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“OH…”
“Yeah, nigga. So, I’ll say this now. You can date my sister again. Aight? I give you full permission. But you better come correct this time, kid. I fucking mean it. Because anybody, and I do mean anybody, who hurts Destiny is getting put down. Immediately. No hesitation. I’m not fucking around, Skizzy. Understood?”
“Yeah, yeah,” he stutters, “I get you, big bro.”
“Good,” I pat him on the back, rather hard, “Glad we can come to that understanding. Now you better get back in there. You’ve got other customers.”
I shake his trembling hand before he hightails back into his truck. Leah already has our orders ready by the time I’m next to Morgan again. After receiving them, we stroll down the street straight into the Swing Park. A set of swings right underneath the highway that also leads to a long bridge hovering over the Milwaukee River for people to bike, sprint and jog. While that’s the appropriate usage, most use it as a chance to smoke, fuck and mingle.
Whenever we’re here, it’s an escape to talk about whatever’s on our mind and have a moment to bond. We walk the path, slowly, going to town on our food. I have to give credit where credit’s due. Skizzy might be goofier than a pet raccoon, but the nigga can put together a grilled brat. I’m half-way finished with mine before we even reach the middle of the bridge. Once there, Morgan stops, turning right towards the water. She takes a big bite from her brat, continuing to stare straight ahead. I can always tell when something heavy is weighing on her mind. She sighs, chews again, sighs heavier and then, tosses the last piece of bread away.
“You good, ma?”
She turns to me, looking a bit sad. “Where do you see us in five years?”
Questions like this feel like a set up. Just like the “would you love me if I were a cat” interrogations. I draw close, placing my weight against her back. Her energy is palpable. Something feels off.
“Married. Happy. Rich,” I answer proudly.
Her head turns ever so slightly. “And parents?”
“Is that what your mood change is all about?” “Answer me.”
“Morgan, baby, we’ve been down this road before.” “Not far enough. You still haven’t answered.”
She sighs, leaving a brat scented fog in front of us.
“Baby, you know when the time comes, we’ll be great parents. Don’t do that.”
“Don’t do what?” She turns completely to me, “Wonder about our future?”
“Our future? I thought that the heavy ass ring on your future always represents the future.”
“I’m serious, Damien.”
“Where is all this coming from? We were just good a minute ago.” “Don’t get defensive. This isn’t that. We are good. I’m just…”
She turns back to the water again. My endless drama queen without a crown.
“I just want to know that at some point, I’ll be able to leave a legacy here outside of being the
Good Girl you decided to marry.”
“Is that how you see yourself? Just as the woman who somehow made it past Ecstasy Island?”
Now she’s a statue, standing still and saying nothing. I first toss my plate in the nearby trash before returning right back to her with more pep in my step. She’s clearly bothered. I should’ve known this conversation would return at some point. Some things just can’t be avoided forever. I use my right hand to turn her completely in my direction, looking right into those beautiful, hypnotic eyes.
“Morgan Parx-Ross. I want you to hear me and hear me fuckin’ good. From the moment I met you, I knew you were the one. The same way you just stood on business here, you’ve been that way since the beginning. You are my entire fuckin’ universe. My wife. My Goddamn heartbeat. You think I’d really marry you with no intentions of raising a child with you too?”
“Sometimes it feels that way. Like all we’ll ever be is the freaky couple doing threesomes and running businesses.”
“Well, let’s nip that in the bud now. You’re rarely wrong but right now you are. Because all of this shit, Ecstasy Island, my coffee business, the threesomes, the freaky shit, it’s fun. It is. It was fun before we met. But now, I’ve got you. And you will always be my priority. You hear me?”
She nods.
I press my hand under her chin. “No, I want to hear the words.”
“Yes, baby, I hear you,” she says in a humming tone.
