Love Scars 3 by Trippie Red "No matter what, when we together, bae we shining; To the top, baby, we climbing, yeah"

"You guys are about six and a half months in your pregnancy, so far everything is going smoothly," the doctor explained to the couple. Sage was propped up on the chair with a cool substance on her stomach, while Dave sat beside her on a stool much smaller than him. Dr. Chopra went over a few things on the paper attached to the clipboard she was holding. "Are you guys ready to find out the gender? I'm not sure if I made it clear earlier in your pregnancy but by 14 weeks the gender was detectable."

"Well, Doctor the reason why we haven't mentioned the gender is because we want to wait," Sage replied. She caught a glimpse of her boyfriend and noticed a confused look on his face.

"No, I wanna know now," was his retort. The doctor realized the couple weren't on the same page and offered a polite smile. "Well, let me step out and give you guys time to talk it over." She felt appreciative of that plan and shot her a thank you before the doctor stalked out of the room. As soon as the door shut behind her she swatted Dave's arm, causing him to roll his eyes.

"Who is carrying this baby, Dave?"

"Who put it in you?" He pushed his stool closer to the bed like chair that she was on and came face to face with hers. He could smell her cherry chapstick and softly pecked her lips before she turned away with an attitude. "You gon' kiss me," Dave muttered and pulled her face towards his and kissed her again.

"It's no time for this--" She started but he ignored her and placed another soft kiss at the corner of her mouth. He waited for her to speak so he could kiss her again but Sage sat up deterring his plan. She held up her small hands and pressed his chest when he stood up.

"That don't stop me," he held both wrists with his big hand and kissed the side of her face, pecking all the way to the center of her lips. She tried freeing herself from his hold but he was much stronger and held on.

"How're we gonna get anywhere, babe? Seriously!"

"What's there to figure out? We finna find out what's in the oven," he crooked his neck to kiss hers. He let go of her wrists and opted for her legs instead, pressing them down so she couldn't move anywhere. "As soon as she comes back in", he mumbled against her. He took in her smell of expensive perfume which only made him wanna suck on her neck more.

It was hard but she managed to tug his face up to hers but instead of waiting for her to talk he leaned forward and gently bit her bottom lip. "Why you so cute for?"

"Alright, fuck you." She was so over trying to talk to him and she was ready to go home and shower. "I'm wasting my time here, clearly."

Dave burst out chuckling, amused at the pessimistic frame of mind she was displaying. "Mama, relax..."

"This is important and you don't even wanna hear me out. Just being controlling per usual."

"What you mean?" He let go of her leg and she raised an eyebrow.

"Not just this but controlling everything like when I eat or go to bed. You even gave me a curfew."

"I did?"

"Babe, you literally get mad when I come home past twilight hours..." Sage was exasperated, all his stressing made her want to rip her out. "Plus, you have my location you need to loosen up. I'm a lot more careful now."

"Okay, I could be a little controlling..." Dave admitted but Sage shook her head.

"A lot."

A chuckle escaped his lips before he brought her hand to his mouth. He brushed his lips on her soft skin before he spoke. "It's cause I love you and the baby. I'm anxious to be honest."

"I am too... but I need you to let me breathe a little. Let me have a voice. This is a partnership," she took her hand and ran it down the side of his face where his tattoos were. This month his face tattoos were her favorite. Before falling asleep she found herself tracing his tattoos, gravitating to the ones by his temple.

"You right, I'm sorry, baby. I'm so used to us following my lead."

"I know, but this is so different. We gotta compromise. So what're we gonna do? You wanna know now and I wanna wait..." her nose began to wrinkle at the thought of trying to meet her babyfather in the middle.

"Well, I wanted to know so I could start doing the room up, but we can make it gender neutral and wait," Dave leaned down again, his lips centimeters from hers. "Now can I get a kiss? A real one?"

"That sounds like a great idea," she wrapped her arms around his neck and planted a kiss on his puckered lips. She deepened it before pulling away. "How's that for a real kiss?"

***

The smell of their room was brought on by the sugar vanilla candles in the corners, Dave's cologne and Sage's favorite perfume. It was a hot summer night but the pair was inside, cuddled up together and enjoying conversation about their trip to Bora Bora. David wrapped his arms around her small frame, holding her close and rubbing the stomach holding his child. The conversation progressed to moving to the small island for a little bit once the baby was born. They felt it was appropriate since she finally finished senior year and he was distancing himself from the gang. Eventually, he wants to leave the streets completely but he and Aubrey had so much business to take care of before moving on. He knew it was easier said than done but this life was a trap and he knew it since the day he joined. He didn't care at first because he thought street business was gonna be his forever hustle and knew in a sense he'd always be a part of it but he had to grow up at some point, nothing was keeping him.

"Dave, I don't feel scared anymore." Her words cut through the air like a knife in butter. The silence wasn't heavy, her words were. They were deep, but in a good way. She was sure of herself more than ever before and she wanted to let him know, but she didn't know the affect it had on him.

"What that man Bob Marley said?" He said quietly, his breath tickling her ear. Sage giggled while snuggling closer into his hold and sang.

"Don't you worry about a thing..."

"Because every little thing is gonna be alright," he chimed in.

***

Ella plopped down on the Central Park bench, taking in the seemingly peaceful night but really her mind was at war. She still had some conflicting feelings about her relationship with Marcus and ultimately his death. Sometimes she took these walks in the park alone, welcomed by the lampposts that were emitting white lights, hugging her wherever she stepped and the looming oak trees, just to sit ponder.

A single tear trailed down her cheek as she remembered time spent with him and it quickly became angry tears when she was reminded of his position in Sage's abduction. Everything could have gone wrong and she would have blamed herself. All she could do was be grateful the Universe didn't give her more than she could handle. Suddenly, she heard light footsteps and caught sight of a shadowy figure coming from around the corner. She wasn't surprised as the city never sleeps, she just hoped they'd keep walking by.

"Aubrey?" He was walking by, hands shoved in his jeans. He turned his head once he heard Ella call out his name.

"Lala whatchu doin' here?" He stepped to the light and found himself standing in front of her. To him, she was so stunning and he couldn't help getting lost in her brown eyes and pink stained lips.

"Nothing, what're you doing?"

"Just thinking, taking a walk." It was funny how they were connected without knowing it. Their feelings so strong separately but somehow still found themselves a few inches away from one another, lost in each other. In that moment they were dating but it was like they were falling in love all over again.

"Can I think with you?" She offered a small smile.

Aubrey peered down at her and shot one back with his hand out. "Come, baby." And Ella couldn't wipe the smile off her face and frankly, she didn't want to.

Endnote: Just a short filler cause I wanted to update for you guys. What y'all think about everyone right now?