Torn (22 page)

Mo didn't have to want or need for anything. Everything was already done for her before she even had to ask. Quan prepared all of her meals, massaged her feet and gave her baths at night. He even stopped coming in the house late. Every night he was at home by nine o'clock sharp.

Mo noticed how hard he was trying to please her and loosened up her attitude toward him some. A lot of resentment still panged her heart, but if she wanted their relationship to work she was going to have to eventually forgive him and move on. It was New Year's Eve, and due to the fact that Mo was still bleeding and sore from the c-section, she and Quan decided to spend a nice quiet evening at home.

Quan didn't feel like being in the club anyway. All of that shit was starting to get old, and plus it was sure to be nothing but a bunch of drunk, stunting-ass-niggas and half-dressed bitches. He could watch that foolishness at home on "
BET
" for free. Instead, he and Mo were downstairs in his private room about to watch "
Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby"
for the one hundredth time. While standing by the microwave waiting on a bag of Orville Redenbacher popcorn to be done, he looked over and noticed that Mo had left her spot on the couch. Wondering where she could have gone, he called out her name.

"I'll be right there!" she replied, hoping he didn't hear her voice crack.

With her trembling hand covering her mouth, Mo stood with tear-filled eyes, watching as the mobile in Heaven's baby bed spun around and around. How she wished that the brown teddy bear she held close to her heart was her daughter. She wanted to hold and comfort her and tell her everything would be alright. She wanted to run her fingers through what she imagined would be her baby's coal-colored black curly hair.

Mo was dying inside and it seemed as though no one else shared in her grief. Quan had moved on and so had everyone else. She watched intently, on an everyday basis, waiting to see some kind of emotion seep through from him but it never came. She was dying alone and no one seemed to care. Wiping her face, she placed Heaven's teddy bear back inside the crib, turned off the light and headed downstairs.

"What were you upstairs doing?" he questioned as soon as she came down.

"Nothing, I had to go pee," she lied, taking her place back on the couch.

Quan watched as Mo lay peacefully watching the television. He didn't even notice that she had been crying. She looked so innocent and cute. Her hair was in pigtails and she wore no makeup. One of his oversized white tees devoured her upper body while leggings and a pair of ankle socks covered her legs and feet. He loved seeing her that way.

Times like this made Quan wonder what their child would have looked like. She would've been absolutely beautiful if she looked like Mo. Quan shook the thought from his head and grabbed the bag of popcorn, two sodas and a blunt, and joined Mo. Just as he was about to get comfortable on the couch, his cell phone began to ring. It was Sherry calling him again. She had been blowing up his phone non-stop since nine. He'd lied and told her that he was going to bring in the New Year with her since he hadn't seen her in over a week.

"Roll this up for me. I gotta see who this is," Quan said, handing Mo a Phillies blunt and a sack of weed before he left back out the room.

Mo watched as he flipped opened his cell and ran up the steps. She found it quite odd that he had to go all the way up the stairs just to talk on the phone. She knew in her heart of hearts that some shady stuff was going down, but she kept her mouth shut. Quan had been doing silly shit like that all week, ducking into other rooms just to talk on the phone and each time Mo turned the other cheek. If Quan was fucking around, she would eventually find out. Besides, it was New Year's Eve and Mo certainly didn't plan on bringing in the New Year by arguing.

"What's up?"

"Where you at?" Sherry stressed.

"Look, don't keep callin' my phone. I told you I was coming," he spoke in a low tone.

"But you said that over two hours ago, it's almost midnight."

"Oh, so now I'm on a time limit? C'mon dog, don't play wit me. I said I'll be there."

"Well you need to let me know what time you coming 'cause I ain't gon' be up here waiting on you when I can be doing something else."

"You ain't gotta wait on me. Gon' and do what you gotta do then," he shot, really not giving a fuck.

"So it's like that?" Sherry responded, hurt.

"Man, don't act stupid. You know my fuckin' situation. If you can't handle it then step."

"Step?" she repeated in disbelief. "Nigga please, I'm just going off what you said. If you knew you weren't coming then that was all you had to say."

"This conversation is a wrap. Call me tomorrow." Quan hung up not waiting for a reply.

Instead of turning off his phone like he normally would have, he blocked Sherry's number out for the rest of the night.

As he came down the steps, Mo glared at him with cold, suspicious eyes.

"What?" he asked, placing his hands up in the air.

"I ain't said nothing."

"Come here." He pulled her into him as he lay back on the couch. Mo rolled her eyes up into the ceiling, and lay in between Quan's muscular legs. Despite how hard she tried to fight her feelings or push him away, without him she felt as if she wasn't complete.

"Here." She handed him back his already rolled and lit blunt.

"Thanks, ma."

"You're welcome."

"Damn, I can't believe it's gettin' ready to be a new year already."

"Me either. I'm ready for this year to be over."

"I am too, shorty. Next year gon' be better though. I promise," he assured, taking a pull off the blunt.

"I hope so."

"You know I was thinking ... maybe we should to take a trip or something."

Mo looked up at him and asked, "Why?"

"'Cause I think we need it." Quan looked down upon her smooth mahogany face.

"You don't need to take me anywhere or buy me anything.

I'm fine right where I am."

"I just want to make you happy, ma. I hate seeing you so sad. That shit be fuckin' wit a nigga, yo."

"I'm okay. Trust me. I am."

"You sure? 'Cause I feel like I could be doing more to make you feel better."

"Quan ... I'm fine." She flashed him a smile of content-ment and laid her head back on his chest.

"A'ight, don't be coming to me a month from now talkin' about you want to go to Aruba or no shit like that."

"Trust me, I won't." She giggled. Quan almost jumped for joy it felt so good to hear his boo laugh.

"Yo, they counting down. Turn that up." Once the volume was up, they both counted down with the crowd in Times Square.

"Three, two, one," Quan shouted, grabbing Mo's face and giving her a quick peck on the lips. Still feeling unsure about where things stood between them, Mo eased back.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing," she lied, looking the other way.

"You know I love you more than anything, right?"

"I know," she spoke honestly. Deciding she needed to ease up and let things be, Mo gave him a light kiss back on the lips.

"That's what I'm talkin' about." He spoke softly into her lips as he tongue kissed her slowly. "Yo, when you gon' stop bleeding 'cause I want some pussy."

"Quan, don't play."

"What?" Over on the other side of town, dressed in nothing but a red fur-trimmed negligee and knee-high patent leather boots, Sherry paced the floor frantically, smoking a cigarette. Megan Rochell's "
The One You Need
" played as she wondered what her next move would be. For the first time in over a year, she had fucked up. Things were not supposed to be going this way.

She was supposed to be fucking Quan's brains out, not beef-ing with him. Sherry was so upset she couldn't think straight.

The thought of Quan leaving her alone for good drove her insane. Torn up inside, she plopped down on her leather couch and glanced around the room. Sherry had gone to all the trouble of finding a babysitter, buying champagne, dipping strawberries into chocolate, dressing in a sexy nightgown and lighting candles for nothing. Once again Quan had played her to the left for Mo. She was so sick of that shit. "You should've just kept your damn mouth shut," she thought out loud. Needing some advice, she picked up the phone and called her one and only friend, Jahquita.

"Hello?"

"What my kids doing?"

"Well, Happy New Year to you, too. They in the bed sleep and why you ain't wit yo' boo? I thought y'all was kickin' it tonight?" Jahquita questioned, not missing a beat.

"Girl, me and him just got into it," Sherry stated with an attitude.

"What happened?" Jahquita jumped up, eager to know.

"You know that nigga don't like when I talk back to him.

Well today I let his ass know that the shit he be doing ain't cool, and he flipped the fuck out. Tellin' me to step off and shit."

"For real? What you say? You had to say something to piss him off."

"Nothing, he told me he was going to be over here at nine.

Well nine came and went, so I called him again and asked him what time he was coming over and he got mad and jumped down my throat. Don't get me wrong ... I know his bitch just lost they baby but damn ... what about me? I feel sorry for her, I do, 'cause I know how that shit feel but I mean damn ... wasn't nobody kissing my ass when I lost my baby."

"Hold up bitch, I was there for you."

"Yeah I know you were, but Quan wasn't. All I got from that nigga was a phone call and a visit."

"But you gotta remember though, he did hook you up once you got pregnant wit' Lil' Quan, so quit whining. Quan got you set up nice. You living in a fat-ass crib and you driving a brand new car. Plus, from what you tell me, the dick is good. You better learn how to shut the fuck up and do what he tell you to do. Shiiit, I wish I did have a man like Quan to take care of me. Besides, it's a holiday, you know he gotta chill wit his wiz. He'll be over there tomorrow if not tonight, so don't trip," Jahquita assured, sucking on a Slurpee.

"You right. I'm just tired of this shit, Qui. I had everything all set up and shit," Sherry whined, kicking off her boots.

"Girl, you better fall back before you end up like me. You see it's a holiday and I'm over here babysittin'."

"Shut up," Sherry giggled as her end clicked. "Hold on, let me see who this is. Hello?"

"I just called to wish you a Happy New Year." Quan spoke low into the phone. Mo had fallen asleep.

"Thank you. Happy New Year's to you, too. Look, I'm sorry for stressin' you. I was trippin'. You forgive me?"

"Yeah, just learn how to control yo' mouth sometimes.

That shit be gettin' on my nerves."

"I know. I'm sorry. I love you." "Me too."

"A'ight ... well thanks for callin'."

"Ay?"

"What?"

"Do me a favor?"

"I know, kiss Lil' Quan for you." Sherry smiled, rolling her eyes.

"How you know?"

"'Cause you always say that, but I can't."

"Why can't you?"

"He's over Quita house."

"What the fuck he doing over there?" Quan barked, raising his voice, getting angry all over again. Checking himself, he lowered his voice quick.

"I took him and Versacharee over there to spend the night so I could spend some time alone wit you."

"Whateva, just go get my son."

"But Quan, it's going on one o'clock and I ain't even got on no clothes."

"So, fuck that. I told you already about hanging around that rat bitch, so what makes you think I want my son around her? If Versacharee wanna stay over there then that's on you, but Lil' Quan, he gotta come home now. You better be glad I ain't come over there and find my son gone."

"I don't believe this shit! I done sat up here and planned all this for you and you gon' stand me up for an empty-ass night wit yo' chick? That bitch can't fuck you! She can't satisfy you the way I do. You can't even get yo' dick sucked! As a matter of fact, yo' ass probably over there laid up on the couch but yet and still you wanna play me for her? You got life all fucked up, Quan, if you think you gon' dictate what go on over here when you over there laid up wit that sick hoe!"

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, whateva, 'cause after all that I'm still not coming over. You done made my fuckin' head hurt with all that bullshit you talkin'. Like I said ... go get my muthafuckin' son," Quan ordered before hanging up.

Happy that he'd called, but hating that he'd just told her off, Sherry slowly clicked back over.

"Damn, bitch, what took you so long?"

"My bad, that was Quan."

"What he say?"

"That he was so sorry and he love me," Sherry lied, conve-niently leaving out the part about him cussing her and Jahquita out.

"Y'all crazy. Well I hope you ain't say nothing to make him mad."