[11 Days till the wedding...]

18th March 2021

Dave rolled over and groaned from the banging headache he had. As he opened his eyes, he remembered that he was laid out on the couch. The events of last night invaded his memory, he knew he had fucked up.

Sitting upwards, he rested his head in his hands, thinking about how to make things right between him and his girl. Naala on the other hand was upstairs in their bed having the same thoughts. She hadn't slept the entire night - all she could think of was if she was to call the wedding off or not.

Hearing the sound of footsteps retreating down the steps, Dave lifted his head up. Maniya was coming down the stairs to start breakfast. She heard her parents arguing the night prior and knew her mom wouldn't be up to it. She wasn't shocked to see her dad sitting on the couch, that's where he always slept when her mama put him out.

"Morning," She said softly with a smile,

"What's good Niya?" Dave grumbled getting up with a stretch,

"I was just gonna make some breakfast," Maniya replied walking past him and into the kitchen. Dave followed behind her, he was suddenly thirsty.

"Where's your mom?" He asked as he tugged the refrigerator door open,

"She's still sleep," Maniya said simply glancing over at him. Dave nodded and an awkward silence fell upon them.

"You heard us last night huh?" Dave said. He could tell by the blunt replies Maniya was giving him.

"I did," She nodded, "You keep messing up Dad and you can't see how much it's hurting her,"

Maniya was always there to see the fallout of her parents arguments. Unlike Saint and Sinai, she was old enough to understand what was going on and it didn't make Dave look good at all.

"I don't mean to hurt her," He mumbled sitting on one of the stools behind the island.

"I know but you do and most of the time, it's me picking up the pieces," Maniya replied. She didn't want to make him feel worse about the situation but she had to say it how it was.

Naala heard voices downstairs but she couldn't move. If she got up it would mean that she would have to face him, she would have to make a decision and she couldn't do that. Her phone buzzed repeatedly beside her but she ignored it. She figured it was her mom asking what time they were meeting with the wedding planner.

The wedding. Naala was torn. It would be her dream to marry him but was their love strong enough to withstand a marriage?

The baby monitor beside her lit up and soon after the sounds of Saint's soft cries filled the room. Knowing that they wouldn't hear him from downstairs she had no choice but to get up. Naala dragged herself out of bed and into the bathroom before sitting on the toilet to realise her bladder.

The baby was currently sitting on her bladder which meant she had to pee every five minutes, that didn't help at night. After she was done, she quickly brushed her teeth, whilst looking at herself in the mirror. Her swollen stomach looked particularly round and was visible under her nightgown. Her eyes were sunken and her cheeks red - evidence of her crying her self to sleep.

When she was done, she went straight to Saint, putting him out of his misery. His face lit up at the sight of his mom, his crying seizing immediately.

"Hi there my papa bear," She cooed at him, kissing him on the cheek. As she raised him up, the smell of his diaper almost knocked her out. Scrunching up her face, she laid him down on the changing mat and started unbuttoning his baby suit.

His nose seemed to have cleared up over night because he was no longer sniffling. Naala was glad because a sick baby was ten times harder than a healthy one.

Meanwhile downstairs, Dave was still taking tips from his daughters on how to win his woman back. Sinai had joined them, not too long ago and was helping Maniya out.

"Ooo she likes flowers and that chocolate with nuts in them," Sinai said clinging onto her dad's neck,

"And there were these Hermés slippers that she wanted the other day," Maniya added,

"Are y'all gonna come with me and help me out?" Dave asked, already planning what he was gonna do.

"I thought I'm grounded?" Maniya stated, her punishment was still in place. At first she thought her parents would fold but Naala put her foot down - she was on punishment until they said so.

"You can come out with me," Dave replied. He knew gifts wouldn't be the only thing to fix this but it was a start. This was the only way he knew how to apologise, with monetary gifts - money was his biggest weapon right after sex.

"Let's get her a cake too!" Sinai said excitedly. She lived for stuff like this, and spending time with her dad was a bonus.

All their heads turned to the steps, as Naala glided down them, holding Saint on her shoulder. She caught Dave's eyes watching her and they held eye contact for a few moments before she broke it. Not knowing that Maniya had already heard them she put a fake smile on her face as she approached them.

"Is this breakfast for me?" She asked kissing Sinai's cheek and bumping Maniya on the shoulder. She ignored Dave's whole presence in general.

"Yeah I thought I could cook today," Maniya said, cringing at the awkward encounter between her parents.

"That's sweet of you," Naala replied, hoisting Saint up some more,

"Daaaa," Saint squealed in excitement. Naala side eyed him and then looked at Dave who was trying to inch closer towards her. Instead of letting him get to close, she handed Saint over quickly.

"Mama we're going with daddy today," Sinai said excitedly, tugging on her mom's hand.

"Really?" Naala said softly, "Well I'll miss you so much," She added,

She didn't want to ask where they were going because that wasn't any of her business - just as long as he knew that they had a meeting today as well.

"Naala can I talk to you?" Dave spoke hoping she would agree. Naala looked at him properly for the first time that day and the look of hope flashed her eyes as well as his.

"Mmm," She replied walking out of the kitchen. Dave followed closely behind, leaving the kids in the kitchen with Maniya.

"Good luck," Maniya whispered behind him, hoping that all would go well. She hated when her parents didn't get along, it was like the house didn't function correctly.

"Are you ready to talk like adults?" Dave said as soon as they were seated on the couch. Naala's body language said it all - she didn't want to be near him.

"I should be asking you that," Naala said lowly, "Yesterday wouldn't have happened if you just told me where you were,"

"I was with Kodi." Dave admitted. He knew he hadn't done anything with her so there was no need to hide it anymore.

"Was that so hard?" Naala asked finally facing him. Dave searched her face for any signs of anger but all he saw was pain.

"I knew how it sounded. That's why I didn't say anything," Dave replied lowly. Naala scoffed, that was a stupid response to her.

"Well it sounds worse when you don't tell me and I have to look through your phone to find out," Naala said watching his every move.

"I'm sorry," Dave said reaching to hold her hand. Naala moved back and stared at him,

"Did you fuck her?" She said quietly,

"No." Dave replied truthfully. "We didn't do anything. We talked and I had too much to drink, Kodi is only a friend,"

Naala let out a breath that she didn't realise she was holding. Just those words lifted the weight that had been weighing on her all night. Naala searched his body language for any traces of that being a lie but couldn't find any.

"Please don't lie to me Amir," Naala said with her voice breaking. He'd already cheated once and that broke her to her core - she didn't know if she could deal with that again.

"I swear baby," He said moving closer. "Plus Kodi would rather fuck you than me," He said jokingly. It was pretty obvious to him that Kodi preferred pussy - a blind man could see that.

Naala was happy to hear that but that doesn't take away from the fact that he lied.

"But you lied about going over there Amir. We can't start this marriage off with lies, I promise you I will leave you. I won't look back, I will take my children and I will leave." Naala said sternly. She may have been a victim of abuse before but one thing she wouldn't stand for is him walking all over her.

"I know I shouldn't have lied. That was fucked up, my fault," Dave said shaking his head. Naala sighed and looked over at him,

"I'm still angry at you," She whispered as he rubbed her thigh,

"I'ma apologise everyday if I have to," Dave replied. He hated seeing her like this, and knowing that it was his fault made it worse.

"We have a meeting at 3 with the wedding planner, are you gonna be there?" Naala asked him, allowing him to rub her belly.

"With fucking bells on," Dave answered leaning in and kissing her cheek,

"Good," Naala replied curtly. She moved his hands of her stomach and stood up,

"I love you." Dave called out behind her. Naala turned around and looked him in his eye,

"Show me." She replied simply before leaving him alone in the living area. Naala wanted to say it back but maybe it was those words that made him act the way he did, so she wasn't gonna say it until he showed her properly.

~~

"And you sure she'll like this one?" Dave asked Maniya for the hundredth time.

"Dad." Maniya said straight facing him, "She sends me ones just like these on TikTok all day, she'll love it,"

"Before we took your phone right?" Dave asked in a serious voice. The worker found it hilarious that he was stood there trying to pick the cutest dog.

They were currently at a dog pound. Naala had been bugging Dave for a puppy for the longest and his daughters finally persuaded him to do it.

"How much is this one?" Dave asked the worker who was holding the dog,

"He's $1700," The worker said. Sinai was clinging onto her dad's hand,

"We want that one daddy," She said staring at the white fluffy dog. All her dreams were coming true today,

"I think he's the one Dad," Maniya coincided with her just to move this along. They'd been in the store for almost an hour, looking at all the puppies.

Dave sighed and pulled out his wallet, "He's got all his shots and shit?" He asked taking the dog from her hands,

"Yep he's up to date with everything," The worker chirped happily, she really needed to make this sell.

On the other side of town, Naala was pulling up at Brianna and Priest's home. Brianna had agreed to look after Saint for the afternoon, mostly to give her friend a break. She witnessed how stressed this wedding was making Naala and she wanted to help however she could.

Naala on the other hand was glad to have a break for the day. Being a mother was not easy and this pregnancy wasn't helping her either. Before she left, she spent at least 30 minutes with her head in the toilet - the pancakes she had for breakfast clearly didn't sit well with the baby.

"Okay papa let's go," Naala said turning the ignition off. She grabbed her purse and got out of her truck. Naala slung her purse over her shoulder and pulled down her dress. It was freezing in Manhattan at the moment but she felt uncomfortable in almost everything she wore.

Naala successful got Saint out of the car without him waking up and walked up the steps it Bri's home. She pressed the bell and stepped back patiently waiting,

"Hey baby mamaaaa," Brianna dragged out pulling Naala into a hug,

"Hey Bri, I've missed you," Naala spoke returning the hug careful of her bump.

"Yeah you don't check for me no more," Brianna pouted letting go.

"I do," Naala laughed, "We need to have our own day out,"

Brianna nodded. Before she met Naala she had very few girlfriends but Naala filed that void perfectly. What made it better was that she was practically family.

"Do you want anything?" Brianna asked leading her through the house,

Naala shook her head and took in the decor of the house. Brianna had recently redecorated the home after nagging Priest about it.

"I love this," Naala said pointing at the painting of a tiger above the mantelpiece,

"It was Priest that bought it surprisingly," Brianna replied turning around to face Naala,

"He has good taste," Naala nodded. Brianna could sense that Naala wasn't herself, and she assumed it had something to do with the messages she sent her last night.

"How's Patch?" She asked once they were seated in the living room. Naala huffed and shifted Saint on her chest,

"He's fine I guess," Naala shrugged, she didn't really know what to say to that.

"What's going on?" Brianna asked. Normally Naala would gush over him but today she didn't seem bothered,

"Amir went to see Kodi last night," Naala replied. She felt comfortable telling Bri what happened, this was her best friend, her sister almost.

Brianna raised an eyebrow, "For what?" She asked honestly. From what she knew, Kodi was an old friend. They had no business meeting up.

"He said they needed to talk," Naala answered, "Apparently she's gay,"

Brianna shook her head, this is where Dave always went wrong. There had been a few times when he had come over to their house to 'talk' and Brianna told him he should go home to his girlfriend.

"Y'all need to start communicating better," She said softly. She knew that they loved each other but their communication was very bad.

"I'm trying Bri, I thought we were doing good," Naala said sighing,

"Don't get worked up about it. Marriage isn't easy, no relationship is perfect." Brianna said sympathetically. She didn't want Naala to feel bad about their relationship.

"Anyway let me get going," Naala said sitting forward. "His bag is here and I've made up a bottle for him," She said slowly waking him up so he wouldn't give Bri a hard time.

"Just go to the meeting and be normal Naala," Brianna said taking Saint from her arms, "Be happy! You're getting married," She said smiling. Naala broke out into a smile,

"Yeah you're right," She said. Through all this she'd ignored the fact that this was meant to be a happy event.

Naala was going to focus on the wedding and ignore everything else, they had a lifetime to deal with their problems right?

~~

Miani sat with her old friend, Sharon, and caught up with each other as she waited for her daughter and her soon to be son in law.

"I never knew you had an older daughter," Sharon said sipping her ice tea,

Miani smiled and nodded. She knew that this would get out some time soon. Miani had a big position in the socialite community and the idea of a illegitimate child would be the talk of the group.

"She was my first child," Miani said simply, "So I hope you can do something special for my baby," She added, changing the subject slightly.

"Oh I have so much to offer, especially with the unlimited budget," Sharon said with a smile. All she could see was dollar signs. She had done her research on Naala and Dave the night before and she knew they were loaded.

Sharon showed Miani the folders she had filled with all her best work. They were busy looking at the folders when Naala walked in.

"Hi mom," Naala said walking up to them with a smile. Miani gushed when Naala called her mom, she waited so long to hear her first baby girl to say those words and she finally did.

"Hello Darling," Miani said standing up, "This is Sharon," She said introducing them both. Naala gave Sharon and friendly smile and politely declined the hand shake,

"I'm not very big on handshakes," Naala said truthfully. She didn't really like people in her personal space and this woman seemed too eager.

"I understand that completely," Sharon smiled. She couldn't careless, Naala was dripping in money and that's all she cared for. Naala was dressed in a simple Fendi jumper dress with patterned Fendi tights and a pair of YSL heeled boots. Her hair was slicked back and she was sporting simple jewellery and was carrying her custom Birkin.

"You're glowing," Miani said kissing her cheek and pulling away from the hug. This was true, despite how Naala was feeling in the inside, her skin was glowing. This was the only favour the baby was doing for her at this time.

"You are indeed as beautiful as your mother said," Sharon said taking her seat, "I assumed your husband to be would be joining us."

Naala bit her lip, she specifically told Amir a time and he wasn't here. This wasn't a good start at all.

"He's on his way," Naala lied. She wasn't sure where he was but she didn't want to say he wouldn't be coming.

"We can get started without him," Miani said sensing Naala's uncomfortableness.

"Right," Sharon nodded, "Okay in terms of venue, were you looking at outdoor places?"

Naala hadn't really considered this, "I would prefer a venue indoors,"

They began to discuss different venues and had a look at a few photos. After about 45 minutes, Dave pulled up outside the office. He was pissed off because the traffic was heavier than he excepted. He had to drop the girls off before he came to the meeting and didn't expect to take this long.

He walked in holding both bouquet of flowers; one for Naala and the other for Miani, and found where he needed to be quickly. When he walked in Naala's heart skipped a beat, she really thought he wouldn't turn up.

"Sorry I'm late baby," He said leaning down and kissing her cheek. He handed her the bouquet of roses and Naala took them happily.

"These are pretty, thank you" She said pecking his lips. Both of them were shocked by this action, Dave mostly because he was convinced that she hated his guts.

"I'm sorry about dinner last night Ms. Miani, I got caught up," Dave apologised handing the bouquet of purple tulips to her. Miani smiled and took the flowers,

"Oh no problem darling, how did you know purple was my favourite?" She asked sitting her flowers down. Sharon watched him sit by Naala and hold her hand, she was glad to be planning a wedding of a young couple who seemed to be in love.

"Lucky guess," Dave smirked with a shrug. He fixed his chains and sat back, throwing his arm on the back of Naala's chair.

"Amir this is Sharon, the wedding planner," Naala said introducing them. Dave said hello politely and they got back to discussing the plans.

"So this venue ranges from about 45,000 - 52,000 dollars depending on how long you would like to rent it out for," Sharon said. She was showing them one of her most expensive places,

"What do you think Mir?" Naala asked looking at him. For the majority of the meeting he kept quiet but made sure to touch Naala when he could - so she knew he was still engaged.

"Ion like how much space there is," He pointed out, "We wanted something intimate." Him and Naala had agreed on it being an intimate affair as they didn't have that many family or friends.

"Okay we have this smaller hall but at a higher price," Sharon spoke flipping the page, "The price for this starts at $75,000"

None of them flinched at the price, Miani knew her son in law had it otherwise he would have set a budget. Dave shrugged and put his hand on Naala's thigh,

"Do you like it baby?" He asked watching her scan the folder,