Page 36 of Crash: Love in Scrubs
The accident had shown me how fragile everything was. How quickly life could change. How many chances I’d already wasted playing around, keeping my heart locked away like it was some precious thing that would break if I actually used it.
My daddy was quiet for a long moment, studying my face the way he used to when I was seventeen. Then his expression softened.
“You happy?”
The question caught me off guard. Not because he asked, but because I had to think about my answer. When was the last time anyone had asked me that? When was the last time I’d asked myself?
“I’m enjoying myself,” I said carefully. I didn’t want to make this more than what it was, didn’t want to jinx it by claiming too much too soon. Life was still a mess, Samaj was still healing, Ashe was still lurking around the edges, trying to play daddy, I was still having panic attacks every time I thought about it. But I was enjoying myself in a way I hadn’t in years. Maybe ever. I was looking forward to my tomorrows instead of just surviving them.
“That’s all that matters to me.” He paused, and I could see him switching from supportive father to protective father. “But if he hurts you…”
“He won’t.”
“How you know? You just met this man.”
I thought about the way Malik looked at me in my eyes. The way he talked about our future like it was a foregone conclusion, not a maybe. The way he’d stepped between me and Ashe without being asked, the way he drove us home in the rain without making me feel weak for needing it.
“Because he’s pursued me like a grown man pursues a grown woman. Not like he’s trying to get something from me, but likehe’s trying to give me something instead. He’s fully aware of what being with me comes with.”
My daddy nodded slowly, and I could see him processing that. He had been the standard for how a man should treat a woman, my entire life. He’d shown me what protection looked like without possession, what strength looked like without dominance. If anyone could recognize the real thing, it was him.
“I was wondering when you were gonna stop punishing yourself for Ashe’s mistakes.”
He might as well have slapped me. The words hit harder because they were true, and we both knew it. After Ashe left, Daddy didn't ask questions or say ‘I told you so.’ He just moved me and Samaj into the guest room and helped me get back on my feet. He never made me feel like a failure or a burden, even though I knew he'd never wanted me with Ashe to begin with. But he’d let me learn my own lessons, even when it meant watching me get hurt.
“What?”
“Baby girl, you been carrying that man’s failures on your back for seventeen years. Acting like his inability to be a father and a man somehow reflected on you and your character.” His voice was gentle but firm. “It doesn’t. It never did. And it’s about time you stopped letting it dictate how you live your life.”
I felt my throat tighten because he was right, and the truth of it made my hand quiver. My mind had never been able to properly trust that another man who didn’t share blood with my son could love him more than his own father did. It was dumb, but it was how I felt. Ashe walked out on his damn spitting image looking-ass son and never looked back. It would be easy for a stranger to do the same. And I just couldn’t put us through that again.
But Malik wasn’t a stranger anymore. He’d already proven himself in ways Ashe never had. He showed up. He stayed. Hesaw Samaj not as baggage or an obligation, but as part of the package deal he was eagerly signing up for.
“I know,” I whispered, finally. “I know you’re right. It’s just... scary as hell.”
Daddy reached across and squeezed my hand. “I want to meet him properly. Not as Samaj’s doctor, but as the man who’s courting my daughter.”
“Courting?” I laughed.
“Don’t get smart with me, girl. You know what I mean.”
“Yes sir. I’ll talk to him about coming to dinner.”
“Good. And Sametra?”
“Yes?”
“You do deserve to be happy. I just want you to be careful with your heart and your time.”
“I will be. I have to tell you all something, so can you come to the kitchen or the deck?”
We headed toward the deck, and I felt good about our conversation. It had been a long time since I’d been summoned to talk about a boy. That made me think of Malik, and before I could second-guess myself, I pulled out my phone.
Me: Dinner Thursday with my family at 6?
Me: Can you make it?
Me: If not, it’s fine. No pressure. Is this weird? Too soon?
