Page 1 of Certified Pressure 3
Trill-Land, Jungle Estate
“Pressure, what the fuck she mean she’s pregnant?” Kashmere asked, her face already streaked with tears.
I couldn’t even say shit right now ‘cause my mind was racin’ in too many directions. Pluto done walked out the door, leavin’ a storm in this bitch, and here I was still standin’ in the foyer with Kashmere lookin’ at me like I done committed the ultimate crime. My chest felt tight, and I ain’t gon’ lie, I wanted to chase after Pluto, but I knew that shit wasn’t smart right now. Kash was right here, wildin’ out, and this was her moment that just got flipped upside down.
She slapped her hands against her thighs, pacin’ like she ain’t know what else to do with herself. “Nah, Pressure… nah, tell meshe lying. Tell me this bitch just tryna ruin us, ‘cause what the fuck, you literally just asked me to be your wife, and now she talking ‘bout she pregnant?!”
I ran my hand down my face and looked up at the ceilin’ like God was gon’ give me some type of lifeline. My whole life stayed on some movie shit, and right now I felt like the script was flippin’ faster than I could keep up with. “Kash, calm the fuck down,” I said, my voice low but firm, tryna keep her from spiralin’ further.
“Calm down? Nigga, you got this bitch pregnant and you telling me calm down?!”
Her voice cracked, but she kept shakin’ her head hard like she was fightin’ herself. “You just told me I’m gon’ be your wife, you just put a ring on my finger, and she walk in here throwing a test at you? Nah… nah, Pressure. You outta your fuckin’ mind if you think I’m about to just sit here and accept this shit like it’s normal.”
I stared at her, my jaw clenchin’ even though I tried not to show it. Deep down, my stomach was twistin’ like a bitch. I wasn’t blind to how crazy this shit looked, but one thing I knew for sure—there was no way in hell I was about to deny what Pluto just put in my hand. This test was real. I could see it in her face when she gave it to me. She ain’t one for games, and I knew damn well she wasn’t about to fake no pregnancy just to get a reaction outta me.
Kash stepped closer, her finger pointed right at my chest. “You need to fix this. You need to tell her to get rid of that shit. Ain’t no baby about to ruin us, Pressure. Not after everything we been through.“
I froze for a second ‘cause that word hit me harder than she even realized.Get rid of that shit.I had to bite my tongue ‘cause the rage was bubblin’ up inside me. She ain’t know how deep that cut. She ain’t know what it felt like to lose a baby andbury that pain every day. She ain’t know about me sittin’ in the hospital starin’ at Ka’mari while she cried, both of us broken in ways words couldn’t explain.
I stepped forward, towerin’ over her, my voice droppin’ low, and heavy with warning. “Watch your fuckin’ mouth. Ain’t nobody gettin’ rid of shit. You lost your mind if you think I’m about to tell Pluto to do some shit like that. You trippin’, Kash. For real.”
Her eyes widened like she couldn’t believe I really just said that shit . She pushed me in my chest, her nails diggin’ through my shirt.
“So what? You just gon’ keep her around? You gon’ raise her baby like y’all some happy family? That’s what the fuck you telling me? After everything me and you done been through? After I held you down? You choose her?!”
I grabbed her wrists and squeezed them before she could try to hit me, holdin’ her still. My voice came out harsher than I intended. “Ain’t nobody said shit about choosin’ her over you, but you not about to stand here and talk reckless about my kid. I don’t give a fuck how mad you is right now. That’s mine. You hear me? That’s mine, and I don’t play about that.”
She yanked her arms back, tears brimming in her eyes again, but this time she ain’t let ‘em fall. She stood there, breathin’ heavy, her chest risin’ and fallin’ like she was tryna hold all the fire inside her. For a moment, the room was silent except for her sniffles and the sound of my own heartbeat poundin’ in my ears.
Then she shook her head slow, her voice tremblin’ but clear. “You just proposed to me, Pressure. You looked me dead in my face and told me I’m gon’ be your wife. And now this bitch tryna come between us. I don’t give a fuck if she’s carryin’ your baby or not. Ain’t no child about to stand in my way. You hear me?”
I looked at her like she had two heads. The way she said that shit sent a chill through me. Not ‘cause I thought she would hurtPluto or no shit like that, but ‘cause I realized how far Kash was willin’ to go to keep her spot. She wasn’t foldin’. She was diggin’ her heels in, lettin’ me know right then and there that she wasn’t steppin’ aside for nothin’ or nobody.
She wiped her face with the back of her hand, then turned slow, lookin’ toward the door where her bags was sittin’. She stared at them, then back at me, her eyes red but steady, like she made her decision.
“I’m your fiancée now, Pressure,” she said, her voice low but sharp, almost like a promise and a threat at the same time. “And I don’t care what she talking about. Ain’t no baby going to take that from me.”
With that, she walked past me without another word. The sound of her heels clickin’ against the marble floor echoed through the foyer. She grabbed her luggage, yanked the handle up, and rolled her bags straight toward the elevator. She ain’t look back once.
I just stood there, starin’ at her back as she disappeared inside, my chest heavy, and my hands balled into fists at my sides. My mind was spinnin’ outta control.
On one hand, I just proposed to Kash, and she was makin’ it clear she wasn’t about to bow out. On the other hand, Pluto just dropped the biggest bomb of my life, and no matter how crazy Kash was actin’, she couldn’t erase the fact that I had a baby on the way.
And that’s when it hit me—shit was about to get real ugly.
Fuck!I kept thinkin’ to myself while still standin’ in the hall, starin’ at this damn pregnancy test. My whole body felt heavy like somebody dropped a weight on my chest, but I couldn’t takemy eyes off the stick. I had just slid a ring on Kashmere’s finger, and made a promise I wasn’t even sure I could keep, and then Pluto had the nerve to hit me with this?
I heard my phone buzz in my pocket, pulled it out, and saw Renza’s name flash across the screen. I ain’t even bother pickin’ up. I wasn’t in the mood for no jokes, no wild comments, not even him tryna calm me down. I wasn’t calm. I was pissed off, confused, and if I’m being real, scared as fuck. And all that was before Kashmere opened her mouth down here and told me to make Pluto get rid of my baby.
That shit sat in my chest like poison. The words kept echoing every time I blinked.Make her get rid of it. She ain’t even realize what she was sayin’, and maybe she did, but either way that shit cut deep.
I slid the test into my pocket, pressin’ my hand over it for a second like I was tryna protect it already. Then I headed for the elevator. I hit the button, waited on the doors to slide open, and stepped inside. My reflection stared back at me in the mirror on the back wall, and I almost didn’t recognize myself. My eyes looked wild, like I was halfway between snappin’ and breakin’ down.
When the doors opened again, I walked out and straight to my room. Soon as I stepped inside, Kashmere was pullin’ clothes out her suitcase, foldin’ them like she was settlin’ in for the long haul. Her hair was a mess, her makeup smeared, eyes swollen and red like she’d been cryin’ nonstop.
I let out a long sigh, rubbin’ my face with both hands. “You don’t need to get comfortable too fast,” I said, my voice rough as hell.
She froze, her hands holdin’ one of her dresses mid-fold, then slowly looked up at me. Her eyes were glossy, her lips tremblin’ like she had more words to throw at me but she was holdin’ themback. She just stared for a second, then put the dress down and stood up straight, facin’ me.
