories and need to get back on my grind, dammit! One day :)
More coming soon! Thanks as always for reading and supporting this story the way y'all do. So thankful and blessed. Love y'all.
~Schweetie