Page 36

SERENITY

T he warmth of another body stirred me awake. My eyes fluttered open, and I was met with the sight of Creed, still asleep beside me, his chest rising and falling in a steady rhythm. He looked so peaceful, so undisturbed, and for a moment, I let myself indulge in the fantasy.

My fingers traced the sharp line of his jaw, the curve of his nose, the softness of his lips and even the tattoo of my name on his chest.

I loved him—I knew that. But that love didn’t erase the pain. It didn’t change the reality of what he did. I was still mad. Still sad. Still unsure about everything.

A part of me regretted last night, regretted giving him hope when I had no intention of getting back with him. But the other part? That part was completely satisfied. Truth be told, I needed sex. My hormones were all over the place, and honestly? Creed was the only option.

It was exactly what me, Averi, and Egypt had been laughing about before we got off the elevator yesterday—about how I was horny as hell, and since Creed was already coming here, I might as well use him to get my rocks off.

So, imagine my surprise to see him already standing in my apartment, like a sign from God.

Creed stirred, blinking sleepily before his lips curved into a lazy smile. "Good morning, Beautiful," he murmured, his voice deep and raspy from sleep.

I forced a small smile, pushing my curls out of my face. "Morning."

His hand wrapped around my waist, pulling me into his hard body. He placed a kiss on my lips; several soft pecks, and God I missed his lips on my body.

Still, I knew I needed to say something, to have the conversation we’d been avoiding, but not yet. I just wanted to enjoy this—for a little while longer.

After lying in bed little longer, Creed and I finally got up. We showered together. The intimacy of it strangely bittersweet.

He reached for me, his lips tracing my shoulder, his fingers splayed across my belly, but I only lingered for a moment before stepping out, leaving him under the spray of hot water alone. I needed some space.

Throwing on black leggings and a cropped sweatshirt, I crept out of the room, heading straight for the kitchen. Egypt was already sitting at the counter, a bowl of Fruit Loops in front of her, scrolling on her phone.

She took one look at me, raised an eyebrow, and then smirked. "So... you good?"

I rolled my eyes, grabbing a bottle of water from the fridge. "Shut up."

Egypt grinned, stirring her cereal. "You seem... relaxed," she teased.

I tried not to blush, but failed miserably. "You were right," I admitted, taking a sip of water.

"Of course, I was right," she said matter-of-factly. "But... be careful, Serenity. With your feelings and his. You know how Creed is."

I sighed, pressing my fingers to my temple. "I know. And I already know I gotta talk to him about it. I just... I don’t know how."

"Rip the Band-Aid off," she shrugged. "No point in dragging it out."

I didn’t respond, just stared at the counter, lost in thought. A few minutes later, Creed walked into the kitchen, fully dressed, phone in hand.

“What’s up Egypt.”

“Good morning.” Egypt gave me a knowing look wiggling her eyebrows playfully, then grabbed her bag. "Alright, lovebirds, I’m out. Tootie, send me pictures of my baby."

“Yo’ baby?” Creed asked.

“Yeah, she both our baby mama; the fuck you thought?” I couldn’t help the laugh that escaped my lips. Egypt looked dead serious when she said it, leaving Creed confused and silent.

“She’s crazy, don’t listen to her.” I went back to the fridge to see what I could make in a short amount of time. Settling on a bowl of cereal, I pulled out the milk and went to the pantry to grab my Oh’s . A silence resounded over the room and I felt Creed watching me.

“Please tell me you been feeding my baby more than just think junk.”

“It’s the only thing they like really. I never have to throw up after I eat this. Don’t be mad at me, be mad at them.” Creed fell in step behind me, wrapping his arm around me and placing his hand on my belly.

“We haven’t talked about it, but do you have any names picked out?”

“I have a few ideas, you?” I poured my milk in over my cereal and took my first bite, savoring the honey nut flavor of the cereal.

“I got a few,” he kissed my neck.

“Tell me.”

“You first.”

“Well for a boy, I want to name him Cevyn Joseph Bradshaw-Langston.”

“Bradshaw Langston? Aw naw shawty, you got me fucked up.” Creed laughed. “Ain’t no hyphenation.”

“Fine, then Bradshaw.”

“SB, find somebody else to play with bruh.” He rubbed his temples clearly irritated which caused me to smile. “My baby gon have my last name and my last name only. I’m cool with you naming him after your brother but he gon be a Langston.”

“Fine.” I relented rolling my eyes. “Cevyn Joseph Langston if it’s a boy.

I don’t really have any girl names picked out, I just know I want to give her my mom’s name as a middle name.

It’s weird, to think I want to honor her in that way after everything I’ve been through with her.

But my mama has been on it with me through this entire journey.

So, whatever her first name, Sienna is going to be her middle name. ”

”Cree…” he uttered. “Cree Sienna Langston.” I turned and looked at him. “I always wanted to name my daughter Cree.”

“I love that.” I smiled. “So, we are either going to meet Cevyn or Cree today.”

“I hope it’s Cree. I want a little princess I can spoil to death. And I hope she comes out looking just like you.” I wrapped my arms around his neck as he held my waist.

“I hope it’s Cree too.”

The car ride to Brooklyn was quiet, neither of us saying much. There was an unspoken tension in the air—one that neither of us wanted to acknowledge just yet.

Once we arrived, we were ushered into the exam room. I lay back, lifting my sweatshirt as the cold gel was spread across my stomach. Creed reached for my hand, his grip firm, his eyes locked on the monitor.

The doctor moved the wand across my stomach, and within seconds, the sound of our baby’s strong, fast heartbeat filled the room. Creed’s lips parted, his eyes wide.

"That’s... that’s our baby?" he murmured.

I nodded, squeezing his hand. "Yeah."

The doctor smiled, pointing at the screen. "Everything looks great, see it’s little fingers and toes. Baby is measuring tall—just like Daddy." Creed chuckled, his thumb rubbing over my knuckles. "And now, for the gender..." I held my breath. "It’s a... girl!"

My heart clenched, a daughter. I turned to look at Creed, and to my shock, a single tear slid down his cheek.

"A girl?" he repeated, his voice hoarse. “Cree…” I nodded, my own tears welling up. "Damn..." he whispered before he pressed a deep, emotional kiss to my lips, pulling away just slightly to whisper, "Thank you, Serenity. Thank you for giving her to me."

I cupped his face. "She’s gonna be so spoiled," I murmured.

"Hell yeah, she is," he chuckled, wiping his face. "Nobody’s ever gonna mess with my princess."

I felt warm, safe, like for the first time in weeks, things were falling into place. I wanted to bask in this moment forever. But reality had an unpleasant way of creeping back in.

That night, Creed was packing his bag, getting ready to head back to Phoenix. I sat on the edge of my bed, watching him. He sighed, rubbing the back of his neck.

"I don’t wanna leave," he admitted.

I swallowed. "I know."

He turned to face me. "Serenity... I know things have been messy, but this? What we have? It’s real. And I need you to know that I’m gonna do whatever it takes to make things right."

I looked away. "Creed... I need to say something."

He frowned, sitting next to me. "What’s up?"

I took a deep breath.

"Last night... it was nice. But it doesn’t change anything," I admitted.

His entire body tensed, eyebrows hitched up high on his face. My heart was racing, hating that after the beautiful day we had, I was about to ruin it.

"What you mean it doesn’t change anything?"

"I mean... we’re not back together. And honestly? I don’t know when—or if—that’s ever gonna happen."

Creed clenched his jaw, inhaling deeply. "So what, last night was just... what? A mistake?"

"No," I said softly. "But it wasn’t me letting you back in, either."

His shoulders dropped. “Fuck, SB.”

“I know, I’m sorry. I hate to think I used you, but I needed that. My hormones got me feeling crazy and I was horny and you were available. I didn’t intend to hurt you, but I needed you in that moment.”

“To fuck you? You needed me to hand out dick like I’m some nigga in a candy store.” I started to remind him that he had been handing out dick like a nigga in a candy store when he fucked his baby mama in our bed, but I bit my tongue. “Damn beautiful.”

“I know…”

"So, what now?" he asked.

"Now?" I exhaled. "I focus on growing our daughter. You focus on your season. We coexist, Creed. But we’re not... we’re not an us anymore."

He nodded slowly, his jaw tightening. "Aight," he murmured.

I forced a sad smile. "It’s for the best."

He didn’t respond. He just stood and grabbed his bag. I felt his lips press against my forehead before he gave me one last lingering look and walked out the door. And this time, I let him go. I had to set him free.