𝚃𝚆𝙾 𝙳𝙰𝚈𝚂 𝙻𝙰𝚃𝙴𝚁

𝙵𝚁𝙸𝙳𝙰𝚈

𝙹𝚄𝙻𝚈 𝟸𝙽𝙳

"Preciate you, sis." Priest said to Yazmine who had just braided his hair. "I know Cherish fashion show and grand opening tomorrow, so I needed my shit done."

"You're coming?" Yazmine smiled. "That's what's up."

"She told me to stay away from her like that's going to happen, but I'll always support her and her accomplishments. This may be my first time going, but that didn't mean I wasn't happy or didn't support her. You know better than anyone how happy I was for her. Ten stores at the age of 26, and she just made 26 not even 2 months ago, is next level. From here on out, it doesn't matter how things are with us. I'm going to support her through anything." Priest spoke truthfully.

"That's the Soul I know and love. You were entitled to feel the way you felt, but she's my cousin. I don't want too much hurt to fall upon her. I do apologize for basically cutting you off. You never did that when things were... well, you know. Between Omari and I. You stayed neutral. What I don't like is how everyone is suddenly turning on her." Yazmine said while packing up her hair products since she was at Priest's house.

"What you mean turning on her?" Priest frowned.

"Her best friend turned on her. I don't care what anyone says, Paris is a fucking snake. Cherish may be too nice to beat her ass, but I will. I never trusted her, and I always got the feeling she wanted everything my cousin has." Yazmine frowned.

"My baby changed. She wasn't never that damn nice."

"Having kids changed her. Specifically, having Honesti changed her. I won't tell you the details because that's her business and she will tell you herself if she wants. I will say she went through a lot during that pregnancy and after having Honesti."

"I didn't know that." Priest said.

"You don't know a lot. She will hate me for telling you and which I'm about to kick my own ass; but she feels as if she doesn't deserve you anymore. That's all I'mma say, and I don't want to hear your response." Yazmine said, which had Priest wondering if that's why Cherish couldn't say how she still feels about him. "Anyway, I already named Paris. Your best friend seems to treat her differently, in the sense of not saying anything to her. She told me about what Marcus said. While that doesn't classify as him turning on her, it doesn't change that he was willing to hurt Cherish in order to protect Julissa. I just don't like it."

"Y'all still close as ever." Priest smiled.

"Always will be." Yazmine said before her phone started vibrating against the table. She grabbed it and once she read the screen; she started smiling.

"Who got you smiling like you won the lottery?" Priest asked.

"No one." Yazmine told Priest before responding to Hendrix's text, who has been texting and calling the past couple of days. Hendrix was flirty, but the non-personal conversations they have via text or over the phone have been something she's been liking so far.

"You know you can always talk to me. That shit ain't changed."

"I know that for sure. I'm just trying to get a read on things before I talk about it." Yazmine sighed. She hadn't even told Cherish about Hendrix yet because she wanted to see how things will play out first. While she wasn't about to hop into a relationship, she still wanted to get a read on things first.

"So, where Cherish at right now?"

"Not you tryna keep tabs on my cousin." Yazmine laughed. "I actually don't know. Between y'all spending family time with your daughters, she's been busy finalizing things, so she might be at her store."

"Here." Priest handed Yazmine six crispy blue faces. She looked at him like he lost his mind. This wasn't the first time Priest tried to overpay her. Even when she declines, he would somehow manage to sneak the money into her purse.

"That hairstyle is barely sixty dollars. Stop playing with me, Soul." Yazmine pushed the money away.

Before Priest could respond, they both heard the front door of his house open, then close. Truth, Shooter, and Rarri all came walking in. Priest used that moment to subtlety place the money in Yazmine's purse while her focus was shifted. Suddenly, her mood had changed and Priest noticed. Neither of the three who just walked in noticed that Yazmine was there until walking further in. She quickly put her head down and continued packing up.

"Yooooo! Waddup, sis." Shooter spoke as he hugged Yazmine.

"Hey, lil ugly." Yazmine hugged him back, then hugged Rarri.

Yazmine hadn't looked at Truth, not once. She was tempted. So tempted. But she didn't. She felt his eyes on her, and it was almost impossible for her not to look at him just once. Her heart was yearning for her to, but she'd be damned. Each men wore a type of cologne that smells good as hell, but it was easy to differentiate which one Truth was wearing. She remembered that being his favorite scent. It was L'IMMENSITÉ by Louis Vuitton. She remembered how she used to run her tongue along his neck as he gripped her waist firmly. How her nose would bury as deep as it would go in the crook of his neck as the fragrance engulfed her senses. She missed it. She misses him.

"What you doing all the way over here? Usually you make Soul ass come to you." Shooter chuckled.

"I was already out." Yazmine shrugged. "Y'all be safe, I'm about to head out."

As Yazmine was walking past Rarri who sat next to Truth, he decided to be funny and trip her, causing Yazmine to fall on Truth. Though her hands on his shoulders caught her from falling completely, his hands as many times before gripped her waist, sending a shock through her body. That was the first time she looked at Truth since he walked in the door. He was looking good. Smelling good. And it felt good just being in close proximity to him.

She quickly moved before slapping Rarri upside the head. "I'mma fuck your non-rapping ass up!" Yazmine playfully rolled her eyes.

"Damn, sis." Rarri laughed. "You ain't have to violate me like that."

"Nah, you got me falling on people and shit. Stop playing so much." Yazmine was serious, but you could hear the hint of playfulness in her voice.

"You're not going to say your bad or anything?" Truth asked Yazmine with attitude.

"The fuck am I saying my bad for? Your brother tripped me. I lost my footing and fell on you. That's not my fault. It's Rarri's." Yazmine frowned. She took a deep breath and prepared to walk away until Truth spoke again.

"I got word some nigga was at your shop late at night." Truth had a frown on his face as she snapped her head in his direction.

"You forgot what you texted me?" Yazmine rolled her eyes. "Yes, there was a man at my shop. So, what?"

"That's just some hoe shit. I guess that's where you fuck those niggas at." Truth shook his head. Truth had slept with Yazmine plenty of times at her shop. It didn't matter the time, which is why he said that.

"Come on, don't be calling her at her name." Priest defended Yazmine. Though Truth didn't directly call her a hoe, he insinuated that's what she was.

"Nah, it's cool, Soul. Let me be a hoe. The next nigga would appreciate it when I let him slut me out. All in my office. You remember those times, right? Imagine the next nigga." Yazmine smirked and just that fast Truth was standing in her face.

"Her and Cherish definitely related." Shooter chuckled.

"You must have forgotten who the fuck you were playing with, Yazmine?" Truth mugged her.

"You must have forgotten who the fuck you're talking to, Omari. You think Julissa's ass was crazy, but call me another hoe, and I'll show you crazy." Yazmine stated with anger.

"Aight, Derwin and Melanie. Y'all chill out." Shooter chuckled.

"This nigga always playing." Rarri shook his head laughing.

"The fuck those people gotta do with anything?" Priest shook his head.

"Man, y'all remember how they were arguing at Tasha's house?" Both Priest and Rarri were cracking up because Shooter was serious. Shooter cracking jokes was always his way of trying to calm the situation.

Yazmine and Truth hadn't paid attention to anything that was said around them because they were too busy having an intense staring match. Anger generated from both of them. Neither was backing down. "Get the fuck out of my face, Omari. I'll be a hoe, but I'mma hoe that's done with your ass."

"I was done with your ass first, though. You think I give a fuck because you claim to be now? You too fucking messed up for me, anyway. You and your cousin." Truth frowned.

"The fuck you mean her and her cousin?" Priest was now frowning. "Keep Cherish out of that shit. You're mad at Yaz, but what you not gon' to do is speak on mine."

"There it is." Yazmine chuckled, but you could hear the hurt in her voice. "I wondered when the real Omari would reveal himself. That's one reason I was hesitant on sharing shit with you because niggas love throwing it back in your face when they're in their feelings. Here's the truth, my father cheated on my mother then left us for that woman. Built a whole fucking family with that woman. Yes, in actuality, he left my mother, but I'm the one who begged him to stay. Begged him not to leave me and begged him not to walk out the door, which he did. So, he left me too, if you ask me." Truth's expression softened. He didn't know how deep her pain went, so he spoke without thinking."

"My mother has Alzheimer's or dementia or some shit that I don't know, and the doctor who diagnosed her is playing in my face about it, so I have to hire a lawyer. Paying for every damn thing falls on me. I can't have anyone coming into my life when she needs me because my focus needs to be on her. I never once missed a visit with my mom, but that day you fucked me into a goddamn coma; I missed her visit. She was asking for me. The first time since losing her memory that she was my mom again, and I missed her visit because I was too busy with you." Tears filled Yazmine eyes.

It was at that very moment that wall that kept everything buried, that protected everything; had broken. Yazmine knew Truth would be in his feelings, but never to the point of saying she's too messed up for him. Things like that, you don't tell a broken person. Yazmine didn't care that she was unloading all of this in front of everyone. Priest, Shooter, and Rarri are like her brothers. Plus, she wasn't pulling Truth to the side about anything. He wanted to put on a show, and she was going to make sure she ended it.

"Letting you go was the most selfless fucking thing I ever did! I can't give you my all, so why would I string you along? You deserved better. And you know what, Omari? I am in love with you. So much, that it's driving me crazy. I didn't want to fall in love with you years ago, but I did. I couldn't say the words to you because I didn't want to hurt you afterwards. Like I said, you deserve better. So much better than me. I couldn't give you my all without feeling like I was somehow abandoning my mother in some way. I couldn't do that to her. My father already did that. I'm her daughter! I couldn't."

"Yaz—" Truth tried to grab her, but she snatched away.

"Don't fucking touch me! And don't fucking look at me like that! I don't need you to pity me at all. Life messed me up. Life messed my cousin up! One thing about us Smith women, we always bounce back. We have our moments, but we're stronger than we give ourselves credit for. I'll be damned if I let you or anyone else throw us being broken in our faces." Yazmine pointed her finger in Truth's face. "Thank you for saying what I already knew. That I'm too messed up for you. You just proved my point without me having to do it. That was the push I needed to break that wall, though. It was only easy telling you everything and admitting that I'm in love with you because you saying that made me no longer feel attached to you." Yazmine wiped her tears and held her head high.

"I thought I was doing the right thing by trying not to make my pain your pain. I didn't want my burdens to become yours. I didn't want to mess you up... but all it takes is one time for anyone to use something hurtful against me to get cut out of my life. You played your last hand, and it wasn't in the way I expected. Hopefully, the next man who walks into my life will do better. Have a nice life, Omari." Yazmine turned to walk away, but Truth grabbed her again."

"Yaz, baby, I apologize—"

"Save it for the next bitch." Yazmine once again snatched away. Yazmine pushed past him as she walked away, taking her heart with her.

"I didn't fuck no bitch either. I don't know where you're getting your information from or if you're creating shit in your mind, but I ain't fuck nobody." Truth thought he would just throw that out there because he couldn't get any other words out. He was being honest about that. He hadn't slept with anyone.

Yazmine said nothing, she just left out of Priest's house. She couldn't believe him and the way he acted. She guessed her not saying she loves him back had hit a nerve with him because that wasn't the same Truth. Love could change even the most genuine person. Cherish believed that Truth was different and a good man, but he just proved otherwise to Yazmine.

Truth and Priest are alike like that; throwing hurtful things in the women they love faces. Yazmine and Cherish were alike in ways as well, but also so different. Cherish would've felt bad for how an argument with Priest ended. Yazmine just didn't give a fuck anymore. Yeah, she was hurt, but Truth crossed a line with her.

Sliding into her whip, she placed her bag and purse on the seat. Her phone rung the entire walk to her truck and now was ringing again. Answering without looking at the caller ID, she rolled her eyes before speaking.

"What?!" She snapped into the phone.

"Damn, ma. What I do to you?" Hendrix deep chuckled filled her ears as she bit her lip.

"Hendrix?" She stupidly asked with a soft tone.

"What other Hendrix you know?"

"Um Future." Yazmine shrugged as if he could see her as he laughed. Just like that, his voice had calmed her down. She didn't know how he could do that, but she was glad he called when he did.

sat in his feelings while it was quiet for a minute. He didn't know any of that, and now he felt like shit. He understood better why she was the way she was, and it fucked with his head that he told her she was too messed up for him.

He looked over at Priest, who had a mug on his face. He was wrong for throwing Cherish into the mix when that's not even how he felt when it came to either. He didn't even know why he added her. "Soul. That shit—"

"Look, I understand you were mad at Yaz but as I said before keep Cherish out that shit. What she did was between her and me. I don't need any motherfucker coming at her sideways about it. The moment you come for her on some disrespectful shit is the moment we as brothers will have a problem." Priest meant every word. The only people who should feel a way are Priest and his daughter, seeing as how it affected them. No one else's feelings matter.

"Understood." Truth nodded. He also knew that Priest will always protect Cherish in some form. He expected nothing less.

__

"You know you could give it to him yourself." Von looked over at Cherish. They both were sitting in her Black Sapphire metallic BMW X6.

"You know I can't. I told him the same. So stop saying stupid shit, Vondre." She rolled her eyes.

"It's Vondre now, huh?" Von smiled. "I missed you, Lil bit."

Cherish stared at him for a few seconds. Von was very handsome and also very cocky. She was definitely more attracted to dark-skin men. Priest was the exception. Dark-skin niggas just be hitting different. She never paid attention to men. Again, Priest was the exception. Von just so happened to always been around because of his friendship with her brother and Marcus. Von had grown rather protective of her after losing her brother. He always came to check on her during his time playing college basketball. Somehow, over the years, she'd grown fond of his company. After she had Malaysia, she and Von had gotten closer, and he kind of became a best friend to her. They weren't exactly best friends, but close enough.

"How you been? I know after that last night we were together, I pushed you away." Cherish said. She could hear Priest's voice in her head, so she wasn't about to tell him that she missed him as well, even if it's the truth.

Cherish always says that Von is special to her because they shared a connection that wasn't just physical. Cherish used to get bullied by girls that were just plain hating. Being fifteen and a senior, the older girls in her classes thought they could intimidate her. Since she got attention and was referred to as the Black Barbie of her high school, it was another reason they wanted to bully her. She was slim, dark-skinned, and her facial features were extraordinary. Cherish was beautiful. They would call her strong face because of her high cheekbones. Ugly. Talked about her being dark because they weren't. She heard the lies they were spewing out so much that it made her a little insecure.

Von was the first aside from her family that tried to get her to see that she was beautiful on the outside as much as she was on the inside. He tried to get Cherish to understand those girls were hating. Her brother or Marcus didn't like that Von felt comfortable enough to comfort her, but he wasn't looking at her in that way during that time. Just simply stating the truth. Aside from those girls, Cherish received nothing but compliments. That should've been proof enough to Cherish that they were hating.

Still, being broken and all, Cherish believed that everything Von and everyone else was saying was nothing but lies. It wasn't until a little while after meeting Priest that she overcame those insecurities, but she never forgot that Von was the first outside her family who tried to help her see how beautiful she was. That's what made him special to her. The way he was there for her after losing her brother was another reason.

"I been good. You know I didn't take offense to you pushing me away. I'm always in some shit, Lil bit. I'm innocent, though. These women out here be trying to trap me, then tarnish my character online when they can't get what they want. I'm an athlete, blogs love spreading negativity about false information. You know, pushing a certain type of narrative on me." Von said truthfully.

She knew that was true. Blogs didn't care whether the information they put out was true or false. Long as they have something worth posting. People on social media be quick to believe anything, then be looking stupid when the truth is revealed. She was so happy that any time she was posted on a blog, that it was positively. That didn't mean haters weren't in the comments. She just didn't give a damn.