Page 44 of I Don't Want You Back

Chapter 13

“I don’t give a damn how long it takes, I want every damn dime back from all three of y’all. Fifteen hundred dollars of my hard-earned money to get y’all asses out of jail for some bullshit. Thank God, I was able to get my grandkids and make sure they ate and got to school safely,” Cora fussed at her three daughters who she had just bailed out of jail.

Her daughter Felicia’s neighbor had called to see if she could pick up her grandkids because she had to go to work. When she asked where her daughter was, the neighbor had no idea. Apparently, Felicia asked her to keep the kids while she went to pay her phone bill and that was the last that she’d seen or heard from her. Cora tried calling Monica and Malia, and she didn’t get an answer from them either. She was heated when she heard from Felica the following morning and learned that they’d all been arrested. Cora already had picked up the kids, so there was need for her to worry about them. Monica had left her kids at home with some random nigga, so Cora went and got them too. She was pissed when her grandkids told her that they hadn’t eaten anything the day before. She was even more upset when she found out the reason that her daughters had been arrested. Malia was a damn fool and Cora always reminded her of that. She left a good man for a nigga who didn’t give a damn about her. Cora was so disappointed in her youngest daughter. Malia had never given her any trouble, so she was surprised at her actions lately. She had turned into a person that her mother no longer knew.

“You’ll have your money before the day is out,” Malia flippantly replied.

“Don’t try to get an attitude with me. I could have left your ass in there until your court date came up,” Cora replied.

“I don’t have an attitude. I’m just letting you know that you’re gonna get your money back,” Malia said.

“I told you when I first met that Roman character that he wasn’t right. Men like him don’t know what it is to have one woman. You left your family to be with his ass and look at how he did you. Got you out here fighting random bitches and going to jail. This is only the beginning of your karma,” Cora fussed.

Malia didn’t have time for the ‘I told you so’ talk and she had more important things on her mind. Landon and his so-called relationship bothered her, and she wanted to know who the woman was. Malia tried calling him back a few times after he hung up on her, but he never answered. She ended up staying in jail another night. Then, there was Roman. Malia didn’t know if he had been bailed out or not and she was a nervous mess.

Her mind was all set on going home to her family, but Landon was being difficult. She was sure that Roman was going to be pissed and possibly want her out of his apartment. Malia had to buy herself some time, at least until Landon came to his senses. She had nowhere else to go and living in the projects with her sisters wasn’t happening. Her only other option was living with her mother and that was just as bad. Cora had too many rules for a grown woman to have to follow.

“Make sure I see you with my money before the day is out,” Cora said when she dropped Malia off to her car that was still in the parking lot of the mall.

“I’ll be over there later,” Malia said as she got out of the car.

Felicia and Monica followed behind her because they didn’t want to hear their mother’s mouth. Cora was always a force to be reckoned with and they knew not to play with her.

“I don’t care if I have to suck dick every day for a month, I’m gonna pay her back every dime of that five hundred dollars. I don’t need her to be on my back about no money,” Felicia said when they got into Malia’s car.

“I have a few dollars saved up and I’m gonna go drop it off to her later. I need to go get my baby for a little while. I know he’s upset that I didn’t bring him to the fair,” Malia replied.

“What do you mean get him for a little while? I thought you were going back home. I know damn well you ain’t staying with Roman’s dog ass after this!” Felicia yelled.

“First off, you need to calm down with all the yelling. And, secondly, Landon is on some bullshit right now. He claims he got a girlfriend, but I know the nigga is lying. Lennox would have been told me that,” Malia noted.

“He’s just probably trying to teach you a lesson for leaving him. Niggas be in their feelings more than bitches sometimes. His ass knows he wants you to come back. He just wants you beg.” Monica frowned.

“Well, if that’s what I have to do, so be it.” Malia shrugged as she pulled up to their houses.

Felicia lived a few buildings over from Monica, but she got out and walked to her apartment. She was happy that her kids were in school because she needed a nap. As soon as Malia pulled off, she pulled out her phone and called Landon. She was happy that she hadn’t got locked up with it and it was still halfway charged.

“Yeah Malia,” Landon said when he answered the phone.

She wanted to scream when she heard a woman’s laughter in the background. It was Monday morning, so Malia knew that her kids were in school. She wanted to get Lennox when he got out and keep him overnight. She had a lot of making up to do for standing him up. Plus, she wanted the info on this mystery woman that his father was now claiming.

“I know Lennox is at school, but I wanted to get him until tomorrow. I’ll bring him to school in the morning and he can catch the bus back home. I’ll pick him up this evening, so let Ms. Ella know that he won’t be getting off the bus today,” Malia said.

“Okay, that’s cool,” Landon replied as he kissed Faryn’s neck and chest.

True to his word, he made sure that Faryn called off from work that morning. Once the kids went off to school, they got it poppin’ in just about every room in the house. The kids’ rooms and bathrooms were off limits, but everything else was fair game.

“Okay, I’ll be there in a little while to get his stuff,” Malia said, hoping that she could get a glimpse at the new woman in his life.

“Nah, I’ll drop it off to him later. I have to pack it up and I’m busy right now,” Landon replied.

“Busy doing what?” Malia asked.

“I’ll call you later when I’m on my way,” Landon replied before hanging up. He wasn’t about to entertain Malia and her foolishness. He didn’t know what kind of bullshit she was own, but he didn’t have time for it.

“Asshole,” Malia hissed once the phone hung up.

She made her way to the apartment that she shared with Roman with her heart beating erratically. She didn’t know if he was home or not and she was scared to find out. She was able to breathe a little easier when she pulled up and didn’t see his car parked out front. She visibly exhaled when she got inside of the apartment because her key still worked. Malia had all kinds of thoughts going through her head. Since learning that another woman had made it possible for them to get the apartment, Malia thought she would play dirty to keep her out. Although she was happy that she still had a place to stay, she still wondered about what was going on with Roman.

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