Page 106 of Intercept My Heart

“Yeah, it’s wild. It seems like it was just yesterday that we were here trying to figure out the next steps in our lives, and now here we are.” We headed upstairs to the bedrooms because I wanted to see if everything was still the same up there as well.

“I remember how nervous I was when you brought me here. I had no idea what life had in store for me, but I never imagined it going the way it did.” Sunny took a seat on the edge of my bed. Everything had been cleaned and organized, but all my old posters were still in place. It gave me a bit of nostalgia to see all my football idols on the wall. I used to sit in my room for hours, envisioning how life would be once I became the next big deal. I manifested the life I wanted, and now I was on some kid’s wall who had dreams of becoming the next Money Sutton. It was crazy how life worked.

“Man, when I brought you home, I was terrified too. You were so fragile, and I worried that I wouldn’t be able to give you what you needed.” Our eyes locked, and my chest swelled with love and admiration. It took us a minute to get back to this place, but seeing her beautiful self sitting on my bed reminded me ofhow far we had come. I knew from the moment I brought her home that she would hold a special place in my heart, but I had no idea just how much of an impact she would truly have on me.

“You gave me everything I needed and then some. Without you, I would never have made it as far as I have. I wouldn’t have had the strength to stand up for myself or find my worth. You gave me love and a shot at a new life. I’ll always be indebted to you for that.”

I took a seat next to her, wrapping my arm around her. As a young man, I had no idea what love truly meant, but I knew what I felt for her was real. Now, I could really sit and appreciate all that we had been through because it brought us back together.

“Aye, Pops! Did you really grow up in this house? This shit is dope!”

“Moolah, I’mma fuck you up,” I warned. I swear that boy just didn’t give a damn about what came out of his mouth.

“My fault, Pops. I’m still a work in progress.” He grinned, standing in the doorway with his brother.

“Yes, this is my old house. This is where your mama and I used to live before we went to college.

“Oh, so y’all were fuc?—”

“Moolah!”

“Oh, sorry. I was just gonna to ask, was this where we were made?”

“Man, get out of here. Anyway, this is where I fell in love with your mama. We had a lot of good memories in this place. My parents and I lived here, and when they died, I stayed here by myself.”

“Okay, now we really need an explanation. Who was that nigga at the hospital looking like a black James Bond?”

“What do you even know about James Bond?” I chuckled.

“I know enough. He looked like he was coming from some secret mission or something.” Since we were all together, Idecided to break it all down to them from the beginning. Of course, they both had a bunch of questions that I barely had all the answers to. I tried to explain the situation as best as I could, and they soaked up every word.

“You were slanging bricks like the ones Jeezy talks about in his songs? All this time, I thought you were one of those niggas who pretended to be in the streets,” Moolah blurted out. Sunny giggled while I shook my head.

“It wasn’t one of my proudest moments, but I don’t regret it. I learned a lot from those days, and to be honest, it made me appreciate the life my uncle provided for me. I worked hard to make sure my future children would never have to.”

Glancing over to my nightstand, I retrieved the photos I had of us when we were together. In every photo, Sunny’s smile was bright enough to make you want to smile too. When we first became close, I made a vow that I would do everything in my power to make sure she had some good memories in her life to counteract all the bad ones. Seeing these pictures reminded me that I had honored my promise.

“Eww, why are your shorts so small?” Moolah pretended to gag as he held up the picture. When I saw which one he was referring to, a huge grin covered my face. I remembered that day like it happened yesterday. She ended up linking up with Shanique from the mall, and she helped her find the perfect outfit for the party.

The moment she came down the stairs, I knew she was gonna be a problem. Sunny was naturally pretty but seeing her in that bikini top with those daisy duke shorts riding up her ass almost sent me into cardiac arrest. I wanted so badly to tell her to go upstairs and change, but I wanted her to enjoy her night. That night, I ended up fighting two different dudes over her.

“Oh my gosh. Why do you still have this?” Sunny squealed.

“You were out there looking like a thot, mama. I can’t believe Pops let you leave out of the house with this on.” Moolah shook his head.

“Aye, I wasn’t worried because she was with me, and you better believe I put every nigga on their ass for trying her.”

“I hope you burned those shorts afterward,” he spat.

“And did. I set them on fire the next day and gave her the money to make up for it.” I cheesed, reminiscing about how upset she was when she found her charbroiled shorts in the garbage. I let her have her moment, but she wouldn’t be wearing them again around me.

“He’s not lying. I was so mad at him for that.”

We continued looking at photos while telling the boys about our past. We had so many good times, and it upset me that we had allowed so much time to pass without communicating with one another. She was the best thing to ever happen to me.

“I heard the alarm sound off. I think your Unc… I mean, father is here.” Sunny caught herself.

“No, you said it right the first time. That man is still my uncle. I don’t give a damn what DNA says.” I huffed. We still had to sit down and have a conversation with each other, but now wasn’t the time for that. Tootie was in critical condition, so that was what I chose to focus on for the time being.

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