Page 9 of And Everything In Between

“You still trying to cancel the bounce house?” Spirit asked, her eyes not leaving the screen. “I already paid the deposit, G. Let the kids have their moment.”

Giovanni didn’t answer right away. Just sipped his coffee slowly and stared out the window at the growing crowd trickling into the parking lot. His mind was already working through logistics, vendor tents, staff assignments, and weather backup plans. The car show was hours away, and the weight of it pressed against the back of his neck like it always did when something big was coming. But it wasn’t nerves. It was stewardship. A sense of duty. This was more than a hobby for him. He wanted to be anexample to the young men around him. The gifts they possessed could be used for good.

“Nah,” he said finally, cutting a piece of pancake with the side of his fork. “Let ’em have it. Just make sure somebody from the team is posted up over there. I ain’t tryna deal with nobody suing me behind they kid falling out the damn death trap and breaking their neck.”

“Handled it already,” Spirit said, barely looking up as she typed. “Waivers and all. It’s in that email you’ve been dodging.”

Betsy cut her eyes at him before buttering her toast. “You too busy to eat. Too busy to sleep. And now you seem to be too busy to read. One day your lil’ busy ass gon’ fall out and be sat down.”

Giovanni smiled; he liked it when she got on to him. It kept him accountable, but he didn’t need the lecture, his break was on the way, but he had goals to reach first.

“I’m good, Ma.”

“You not,” she said, reaching over to tap his wrist with the back of her fork. “You doing too much again. That’s how men miss their blessings. Ain’t no rest in the grave, Gio just death, bones, and dreams.”

He nodded because that’s what you did when your momma scolded you in public. He didn’t push back. He couldn’t. Not when she wasn’t wrong. He’d been moving on autopilot for a minute now, chasing the next goal, the next build, the next fire to put out. That’s how his mind worked. Always had. But here, at this table, with the women who either raised and protected him, who knew every version of him from buck-toothed middle school troublemaker to black-owned-business success story, here, he could chill. For a second.

“Everything’s coming together though,” Spirit said, glancing up at him, always saving him. “Vendors are locked in.Food trucks confirmed. I got the social schedule laid out through next week. Hashtags are trending. Today is going to be great.”

“And the scholarship fund?”

“Fully funded,” she confirmed, grinning. “Even got a few local sponsors to match what we raised last quarter. These kids gon’ have a real chance, brother. You did that.”

“Show?”

“Sold out. The fairgrounds will be packed today.” Spirit's satisfaction was evident.

Betsy nodded; pride written all over her face. “This what we prayed for.”

Giovanni didn’t say much to that. He exhaled and leaned back into the booth, letting it settle over him. It was easy to forget sometimes why he started all this, the car shop, the shows, the community stuff. It was easy to get caught up in the shine and the scale of it all. Especially when you didn’t have much growing up. He was hellbent on leaving this place better than he found it.

“Don’t forget to stop by the raffle table today,” Spirit added, swiping her screen toward him. “You need to be visible. Smile for the social media pictures. Shake hands. Kiss babies.”

“I ain’t a politician.”

“No,” Betsy said, lifting her coffee. “But you’re a good man. And that matters more. And maybe you’ll find someone while you kiss babies and smile for the camera.”

Giovanni dipped his head, taking a long sip of his own. She was always sliding babies and women into the conversation. And he wished he could make her day, but he had trust issues and too much to lose.

“Not today with that woman talk. She out there somewhere.”

Today was show day. Everything else could wait. The fairgrounds would be buzzing soon. People would be pulling up,old schools polished and tires shining, ready to show out. Kids would be climbing into their first hot rods. Grown men would be pretending they weren’t fanned out over custom rebuilds that reminded them of their dads and grandparents.

And he’d try to bask in it all. Try to have a good time, smile enough, thank the right people, impress the right people.

“Everything is in place. The network will also be there to film the drive through backpack giveaway. So don’t ruin that by going off script or going missing.”

His phone vibrated against the table before he could respond to his sister. Spirit forgot she was the younger sibling. He didn’t need her bossing him around.

It was his cousin Emon. He answered on the second ring. “Yo.”

“Cuzzo.” Emon’s voice dragged, worn and tired. “We ain’t gon’ make it out today. EJ woke up with a fever, and Blake’s not trying to risk it.”

“All good,” Giovanni said, even though a small pang hit his chest. “Tell Blake I hope he feels better soon.”

“I will. And G?”

“Yeah?”

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