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need you back Lala," Taina exclaimed over the phone, "Mark is killing me," She continued. Since Naala had been on maternity leave, Taina had been working with one of Naala's coworkers.

"I want to come back so bad," Naala pouted checking her mirrors before switching lanes, "Give me a few months," She chuckled. She wasn't sure when she would return back to work but she knew it had to be soon, being at home was driving her crazy.

"Bitch move!" Naala exclaimed blasting her horn at a lady who was driving slow, Naala couldn't stand slow drivers.

"Damn don't be driving like that with my nephew in the car," Taina replied typing on her computer, "Where you going anyway?"

"People really can't drive wow," Naala said speeding past the woman, "I've got some appointments downtown,"

"Let's hope you get there without running someone off the road," Taina chuckled,

"Shut up," Naala laughed and sped up when she noticed she that her appointment was in 15 minutes.

"Also, what did you do to my cousin?" Taina questioned. Naala made a confused face,

"Gray? I didn't do anything," Naala replied honestly,

"He said something about you fucking with Dave again," Taina answered. "If that's true Naala, I'll be really angry with you," It was no secret that Taina didn't want Naala and Dave together, she felt like he was the reason that she could never be happy.

"That's the father of my children, I shouldn't have to explain to him or anyone for that matter, why I speak to him," Naala answered with a hint of attitude,

"Well you do because I'm there when you're crying your fucking eyes out over him," Taina spoke into the phone,

"I get that but he's the father of my kids, I can't ignore him forever," Naala replied, stopping at a red light. She turned to the back seat and checked on Saint who was still sleeping peacefully.

All this boy does is sleep, Naala thought.

"Whatever Naala but I don't want to hear anything when he fucks up again," Taina said quickly. Naala scrunched up her face,

"Don't worry you won't have to," Naala said, she was over this conversation. If Taina was so against her relationship with Dave, she simply won't talk to her about it again, "I'ma let you get back to work,"

"Yeah, I'll speak to you later," Taina replied before hanging up the phone.

Naala sighed and pulled into the parking lot. Her and Dave had finally booked a therapy session with Dr Black, and today was their first joint session. Naala had to bring Saint along because she didn't feel comfortable leaving him with Sonia, especially after the death of her ex-husband last week. If all goes well at the session, Saint had his shots at the doctor's after.

Naala spotted Dave's car in the parking lot and was glad, she honestly thought he wouldn't show up. She parked the car and sat in silence for a few moments, she didn't know what this session was going to bring out of them and it could go any way. She was jolted out of her thoughts when Dave tapped on the window.

Naala got out of the car, "Hey baby daddy," She smiled weakly walking into his open arms.

"I missed you," Dave mumbled kissing her head, "You want me to get out the stroller?" He asked releasing her from the hug and moving over to the trunk,

"Yes please," Naala replied unbuckling Saint, who stirred in his sleep, "Saint look it's daddy," Naala cooed as she lifted him up carefully. Dave came around with the stroller,

"Why've you got my son dressed like this?" Dave said as he took Saint from her arms, "Why's your mama got you dressed like this huh?" He said to Saint, kissing him on the face.

"He's matching me," Naala laughed. Naala had dressed him in a black sweatsuit with red Jordan booties, while she wore a black Chanel sweatsuit with her Red and Black Jordan 1s.😭

"He looks like a girl," Dave said straight facing her, Naala giggled and nudged his shoulder, "Ion like that," Dave mumbled smoothing down Saint's wavy hair.

"Can you strap him in quickly?" She spoke fixing her clothes and pulling lipgloss out of her purse to apply it.

Dave carefully strapped Saint into the stroller and put his arms around Naala's waist,

"Can I have a kiss?" Dave said leaning down so they were face to face,

Naala moved her face, "You waited till I put on lipgloss to ask that?" She said sucking her teeth.

Dave smirked and kissed her anyway. Naala pulled away and wiped his lips,

"Just say you wanted some gloss next time," She smirked before moving around him and pushing the stroller towards the entrance. Dave followed behind her, watching her ass switch from side to side.

"My son did you some favours," He called out as she approached the door. She turned back and saw him watching her ass,

"You pervert," She smiled. Dave caught up and opened the door allowing her to push the stroller into the therapist office.

Naala walked up to the desk, "We've got an 11:30 appointment with Dr Black," She smiled at the receptionist. Dave stood behind her with his hand resting on her waist,

"Naala?" Dr Black said sticking her head out of her door, Naala glanced that way and smile lightly, "Come in, I see you've bought a special guest," Dr Black smiled at Saint, who lay in the stroller looking around,

"We did," Naala gushed walking into the room with Dave following close behind. She parked the stroller on the side and took a seat on the couch,

"Dave I assume?" Dr Black asked holding her hand out. Dave nodded and shook her hand,

"Nice to meet ya," He said looking around the room,

"You can take a seat next to Naala," Dr Black said gesturing to the couch before taking a seat opposite them.

"So what brings you two here?" Dr Black asked pulling out her notebook,

Both Dave and Naala stayed silent making Dr Black chuckle, "Couples always get stuck on that question so let me rephrase it, Dave why are you here today?"

"To work on our relationship," Dave said tugging on his beard,

Dr Black nodded, "Fair enough, Naala why are you here today?"

Naala cleared her throat, "To see why he treats me the way he does and why I always choose to stay,"

"Okay," Dr Black nodded before jotting down something in her pad, "Dave you look taken back by her answer, can I ask why?"

"I didn't think that's how she felt," Dave said looking over at Naala who was avoiding his eye,

"That's normal, you wouldn't know that's how she felt unless you asked. Dave why do you want to work on your relationship?"

"For our children, I didn't see my parents have a good relationship and I don't want that for my son and daughter, I want them to remember me as a good dad and husband to their mom." He replied honestly,

"That right there is the wrong answer," Dr Black pointed out, "You should want to make your relationship better for each other, not for the kids because that's how resentment builds up. You will begin to resent each other but will stay together for the sake of the children," Dr Black explained.

Dave nodded, Dr Black continued, "You said 'you want them to remember you', what does that mean?"

"I'm not going to be here forever so I want them to remember me as a good person, not the man that hurt their mom continuously," Dave said feeling himself get emotional. Naala noticed that he tensed up and put her hand over his,

"Where is this coming from?" Dr Black asked raising a brow,

"Erm - my dad passed on last week and I wish I had memories of him being a good man, so I want to do that for my children," Dave said clearing his throat,

"I'm sorry to hear that," Dr Black replied sympathetically, "Do you think you and your dad are similar?"

Dave nodded, "I see myself in him a lot, especially with how he treated my mama before he got locked up. I used to watch my mama cry over him every night and that messed with my head, you know?" Dave felt weird opening up to the therapist, these were things he hadn't even told Naala before.

"So do you feel like that is how your children would feel if they witnessed how you treat Naala?" Dr Black asked putting her pen down,

"Yeah definitely, I would hate for them to feel that way so I try to change but I feel like Naala only ever wants to see the worst in me," He said. Naala finally spoke up,

"That's not true," Her voice came out as a whisper, Dr Black looked between the two of them,

"Why don't you think that's true Naala?" Dr Black said changing her line of questioning to Naala,

"I always see the good in him, if I didn't I wouldn't be sat here right now," Naala replied, moving her hand from under his,

"Why are you sat here then?" Dr Black shot back,

"Like I said, I want to know why I can't seem to let him go," Naala said truthfully, "He hurts me to my core but I can't seem to shake him,"

"Because you're afraid to be alone Naala," Dr Black pointed out, "We've established this before in our previous sessions,"

"But I've been alone before, I can do it again --," Naala said. Dave scoffed,

"That's bullshit Naala. How many times do I have to apologise for not being there?" Dave said cutting her off,

"Apologising doesn't change anything! You still left me," Naala snapped. Dr Black cleared her throat,

"Okay, you see what that is right there?" She said pointing to the two of them, "That's borderline resentment,"

"Naala you resent Dave for leaving you, no matter how much you try and work through it. That's why even in the smallest of arguments, you bring it back up. You can't seem to move past the idea that he left you," Dr Black continued, "Before we continue, Naala have you been taken your medication?"

Naala stiffened up at that question, "No, it makes me feel drowsy, I don't like feeling that way when I'm with Saint," She explained,

"I don't think that's a good idea," Dr Black said, "You need that medication. The reason I can tell you aren't using it is because of how you exploded. How will you get through everything if you are still stuck on the past?" Dr Black spoke,

"She's never gonna let it go, she reminds me of it every time she can," Dave huffed. Naala rolled her eyes at him,

"That's not true, I've forgiven you," Naala spoke hesitantly,

"Yeah right," Dave scoffed before Dr Black intervened,

"Why should she let it go?" Dr Black questioned Dave, "Naala went through the most traumatic time when you were away and you expect her just to let it go?"

"That's my point exactly! I lost our son and you weren't there. You can't even look at me when I mention Ameer," Naala said her voice breaking, Dave looked away from her and clenched his jaw,

"Because I'm fucking hurt Naala! It's your fault that my son didn't get to live" Dave exploded looking at Naala,

"Wow, you think it's my fault?" Naala asked putting her hand on her chest,

"I didn't mean to say that," Dave mumbled, regretting exploding on her,

"But you said it, I didn't know you blamed me for that," Naala replied, feeling hurt.

"Now Dave, you aren't listening. It is not her fault, it was nobody's fault. You need to see it from Naala's point of view." She said before continuing, "Okay, I have an exercise for you two. I would like both of you to go back to life 5 years ago, Dave what would you have liked to say to Naala 5 years ago and the same for you Naala, what would you say to Dave?"

"I would say I'm sorry," Naala said tears falling down her face, "I'm sorry I didn't try harder to find you, I'm sorry that I couldn't deliver our son safely. I wish you were here to see our daughter crawl for the first time or say her first words. I just wish you were here," Naala finished, wiping her face,

Dr Black reached for the box of tissues and handed them to her, "Okay Dave, your turn,"

Dave sat forward and grabbed Naala's hands, "I hate myself for letting you go through that on your own. I don't blame you for Ameer, I'm just hurt. I feel like I failed y'all and that's why I'm so angry - I failed as a man. I should have been there with you, I will never forgive myself for missing out on the birth of our children,"

"Naala what would you say back to him?" Dr Black asked looking between the two of them,

"I love you Amir and you didn't fail us, you saved us." Naala spoke softly, holding onto his hands tightly.

Dave leaned forward and kissed her head, "I'm sorry mama," He whispered pulling her into a hug. Naala hugged him back, melting in his embrace.

"Good," Dr Black said softly. "You two have a lot to work through separately, this was the tip of the iceberg but I think we've made a breakthrough,"

"I do too," Naala nodded sniffing pulling away from Dave. She never realised that she was being selfish, both of them lost Ameer 5 years ago, and she always blamed him for not being there not knowing that he was also hurting.

Saint began fussing in his stroller, Dave shot up as he saw Naala get ready to get up,

"I got him," He said softly as he reached over and picked Saint up. Saint took one look at Dave and began to scream loudly,

"Damn, I'm that ugly?" Dave asked scrunching up his face, Dr Black laughed out loud. Naala giggled softly and got up,

"He's hungry that's all," She cooed reaching for him and gently rocked him, "I'm gonna go back to the car and feed him,"

"Change his diaper too," Dave said rubbing his nose. Naala lifted Saint up slightly and sniffed his butt,

"Oooh someone's made a mess," She giggled leaving the room with Saint.

Dave sat back in his seat on the couch, "Do you think we will ever be happy together?" He asked Dr. Black,

"I think you have a lot to work through but the love is there, a blind man could see it." Dr Black admitted, "But don't let that get to your head, take in everything she says to you, show her that love you wish you got,"

Dave nodded, "I keep screwing up," He spoke sitting back,

"Then step back and think, why do I keep hurting the people I love? I think it's copying mechanism," She stated,

"What do you mean?" Dave asked leaning forward,

"You hurt people when you feel yourself getting too close. From what Naala has told me, you guys were at the happiest you ever been in your relationship then you switched," Dr Black started, "You switched up on her and began to push her away, am I right?" She asked,

Dave sighed, "I didn't know I was pushing her away,"

"But you were, you pushed Naala into a corner and then when she exploded, you stepped back and wondered where that came from," Dr Black explained, "I am not saying that Naala was not also at fault, but can you see where this is going?"

Dave nodded. "Damn," He mumbled making Dr Black smile sympathetically,

"I think you would benefit from a few personal session with me, talk to the receptionist before you leave and she will sort it out for you," She advised. Dave nodded, he needed to speak to her in depth.

Naala walked back into room with Saint who was now babbling happily. Dave stood up to greet them, taking Saint from her hands,

"He's so happy now just wait till those shots," Dave chuckled making Naala scold him,

"They're gonna hurt my baby," Naala pouted, thinking about how much the shots were gonna hurt Saint.

"He's a big boy, he'll handle it," Dave smiled bouncing Saint up and down.

"Thank you so much Dr Black, we needed this session," Naala smiled at the therapist. Dr Black returned the smile and stood from her seat,

"I'm happy to help, remember to speak to your doctor about a refill on the meds and Dave don't forget what I told you," She reminded Dave with a knowing look. Naala looked between them confused. She was about to speak before Dave said,

"Aht, mind your business," He said bumping her nose. Naala rolled her eyes jokingly,

"I'll find out one way or another," She replied giving him a look through hooded eyes. Dave mentally cursed himself as his dick twitched.

They left the room and went back to their cars. Dave strapped Saint into Naala's jeep and closed the door. Naala slipped into the driver's seat and rolled her window down. Dave leaned on the car door and put his hand through the window to caress her face,

"You're too beautiful to be crying," He said rubbing his thumb under her eye.

"Then stop making me cry," Naala replied softly putting her head down,

"I'm gonna stop mama, I promise," He said leaning into the car and pecking her lips, "I'ma meet you at the doctor's office," He said standing up straight. Naala nodded and put the car into drive before backing out of the space and speeding off.

~~

"Ok, now this is the last shot," The doctor said walking over to Saint. Dave was holding him tightly as he screamed. Naala stood by the door unable to watch her son scream out like that.

"Bitch." Naala mumbled as she walked over to them. Dave gave her a glare,

"Naala, it's one more," He said stifling a laugh at Naala who was mugging the doctor.

"Here we go," The doctor said putting the shot in his leg quickly. Saint reacted the same way, screaming loudly while going red in the face.

Naala scooped him as soon as the lady was done and began to rock him, "I know the evil woman hurt you," She cooed still mugging the doctor,

"Naala cut it out," Dave laughed thanking the doctor and pushing the stroller out of the room.

"She was hurting him," Naala pouted kissing Saint multiple times. Dave watched her love on Saint,

"This lil nigga really just came out of your coochie and stole you from me," He said mugging Saint who was now babbling back to Naala.

An older white lady gasped and clutched her neck, "What the fuck is she flinching for?" Dave said as they walked past. Naala dragged him along by his arm,

"Leave her alone," She laughed as the made their way out of the doctors office.

They walked over to Naala's car, "I don't want to put him down now," Naala whined holding onto Saint tightly.

"You gon' drive with him in your arms?" Dave asked opening the door for her to strap him in,

"If I could I would," Naala muttered putting him down.

"You're not about to drive like a lunatic with my son in the front," Dave commented stepping back after strapping him and closing the door.

"I'm not stupid," Naala said rolling her eyes, "Has your mom said anything about the funeral?"

Dave's mood plummeted as he thought of burying his father. He nodded,

"Funeral is on Friday, you gon' come?" He asked pulling her towards him.

"If you want me there," Naala shrugged rubbing his arms.

"Nah, I need you there." He said emphasising the word 'need'.

"Then I'm there." Naala replied softly playing with his beard, "You don't have to be strong around me, it's okay to not feel okay sometimes."

"Emotions aren't really my thing," Dave muttered, "But I'ma work on that for you,"

Naala shook her head, "Not for me. For you," She said pointing at his chest.

"I hear you mama." Dave said with a smirk, leaning down towards her face. "Where would I be without my voice of reason?" He said kissing her neck.

"Probably dead in a ditch somewhere," Naala laughed pushing him off, "I've to get home and put Saint down for a proper nap before I pick 'Nai up from school,"