drop an emoji in the comments, if you're here!

"Lei Lei?" Maj laid on top of Soleil, peeking over her. She hummed as she laid on her stomach, with her eyes still closed. "You sleep?"

Soleil giggled and turned over on her back, wrapping her arms around Semaj's body. "No, I'm awake. Good morning," she groggily spoke, kissing the top of his head a few times. She let go of her grasp on him, beginning to stretch.

"Daddy is cooking," Semaj told her, now sitting on the side of her. Soleil sat up, grabbing her phone to check the time.

"Is he now?"

Through her cracked screen, she saw a few text messages from her friends and a missed call from her sister. She sighed in annoyance, examining the cracks in her phone.

The one time she took her case off, to clean her phone and forgot to put it back on, she ended up dropping and cracking it last night. However, she would do it all over again, as Semaj's life was way more important than a material thing that could easily be replaced.

She would have to go to the mall tomorrow to buy herself a new phone since a majority of the stores were closed for New Year.

"He's making burritos!" Semaj exclaimed as Soleil got up from the bed, sliding her phone back onto the nightstand.

"Ooh, yum! Did you ask him to make that?" Soleil poked his cheeks, causing him to smile and hum in response, dramatically nodding his head. "Great choice, Dooda. I like burritos," she said, beginning to make the bed.

"Semaj!" Siraj called him from the kitchen, Semaj slid off of the bed, Soleil softly laughing to herself as she watched him.

Semaj walked into the kitchen, where Siraj was placing his booster seat in the chair, his food already fixed for him.

Siraj looked behind him and saw Semaj approaching, he picked him up and sat him down in the booster seat. The breakfast burrito was already cut into sizes suitable for him, his paw patrol cup filled with fruit punch Minute Maid that was watered down just a little with water.

"Let me know when you done, okay?" Siraj said, walking around the counter to grab the plate he fixed for Soleil, along with the bottle of cranberry juice she usually drinks.

He walked into the bedroom, seeing that she wasn't in the room. Through the crack under the bathroom door, he saw the light on. He sat her plate and her drink down on the dresser.

He approached the bathroom door and knocked, "Bae," he called out to her.

"What?" she replied from behind the door, making Siraj twist up his face a little as he leaned away from the door.

"Excuse me?" he crazily looked at the door. He waited a few seconds for her response but one never came, instead, the door slowly opened as she stood on the other side brushing her teeth.

"Yes, my love?" she raised her eyebrows, smirking.

"Oh okay," Siraj sized her, giving her a funny look. She laughed and waved him off, returning to the sink to spit. "Your food on the dresser," he told her, pointing behind him as he peeked into the bathroom.

"Okay," she said, before rinsing her mouth out with water.

Siraj started to walk away until something else came to mind. "Oh and I ordered you a new phone, it should be here Monday."

Soleil paused as she was wiping her face, shooting him a look. Before she could respond, he quickly walked away. She followed behind him, grabbing his arm to pull him back towards her, she stepped in front of him, placing her hand on her hip.

"Soleil, I'm not about to argue with you over this, ma," Siraj deeply sighed, already aware of the conversation that was about to take place.

"I was going to buy it myself, Siraj. You didn't have to do that, you spent enough money on me already." She argued, pointing at the locket necklace.

Siraj pulled at his chin hair, as he tilted his head. "Yo' past niggas really didn't spoil you, huh? Pathetic," he shook his head, Soleil's mouth falling agape. She started to playfully hit him, as he laughed. "Keep on, I'ma tear yo' ass up like I did last night,"

Soleil paused, giving him an amused smile. Last night replaying in her mind. After they had gotten home, and Siraj putting a very much tired out Semaj to sleep, they enjoyed the rest of their night together.

The sex was too intense, that Soleil had to bite down on a pillow to keep herself from moaning so loudly, not wanting to wake Semaj up, even despite his room being on the other side of the apartment. And Siraj's little threats of her waking his son up, only made her more aroused.

"Don't threaten me with a good time—nah nigga! Don't try to deflect from the conversation!" she shoved him, as he silently laughed to himself.

"Bae, you tossed yo' shit last night because of my son, at least let me show my appreciation. Dang, stop tryna be miss independent all the time," Siraj side-eyed her as he passed by her to sit on the bed. Soleil grabbed the plate from off of the dresser, she picked up half of the burrito that was cut in half, taking a bite.

"Thank you, I don't think I have ever seen you cook anything before," Soleil said, covering her mouth. "Was starting to wonder if you could for real,"

"Right, I told you I don't like to but I know there ain't shit open so I might as well. Plus you're always cooking for us, so I wanted to give you a break," he replied. Soleil simply hummed, taking another bite of the burrito. She set the plate down on the dresser again, walking over to the nightstand to grab her phone to call her sister back.

She went to dial Selah's number, returning to the dresser to take another bite of her food. Siraj laid back on the bed, scrolling on through his feed on IG. "Hello?" Selah answered after the second ring.

"Good morning sissy," Soleil greeted her, putting the phone on speaker, and setting it down on Siraj's stomach. He quickly passed her a funny look, holding a slight smirk on his face. She grabbed the plate and got onto the bed, laying on her side as she propped herself up with her arm. "Did you mean to call me?"

"I did, daddy wants us to stop by whenever we get a chance. He called me early this morning," Selah informed her, Soleil threw her head back as she started to moan a little, her taste buds exploding with delight at the different flavors. "Soleil, I know you and Siraj are not being nasty while you're on the phone with me!"

The couple burst into a fit of laughter, Soleil slapping her hand down on the bed a few times. "No! I'm eating, Selah. Siraj made me a burrito and it's so good," she told her once their laughter died down. "But okay, you can come this way whenever you're ready. I'll send you his address,"

"Bring Antonio and Kinsley too!" Siraj added as Soleil begin to smirk.

"Okay, I'll be there in about an hour," she said, Soleil replied with an 'okay' and disconnected the call. She went to her text messages and sent the address, before replying to the group chat with Keia and Joziah.

Soleil relaxed back on the sofa, her leg crossed over the other as she shook her foot, a habit that she found herself doing whenever she was waiting. Selah sat next to her, occupied with her phone. Their dad sat across from them on the other sofa, patiently waiting on Vanessa.

The two girls were sure they knew what conversation was going to take place. However, it did catch them off guard that Xavier had called them over, instead of Vanessa. Xavier usually avoided confrontation and didn't care to sit down and talk out their problems.

Vanessa walked into the living room and sat down next to Xavier. She cleared her throat and scratched behind her ear, shifting a little.

"Your mom told me what happened yesterday," Xavier finally spoke. Soleil and Selah exchanged looks, Soleil deeply sighing. "I can't say I approve of how the situation was handled but I understand your concerns. I have some skepticism as well, we've talked to her this morning and she's willing to take a DNA test."

"We're glad that Soleil's comments from yesterday haven't caused her to change her mind about letting us see the baby." Vanessa scoffed, tucking her hands in her lap as she rolled her neck a little.

"You got an issue with me?" Soleil raised an eyebrow, giving her a weird look. "Speak up, because you're too grown to be throwing tantrums like a child. You're acting way too naïve in this situation,"

"Who are you talking to?" Vanessa sat up, beginning to frown.

"You are acting naïve. I get it...you hope this baby is related to us because then you'll have a piece of your son left in this world. But don't let that blind you from thinking logically and receiving the truth. You're not just supposed to take her word for it because Xahir's not here. He's not here to confirm nor deny it, so you should want that reassurance mama. I agree Soleil came off a little too harsh, and her delivery wasn't in great taste but can you blame her?" Selah added her input, siding with Soleil.

"What reason would she have to lie for? I don't understand why she would lie to us about something that serious." Vanessa argued.

"Who knows, but like I said yesterday, she talked to you multiple times before and not once said anything. Eight freaking months, she has kept that secret from us." Soleil shrugged. "If that DNA test comes back as a match and Xahir is the father of that baby, then I will apologize and admit I was wrong. Otherwise, I stand firm on my stance."

"Soleil, sweetheart, you've got to cut the girl some slack. She was grieving as well, this has been tough on her too. She lost the father of her child, she has to raise this baby by herself." Xavier replied, making vague hand gestures.

"You don't think I know that? I'm not invalidating how she's feeling. I know she was grieving, and I do feel bad that this baby is going to possibly grow up without a father but you have to acknowledge her lack of communication with us. And that's what I'm trying to get her to understand." Soleil snapped, cutting her eyes at Vanessa who was staring at her with a hardened expression.

"Excuse me for being a little excited about becoming a grandmother,"

Selah frowned, curling her lip up a little. "But you're already a grandmother," she harshly spat. The room fell silent as Selah, Soleil, and Xavier stared at Vanessa.

Selah scoffed a laugh, as she shifted on the sofa, clasping her hands together. "You know, I get it ma. You don't have the best relationship with your own children, and you didn't get a chance to create the bond you wanted with Kinsley because we're not in the same state. You're looking to have that special bond with this baby, to make up for the time you lost with us." Selah started to read her, Soleil shook her head, letting go of a heavy sigh.

"Selah...just let it go," Soleil mumbled, looking down as she picked at the fabric of her distressed jeans.

"No, she needs to hear this. She needs to know that it isn't our fault why there's a disconnect between her and us. You weren't there for half of our childhood and then half of our teenage years. In and out of our lives—we didn't have daddy there because he was too busy worrying about you. When you came back and saw that we were doing fine without you, you felt like you weren't needed and felt as if we didn't want a relationship with you—you pulled away from us!" Selah raised her voice, now becoming angry as she pointed her finger at Vanessa.

"Yeah we had grandma Nadine to step in and raise us while you were away in rehab, but that's nothing compared to having our mother in our lives. We wanted you to be there and you weren't, now you have the audacity to throw a hissy fit when we don't agree with you on something? Your youngest child was living in that house by herself for two months, on the verge of giving into suicide and instead of being a parent, you have the neighbors—strangers checking up on your child. Even though I was grieving as well, I still made sure to call my sister every single day and check on her. She should not have to feel like she's going through this alone when she has a family who literally has lost the same person."

"This family has not always been perfect, but man," Selah bitterly laughed, shaking her head. "Xahir's death only made us more dysfunctional. The only time we ever come together is for holidays, otherwise, we only speak through calls and text messages. Aren't we supposed to grieve as a family? Why does it feel like it's a competition of who's grieving the worst? We lost our brother and y'all lost a son, but at the end of the day, he was important to all of us." Selah finished, gesturing her hand in a square between the four of them.

Vanessa sniffled, wiping her now teary eyes with the back of her hand. She got up and walked out of the living, leaving the trio to sit in silence. Xavier huffed as he pushed himself off of the sofa, "You know that is a touchy subject for your mother." he said also walking out of the living room to check on Vanessa.

Soleil rested her head back on the sofa, staring up at the ceiling. "Why does it feel like it's them versus us all the time?" she wondered out loud, Selah clenched her jaw a little, shaking her leg as she was still seething.

"Because it is," she responded, flipping her hair over her shoulder. "I love them to death, but man they do a shitty job at being parents sometimes."

Soleil twisted her lips to the side, as a thought crossed her mind. "What do you think grandma would say right now if she were still here?" she questioned her sister.

"I don't know, but she wouldn't approve of this." Selah answered her, getting up from the sofa. "Let's go," she reached down to grab the keys off of the coffee table.

Soleil picked her head up, looking at her sister. "We're not going to wait for them?" she raised an eyebrow, Selah immediately shaking her head 'no' in response.

"Nope, if they want to have another conversation then they'll let us know. They have until Sunday," Selah told her, as Soleil got up to follow behind her. The girls walked out of the house, not bothering to bid a farewell to their parents.

They got into Soleil's car, Selah in the driver's seat as Soleil got into the passenger. As Selah pulled out of the driveway and onto the street, Soleil texted Siraj to let him know that they would be returning soon.

"Can we go get flowers to put on Xahir's grave?" Soleil asked before sneezing into the crease of her arm. Selah raised her eyebrows, sneaking a glance over at her.

"Of course...have you been there any time since the funeral?"

"No..." Soleil trailed off, locking her phone. "Didn't really want to go alone,"

"Okay, we'll go to that flower shop next to the barbershop he use to go to,"

The next twenty minutes, the girls listened and sang along to the music that played. Siraj texted Soleil back, letting her know that they were playing the game as Semaj and Kinsley played.

Selah finally pulled up to the flower shop, parking in the same graveled parking lot. She killed the engine before they got out and started to walk towards the shop.

"The barbershop always crowded," Selah mumbled eyeing the few guys that were outside waiting. "Didn't Xahir have to schedule his next appointments the day he went in to get a haircut cause they were always booked?"

Soleil nodded as she softly laughed, they could feel eyes on them as they passed by the men.

"What's up, Soleil?" The familiar voice making Soleil's skin crawl, the girls looked behind them to see Elias coming out of the barbershop with his brothers.

Selah instantly turned around, as her thumb was placed on top of mace that was attached to Soleil's keychain. "Back the fuck up, before I mace your stupid ass. Soleil told me everything you've been doing and the only thing that's keeping your punk ass alive is the fact that I have a child to raise." Selah snapped, as Soleil grabbed her arm to pull her back a little. Elias jerked his head back in disbelief, as his brothers and the other men looked on in awe.

"She didn't tell you that I apologized for all that too, didn't she?" Elias tilted his head, shooting Soleil a quick glance. His brothers tried pulling him away, but he shrugged them off.

"Your apology was in the form of gaslighting, please save that bullshit for the birds." Soleil scoffed a laugh.

Elias took a step closer, twisting up his face. "How did I gasli—" he tried to say until their ears started to ring with the buzzing sound of the taser that Selah grabbed from Soleil's keychain.

"Take another step closer to her and I will light you the fuck up out this bitch!" Selah warned him, continuing to hold down on the button on the taser. "Get the fuck back!"

Selah's loud voice started to draw the attention of those inside of the barbershop, Elias brothers grabbed him, forcefully pulling him away this time. "Come on bruh, you've gotta let that shit with her go, you ain't gone be satisfied until you fuck up your reputation." one of his brothers said.

"He might as well kiss that reputation goodbye too! Cause believe while I'm here, she gone get that protective order against him!" Selah rolled her neck, as Soleil tugged on her arm to walk away. Selah let Soleil drag her away towards the flower, but not before shooting one last look behind her to make sure that they weren't following them.

Later on after Soleil and Selah went to go buy flowers to put on Xahir's grave, they finally returned to Siraj's apartment. Unfortunately they weren't able to go to the gravesite, because it started to rain. They decide that they would get up early tomorrow morning to do it.

On their way back, the sisters were contacted by their cousins to make plans for the club later tonight.

Selah hadn't been out clubbing in awhile, nor had she seen her cousins in a little minute. Antonio agreed that he would stay over Siraj's house with Kinsley, wanting her to spend as much time as she needed with her sister.

He knew that his wife had missed her sister dearly, especially when she decided to fly out that thanksgiving week when she wasn't supposed to. Selah knew that her sister needed her, and she couldn't bear being away from her another minute while she was going through her mental breakdown.

"Siraj, I was only gone for a couple of hours, why do you have to be so dramatic?" Soleil chuckled, as Siraj continued to plant kisses all over her face.