Nova
I couldn’t sleep, Guy’s words haunting me like a ghost as I sat in the bed trying to make myself believe he was wrong.
He wasn’t wrong.
No matter how much I wanted to believe David’s lukewarm love from afar made me happy, it just... didn’t. No matter how much I claimed to trust him, I just… couldn’t, especially after studying the latest pictures of him on the internet from every which angle and coming to the conclusion that something was definitely up between him and the latest songstress he called boss. But it almost seemed easier to just not deal with it at all, not deal with him at all, though pushing David to the back of my thoughts meant becoming even more aware of my roommate.
Beyond the fact that Guy was fine as hell, he was so damn charming that it annoyed me since I couldn’t do anything about it. But if I could do something about it, if I could make use of those stout shoulders and those full lips, I was pretty sure that would grant me the exact happiness Guy was talking about.
At least temporarily.
Since that wasn’t an option, I went to the next best thing, digging into the nightstand for Kofi but settling for the toy that hit my hand first, Trevante. I wondered if Guy’s dick would measure up to my imagination, if it held the same power, the same strength of the rest of his demeanor. Truth be told, I somehow already knew it was better than David’s without even experiencing it.
My mind flashed back to what was supposed to be the last go-round at Netflix and Chill with David right before he left to shoot another series of videos, but it was really more like Netflix and Ch… considering how long it lasted. I certainly enjoyed a quickie just as much as the next woman, but that was just… quick. He claimed it was all about getting the first one off so that he could go longer for round two, but round one wasn’t good enough for me to even consider a second. Of course that pissed him off, we fought about it and then he left for LA which meant he still hadn’t had a chance to redeem himself in that department. And even though we had technically made up, over time I had become far more interested in what I knew I could do for myself instead of what he maybe could do for me to care about his shortcomings.
So that was exactly what I was going to do, positioning the bottom of my feet firmly on the mattress as I opened myself wide and closed my eyes. What was usually a mash-up of my chocolate celebrity crushes - Idris Elba’s voice, Trevante Rhodes’ face and smile, Kofi Siriboe’s body - had been replaced by beige-skinned Guy with a voice just as smooth, a body just as impressive, and a face sexy enough to guarantee this would be the right kind of quick. But just as I was really getting into the groove, a knock on the bedroom door startled me as I immediately yanked the covers tight to my chest.
“Uh… yes?” I called out, my heart pounding through my ears as if I had already been caught bustin’ it open for myself. And I was just sure my face was flushed red when the door cracked just slightly before Guy’s head slid through the threshold.
“Your little buddy woke up and made a special request for his Miss. Nova. You busy?” he asked, his eyes tired as if he had already been dozing off himself.
“Yes! Obviously…” I muttered, the vibrations still humming against my hand as I quickly tried to silence them without being able to look at the controls.
But they weren’t loud enough to deter Guy as he insisted, “He really wants to see you, Nova. Even started crying when I told him he couldn’t.”
“So, what? Let him cry,” I replied brashly, desperate for him to just go away.
He didn’t, instead cracking the door open a little wider to show that Jaxson was standing right below him.
The guilt hit me square in the chest as I buried my toy somewhere deep in the covers before motioning for Jax to come towards me. His steps were slow, his little lips trembling the same way they had done back at the airport which only made me feel worse. And when he finally made it to the edge of the bed, the proof of the tears he had already shed were dried against his cheek.
Poor baby.
“What’s the matter, sweetheart? You can’t sleep?” I asked as I brushed my hand against his cotton-covered shoulder that was bouncing through his sniffles.
“I had a… had a… night mirror,” he whined, a trail of snot slipping from his nose at the mention.
Instincts had me snatching a tissue from the nightstand and swiping his nose clean while I repeated, “Night mirror?”
“Nightmare,” Guy corrected from the door frame he was resting against, the lighthearted expression he usually wore traded for an annoyed one as if he wasn’t the one who had interrupted my good time.
I focused my attention back on Jaxson just as he was stammering, “It was so… so… scary.”
“I’m so sorry that happened to you, Jax. But I’m sure it won’t happen again if you just go back to sleep,” I assured him, hoping that would be enough to get the both of them out of my room.
It wasn’t, Jaxson’s eyes glossing over as he whined, “But I don’t want tooooo.”
“Well how about we… turn on a movie? Will that make you feel better?” I asked, peeking up to Guy who only shrugged as if he didn’t care what we did as long as it meant no more crying and he could go back to sleep. Jaxson on the other hand wasted no time climbing up onto the bed, crawling towards the side opposite of me as if the spot had his name on it. “Oh! Okay,” I said with wide eyes, startled that he had overrode my original plans to go in the living room.
Once again, Guy didn’t look to care either way, tossing a wave at us as he said, “I’m going back to bed.” Before stepping to close the door behind him.
“No he didn’t just…”
“Miss. Nova, I wanna watch Home! It’s my favorite!” Jaxson shouted, his tears instantly replaced with excitement that I couldn’t help but consume.
“Home it is,” I replied with a smile as I turned on the Smart TV and navigated to the Netflix app, making me chuckle as I thought about how different watching it with a kid was. And to be honest, I was a little pumped to see the animated film which featured a character voiced by one of my favorite singers, Bad Girl RiRi.
Jaxson was surprisingly silent as the movie started and even throughout, only laughing when appropriate and gasping at the close calls of trouble for the two enemies turned friends. And you would’ve thought the movie was made for me the way I was doing the same, becoming so absorbed in it that I even found myself on the verge of tears the closer we got to the ending. In fact, I was so into it that I hadn’t even realized Jaxson had fallen asleep until the credits were rolling.
His sleep looked so peaceful that I couldn’t imagine disturbing it now. So instead I simply adjusted his head into a better position for his neck and covered him with the comforter, the California King mattress being plenty of room for the both of us.
At least that’s what I thought until I woke up with a foot in my face two hours later.
Through my slumber, I was somehow able to find the space to get far enough away from him so that I could get back into a deep sleep. And by the time I woke up again, the bed was empty.
“Hmph. Didn’t even leave a note scribbled in Crayola on the nightstand,” I thought to myself with a smile as I stretched my arms before climbing out of bed, following the sounds of Jaxson playing coming through the door he must’ve left cracked from his escape and the smells of breakfast being cooked by who I could assume was his father. And while I was already convinced the sight would be reminiscent of heaven, my cheeks turned hot as hell once I saw what was resting on the kitchen counter.
“What the… how did you… where did this…”
“Good morning to you too, Nova. You sleep aight? I’m sure that probably helped,” he said teasingly as he nodded towards the counter.
“Why is this out here?” I asked through clenched teeth, completely mortified.
Guy shrugged, transferring the blueberry pancakes he had made from the griddle to a plate as he explained, “Jaxson brought it out with him this morning. Thought it was a toy. And I mean, I guess it is a toy but…”
“Shut it,” I snapped as I snatched it from the counter and stormed back towards my room.
But I had only made it a few steps when Guy shouted, “Nothing to be embarrassed about, sweetheart! I’m sure it came in the long-distance relationship care package!”
“Not exactly,” I thought to myself as I made it back to my bedroom, putting the toy in a much more secure place before returning to the kitchen to find three plates on the counter.
“Lamar’s coming back over for breakfast?” I asked as casually as possible, hoping it would ease us past the humiliation I had faced a few minutes earlier.
My ears perked up as I watched him carry the plates to the table and answer, “Nah, the third one is for you. Well, if you want it. I didn’t wanna be rude. And I mean, you cooked for us the other night so I figured I could return the favor. Carry my weight around here.”
I tried to play down my excitement at that fact, nervously crossing my arms over my chest when I replied, “Oh. Umm… thank you. But I don’t really like pancakes much these days.”
He didn’t seem fazed by my words, using a knife to cut Jaxson’s pancakes into smaller bites as he insisted, “I bet you’ll like mine. And I used all fresh, organic ingredients if that’s what you’re worried about. Even the syrup is organic.”
“Miss. Nova, Daddy makes the best pancakes!” Jaxson added, backing up his father’s claims as he shoved the first bite into his mouth and groaned in appreciation.
While I probably shouldn’t have been relying on a three-year-old’s palate to determine if I liked something, the way he dived back into his plate to grab another piece was way too convincing as I finally agreed, “I guess I can have a little taste. So we don’t waste them.”
Guy only smirked in response as he passed me on his way back to the kitchen to grab the cups of apple juice he had poured for each of us, returning just as quickly and placing one in front of me. “Don’t worry, lightweight. This one isn’t spiked.”
I rolled my eyes at his teasing, borrowing the knife to cut my pancakes and spreading some of the organic syrup on top before using my fork to do an official taste test. And I would’ve been lying if I said the bite was anything short of amazing, reminding me of something my mother would make on a Saturday morning when I was a child. In fact, I was already digging into my plate for another bite when Guy asked, “Good, right?” An arrogant grin on his face since he already knew the answer to his question.
Instead of answering, I focused on the food, peeking over to Jaxson who happily had his toy car in one hand and a sticky pancake piece in the other, then peeking up at Guy who was busy getting his own pancakes in order. The whole scene felt… comforting, like something out of an ABC sitcom, or something I’d want to do every morning with my own future family whenever time allowed for it. But I suppose I was really only imposing on their family time, Guy using the opportunity to ask his son about our night together.
“So, what movie did you end up watching with Miss. Nova? Do you remember?”
Jaxson nodded, chewing his pancake. “It was Home, Daddy.”
Guy shook his head knowingly as he replied, “Of course it was that. Your favorite.”
“It was actually a really good movie. I enjoyed it,” I chimed in, trying to find my place in this whole arrangement.
But it felt as if I had somehow overstepped when Guy replied, “Yeah, I bet you were in there crying like a baby the same way Mariah did when we saw it in theaters.”
“You two went on a date to see a kid’s movie?” I blurted, my face twisted with what must’ve been envy since I knew that was something I could never talk David into doing. And since I didn’t have kids around other than my students back home, I never had a viable excuse to go to the theater to see the animated films I knew were riddled with adult jokes.
Guy matched my twisted expression, though his seemed more confused as he clarified, “We took our son to see a kid’s movie as a family, yeah.”
“Oh. Right. Of course,” I replied through my nods before shoving more pancakes into my mouth, feeling silly for jumping to the conclusions that still hadn’t been determined; conclusions that had me torn on letting my feelings about being around Guy bloom. On one hand, there was my ever lingering situation with David. And on that same hand, there was his… baby mama.
Guy ventured back to the discussion with his son, making me feel a little left out even though the question involved me. “How was it sleeping in Miss. Nova’s bed? Was it comfy?”
“Her bed is so big, Daddy. You can fit too!” Jaxson insisted, making me cringe since I had already pictured us doing just that without his son’s company.
I braced myself for some sort of joke or tease about Jaxson’s innocent suggestion, but was surprised when Guy shut the idea down completely. “Nah, I think I’ll stick to my own. And I bet Miss. Nova wants her bed back to herself which means you’ll be sleeping in your own tonight. Understood?”
“But Daddy...”
“Jaxson…” Guy scolded in a voice reserved exclusively for parenting.
Once again, I found myself jumping in. “It’s really not that big of a deal, Guy. I mean, I hardly even knew he was there.”
“Well it’d be the exact opposite if it was me. I can guarantee you that.”
And there it was.
The charm, the flirt, the man who had managed to give me wet panties more times than the one I had spent the last few years with. And I absolutely believed his claims, was all but ready to test them out when Jaxson asked, “Daddy, can you watch a movie with me and Miss. Nova?”
“Daddy, can you make a movie with Miss. Nova?” I thought to myself as I listened to Guy spew his responsible, non-definitive answer. “We’ll see, son. Now let’s get you washed up so we can head down to the beach for a little while before Uncle Lamar’s game later on.”
Jaxson was already climbing out of his chair by the time I asked, “The beach? You should’ve warned me before I stuffed myself with pancakes.”
While I was sure my high-waisted swimsuit bottoms could accommodate the food baby Guy’s pancakes had given me, I still wasn’t thrilled about being out on the beach for the first time without feeling in tip-top shape. But my worries were only replaced with more humiliation when he stood up and replied, “Uhh… I didn’t exactly invite you.”
My lips were just parting to respond when he let out a laugh that interrupted. “I’m just messin’ with you, girl. You’re more than welcome to join us if you want. You know I’d never turn down an opportunity to see your cute ass in a swimsuit.”
I probably should’ve been snapping back at his comment, but the only thing that came out was, “I’m pretty sure there will be plenty of real beach bodies for you to look at. You won’t even notice mine.”
It wasn’t even realistic for me to think I could compete with the literal works of art that were waiting for us at the beach - South Beach. The girls with bodies that matched the ones he’d be throwing dollar bills at later when him and Lamar went to the strip club, the kinds of girls I was sure he lusted over via social media and claimed as his #WomanCrushWednesday.
Just the thought had me ready to turn down his non-invitation until he stopped right next to my chair, putting his heavy hand on my shoulder as he insisted, “Trust me, Nova. I always notice you, even when I don’t want to.” Then he walked away, leaving me to read way deeper into his words than reasonable.