COMING HOME

WELL HELLO MY DARLINGS I KNOW AFTER THE LAST CHAPTER YALL WAS BUGGED OUT WANTIN 2 KNOW WHAT HAPPENED. SO HERE I AM 2 DELIVER! I JUST WANNA TAKE A LIL TIME OUT TO SAY CONGRATS 2 THE GRADUATING CLASS OF 2011!!!! SPECIAL SHOUT OUTS 2 @TEAMMINAJPERU @TEAMMINAJ_PCOLA  @XOROMANSLOVER & THE MANY OTHER BARBZ WHO ARE GRADUATING THIS YEAR BEIT COLLEGE HIGH SCHOOL NAIL SCHOOL GED CORSE, WHATEVER! IM PROUD OF ALL OF YOU. LASTLY I WANNA SAY THT MARIA CERVANTES IS THE GREATEST BARB IN THE ENTIRE UUUUUUNIVERSE! W/OUT HER I WOULD HAVE QUIT THIS STORY A LOOONG TIME AGO BUT I PROMISED HER I WOULD FINISH! SO YEAH. BUT BLAH BLAH IM DONE. ENJOY!


chapter 48

“The service was beautiful Nelly.”

“”Thank you honey.”

“You gonna be alright?”

“No. But I think I can keep it together until I see you again.” She sighed. “I wish Malaki could have been here with you.”

“I know. He would have loved to meet little Jeremiah.” Nicki smiled as she touched the baby’s cheek.  “You know if I could stay longer, I would.”

“Don’t even worry about it. You just go. Give momma my love. Tell her thank you for the flowers.”

“I will.” Nicki hugged Shanell as tight as she could. “I can’t even think of words to-“

“Don’t. Just go home. Be with your family.” She kissed Nicki’s cheek & wiped away her tears before walking back to her car. Nicki climbed in her SUV & closed the door.

“You alright baby?” Drake asked as he adjusted his tie.

“Yeah.” She sighed. He pulled away from the curb & took a left, making his way toward the highway. All Nicki could do was stare out the window & think about the fact that her friend had just buried her baby. It was so heartbreaking to see her & Wayne suffering like this. All the worrying made her head hurt so she fell asleep. When she woke up again she was in bed. She sat up & took her hair out of her bun. She changed out of her black dress into a pair of sweats & a t-shirt. She slipped on some socks & headed downstairs. Drake was just walking in the door with Dricki.

“Hey.” He said.

“HI.” she said back. She flopped down on the couch. Dricki hopped on her lap.

“I got you something to eat.” He said holding up McDonald’s bag. “I know it’s not much, but it’ll get you full.” She opened the bag, pulled out a fry & began to nibble on it. “If you don’t like it I can cook you something. Whatever you want.”

“It’s fine baby, thank you.” she said grabbing his hand. She pulled him down to sit with her.

“You ok?” he asked her.

“Are you ok?” she retorted.

“No.” he sighed.

“Me either.” She laid her head back on him & closed her eyes.

“Shanell is strong. I'm sure she’ll be ok.” He said softly. She knew he was right but she still felt horrible. “C’mon babe. Finish eating so we can get going.” Nicki finished eating while Drake took care of the dog. Once they were done, they got in the car & drove. They followed the twists & turns of the land until they reached their destination. They slid out of the truck & walked through the parking lot across the street & up the walkway. Their feet thumped against the ground, crunching the snow under their timberlands. They shuddered as they entered the cold brick building. They walked & walk until they reached the door. That 1 sky blue door. They looked at each other & locked fingers, breathing deeply before pushing the door open.

“I know you're gonna miss me so much after seeing my face every day for almost 4 months.” Koyoa said arrogantly, before bursting into laughter.

“You know we will. I don’t know what we would have done without you.” Nicki said, hugging her.

“Well drop by & see me sometime.”

“We will.” Drake said. “Don’t be a stranger yourself. You know you're always welcome.”

“I’ll come by soon. You know I can’t stay away too long.” Nicki secured the car seat in the back of the SUV.

“I can’t believe this. I was so scared this day would never come.” Nicki said softly. Her voice very somber, reflective.

“Well it did. And this nothing short of a miracle.” Koyoa said as she gazed down at Malaki’s sleeping form. “Look at us out here talkin away! Go home. Call me if you need anything. Day or night. You know I’ll answer. I love you guys.”

“We love you too.” Drake called out from behind the wheel. “You ready to go?”

“More than I've ever been.” Nicki sighed.

“You ready to go home Malaki?” the child cooed softly from the backseat. “I’ll take that as a yes.” He honked twice at Koyoa before pulling away from the curb.

Snow was still lightly covering the ground but it was evident spring was on its way. Spring. A fresh start. A new beginning. Nicki looked out the window, smiling as they headed home. She crept her hand over slowly to the center console where Drake’s hand lay on the shift stick. She let her hand hover a bit before placing it on top of his. He looked down at their hands & then up at Nicki. She felt his eyes on her & looked over. She smiled, 1 dimple exposed. He smiled back, flashing his pearly whites. It wasn’t long that they made eye contact but they both felt the surge of electricity then calm that washed over them. A felling they thought was long forgotten. Drake spread his fingers so that Nicki’s could fall between them. They looked away from each other & smiled, enjoying the ride.

The arrived home 20 minutes later. Drake walking ahead with the key & the diaper bag as Nicki handled retrieving Malaki. As soon as they stepped over the threshold, they heard Dricki, racing toward them, barking, overjoyed at his master’s return.

“Hey, hey, boy. No barking. Don’t want you to scare your brother.” Nicki said while shushing the animal. she sat the car seat on the ground. Dricki sniffed his way over to it. Slowly.

"It’s ok Dricki.” Nicki laughed. “That’s the baby.” She scooped the puppy off the ground. “Do u wanna see him?" She walked over to the sofa & sat, placing Dricki on the left of her before bending down to pull the baby from his car seat. Drake flopped down next to them.

"Malaki this is your brother.”  Drake said as he patted Dricki on the crown of his head. Malaki lifted his small hand & placed it on Dricki’s wet nose. The dog stuck out his tongue, licking him swiftly. The baby flinched back & gasped. Dricki cowered away.

“Awww its ok.” Nicki cooed. She sat Malaki up on her lap, facing the dog. “Do u wanna give him a kiss?” Dricki gently placed 1 paw on her lap. He crept up until he was almost nose to nose with him. Malaki smiled at him, 1 dimple showing. Dricki’s eyes lit up. His toothless smile reminded him of that of his master/mother, Nicki. He laid his head on his new brother's lap.

“Look at that” drake laughed. “They love each other already.”

And that he did. For the rest of the day, where ever Malaki went, Dricki wasn’t far behind. From upstairs in Nicki’s room while she breastfed him, to downstairs in the living room in his Moses basket where he lay napping. Even during Malaki’s bath, Dricki was there, standing far off to the left as drake washed the child. Excitement in his mind, wonder in his eyes & love in his heart.

Their first day was coming to a close. Drake was bringing Malaki from the bathroom where he had just bathed him & laid him in his crib.

“Baby, can you stand here with him for a minuet?” he asked Nicki. He had forgotten the clothed he had picked out for him on the sink. Nicki stood up from the rocker & walked over to the crib, gazing down at the child. She feathered a finger over the stitches on his chest. 120 of them is what held his chest cavity together. it pained her to see the evidence of the struggle he went through. “What’s wrong?” Drake asked as he came back in the room, noticing the distain in her face.

“I hate seeing this. It’s so big & ugly & it looks like it hurt so bad.  I wish I could just take it away.”

“I don’t.” Drake said. She turned around & looked at him, shocked.

“How can you say that?”

“Because look at it,” he said rubbing the child’s chest gently. “All those stitches are there because he has a new heart. A new life. These scars show that’s he's overcome something. That’s he got a second chance at life. He beat the odds.” Nicki cocked her head slightly to the left.

“I never looked at it that way before. I wanna be positive but those scars just remind me of how we almost lost him.” Drake grabbed her hand & placed it over Malaki’s heart, laying his hand on top.

“Don’t be sad we almost lost him. be happy he’s alive.”