Tunan chuckled and stared at her back for a beat before saying, “You heard what I said, Charisma,” and then made his exit.
I held onto my giggles until I heard the faint sound of the front door shutting. “Why are you so mean to him, sister?”
Glow reached around me and fluffed the pillows supporting my back. “And why you so nice to him?”
“Ehh, because I’m a nice human being.”
“Nah.” Glow punched the pillow. “Being nice is what got your ass with swollen, leaky breasts. You gotta be hard on these niggas.”
We both laughed, which had me clutching my stomach. I’d bruised my ribs in the crash. Thankfully, they weren’t broken, but they were still sore.
“Let me stop making you laugh. When Mama done cooking, you gotta take your meds.”
I wasn’t opposed. I didn't like the way they made me feel, but I liked how they took the pain away. The Lortab I’d beenprescribed worked wonders, but the pills made me high out of my mind. Now that I was home, I had to follow the instructions to a T so that Baby Leader wasn’t exposed to the medicine through my breast milk.
“But no, I don’t really know any other way to be with him. I don't know what we're doing.” Glow shrugged. “Enough about me. It's your day! Big two-oh! I can’t believe my sister is twenty.”
“I wrecked your car. You shouldn't have gotten me gifts,” I replied, not caring about my birthday. I felt so burdensome, especially after hearing about my sister’s condition being worse than I thought.
“Girl! Fuck that car. That’s what insurance is for.”
“No, it’s still messed up, Glow. And now, Mommy and I are about to be staying with you. Save your money, sister. I’m grateful, but”—I lifted the flowers—“Money flowers? They are wrapped in one-hundred-dollar bills. How many are there in this bouquet?”
“Fifty…” Glow quipped and grinned. “I counted. But the blue roses aren’t from me, boo. Tunan brought them in this morning.”
“Your husband?” I frowned.
“You and Mama with thishusbandword. But yes. And no, I don’t mind. You my sister. Any nigga that calls himself fooling with me better be willing to do for my two girls. Well, three, since I’m a TeeTee now.” Glow stood. “Speaking of TeeTee, let me go get my baby.”
“Glow… Thank you. Seriously.”
“No more tears, boo. We done cried enough. Time to get you healed so we can scratch off this summer list shit.”
“Even with a broken leg?”
“Yeap! That’s why that wheelchair is in the living room. We are outside, still. Baby and all.”
My little baby in her cute summer fits, enjoying the sun, was a summer that I looked forward to. To be honest, I looked forward to everything now that I’d escaped death.
“Glow?” I called again before she walked out.
“Hmm?”
“Please try. I know it's hard to…” I sighed. “I know it’s hard. But please try—for me.”
“I will, sis. Besides… Tunan will have me at four hundred pounds in no time.” She rolled her eyes.
“I’dloveto see that.”
“Girl, bye!”
I snickered at her back, pain sharp in my chest. She closed the door behind her, and I took in the silence. The bags matched the balloons—an array of pinks and yellows. A few of the bags featured printed glitter that my mom would complain about all day. The day wouldn’t end without her changing the sheets, even if she didn’t see a speck of glitter on them. The bags on the bed would be proof enough.
Clutching the thick, white ribbon that ran along the length of the long stems, I admired the much-needed gift. I loved flowers, yes, but I was most grateful for the money. I wasn’t broke, but without a job and with my college career hanging in the balance, along with a new baby, I needed every penny. I’d made the Dean’s List both semesters at BU, but I had to think about my daughter now. There was no way I was going to take my baby away from my family to try to raise her on my own while juggling school in Cove City.
Using my index finger, I traced the beautiful blue roses wrapped in crisp one-hundred-dollar bills. The blues of the money and the flowers complemented each other so well. I knew my sister said she didn’t mind that Tunan had given me such an elaborate gift, but still, I couldn’t believe he’d done so. Maybe that’s how husbands were with their sisters-in-law? Ididn’t know. Glow never had anyone even close to becoming my brother-in-law. I also didn’t know many people with husbands to be privy to their behavior.
Ignoring the ache in my lip, I dug my phone out from the side of the oversized chair. My sister had gotten me a brand-new one since mine was ruined in the wreck. There were a few Facebook notifications from old classmates wishing me a happy birthday. I’d reply to them all in due time. Tapping the Instagram icon, I hit the plus sign to add a video to my story. Once I had a good boomerang of my flowers and gifts, I added a happy birthday song and uploaded it to my stories. My little ten thousand followers, whom I’d only gotten because my sister tagged me in several reels and posts, probably thought I was the most boring person on the planet. I rarely kept up with my social media accounts, unlike most girls my age.
