Page 18

seventeen

Ahvi dragged her feet up the courthouse steps, cussing herself out the whole way. She didn’t even have a real excuse. Forty days since her release and she hadn’t applied to a single job. She’d been so caught up in Lunar’s life - his voice, his smile, his whole damn orbit, she never made the time…simple as that.

Now she was about to walk in there looking stupid. No job, no plan, and no excuse -just vibes.

Lunar and Kamari stayed home since court wasn’t a good place for a baby and Ahvi wanted some time alone to handle her business. That was probably Ish in her head telling her she could do something without that damn man.

Since she didn’t have Kamari with her, she pushed Lunar’s Benz to court and Ahvi had to admit, it made her feel like a boss bitch. The leather was buttery, the touchscreen felt like something from the future, but the best part of the whole ride was Lunar’s scent blowing through the vents like he was there with her.

The courthouse smelled like old coffee and bad decisions. People were posted up everywhere. Some were pacing around as if that would make their situations different. Some cried, and the rest just stared with blank expressions like their bodies gave up before their minds did.

Ahvi found a seat outside courtroom 3B and picked at the hem of her blouse, her heart punching her ribs. She was halfway planning a sob story in her head when a woman in a crumpled blazer slid up to her, holding a folder.

“Ahvi Farooq?” she asked.

“Yea.” Ahvi stood up slowly like she might sit right back down from her nerves knocking her back down.

“I’m Marla, your public defender. Quick update—we’ve passed all your case files to your attorney.”

“My what?” Ahvi squinted.

“Your attorney,” Marla repeated, like she was speaking to a child. “Elle - she’s taking over from here.”

“I don’t have no attorney,” Ahvi said, ready to argue.

Before Marla could say anything, a woman in a clean navy skirt suit walked up, heels clapping against the tile. She looked like she didn’t play about nothing or nobody.

“Ahvi Farooq?” she said.

“That’s me, I guess,” Ahvi muttered, confused as hell.

“I’m Elle. Little Lunar sent me.”

Ahvi licked her lips, her chest relaxing when Elle said Little Lunar. She knew anyone who called him that, had to be a family member or close friend. She could only nod, knowing she was in good hands. Also, she remembered the name from the top secret conversation Pimp brought up to Lunar. It was all starting to make sense to her.

Elle was all business when she stepped into the courthouse. She didn’t have time to wait for Ahvi to pick her jaw off the floor. She just nodded toward the courtroom door like come on girl, keep up.

Inside, the judge was already flipping through papers, glasses sliding down his nose like he was bored out his mind. Elle strolled up smooth and planted herself like she ran the place.

“Ms. Farooq,” the judge said without looking up. “Employment verification has been submitted. Full sponsorship agreement on file. Court is satisfied. Charges dismissed. Thirty days served noted. Probation terminated.” Bang! The gavel cracked.

Ahvi just stood there blinking and feeling like she got jumped, but in a good way. What had happened so fast? Her mind was swirling, wondering if it was all a mistake and she’d be sent back to jail when her sixty days was officially up. Or if they’d call her later in the day and tell her it was a prank because nothing had ever been so easy in her life—not until she met Lunar.

Outside the courtroom, she grabbed Elle’s arm. “Hold up, hold up - what the fuck just happened?”

Elle smiled like this was normal Tuesday behavior for her. “That was Little Lunar taking care of you.”

“But I ain’t got no damn job!” Ahvi’s eyes bucked like that wasn’t obvious. She didn’t have time for a lie because lies always caught up with you later.

“You do now.” Elle shrugged, digging into her designer bag to grab a folder like it was nothing. “You’re officially employed as Lunar’s personal chef -seventy-five thousand a year, room and board provided, daycare covered and salary kicks in today.” She showed Ahvi the paperwork with the details.

Ahvi stared at her, mouth half open. “He just—he just made me a chef? Like he putting job titles on people now?”

Elle laughed a little. “Looks like it.” She’d been in the family long enough to know and understand that the men would always stand ten toes down about their women. It didn’t matter their age either, they stood on big business from the youngest to the oldest. That always stumped her when she realized all the shit Noodle allowed herself to go through like she didn’t have a family coming with guns blazing.

Ahvi threw her hands up. “This man is crazy!”

Elle shrugged. “Runs in the family,” she laughed. “If you don’t need anything else from me, I have another meeting to get to.

“Thank you,” Ahvi gave her a half smirk because what else could she do?

Elle smiled at her again, before strutting off like she didn’t just swoop in and save her.

Ahvi rubbed her forehead, pacing in a little circle. This was crazy...this was sweet… this was irritating - all at the same damn time. She was supposed to be figuring her life out - grinding, getting it out the mud like she always did. Not…being saved.

Ish never taught her this part…never showed her how to let a man lead without feeling like she was giving something up.

And right now, standing in this dusty ass hallway, with a brand-new life handed to her like a gift she didn’t know if she could afford to open…Ahvi didn’t know if she wanted to cry, swing on somebody, or hug the hell outta Lunar. Maybe she needed to do all three.

Ahvi pushed through the courthouse doors. Her heart looser than she wanted to admit. She told herself she was going home to check Lunar, but deep down she knew—every wall she built, he was tearing down without even trying.

* * *

Ahvi stood in Lunar’s kitchen like she was about to start a war.

She was supposed to be cooking, since she was hungry after her day in court. But right now, she was standing in the middle of the kitchen facing the living room, arms crossed, eyes narrowed at the man lounging on the couch like he hadn’t just flipped her entire life upside down.

Lunar had just dropped a bomb on her—better yet, had someone else drop it for him. He figured it was one last thing she needed to worry about. When it came to handling her business, he needed her to understand he’d do it without hesitating because it was second nature.

“So, let me get this straight,” she said, head tilted. “You went to court, offered to be my employer, and got them to approve it without telling me first?”

Lunar didn’t even flinch. “Yup,” he replied, never taking his focus off the remote control for Kamari’s car in his hands, like she wasn’t about to shit bricks.

“Are you insane?”

He grinned. “Possibly.”

“You can’t just…decide you my boss.”

“Technically, I can and I did, Ahvi.”

Ahvi opened her mouth to cuss him out, but Kamari came barreling on his knees through the room, yelling something unintelligible and chasing his remote-control Hot Wheels car down the hall. She turned slightly, watching her son disappear, then looked back at Lunar.

“This is real life, Lunar. You can’t play God with people’s future.”

Slowly, he walked over to her with that cocky, slow swagger that always made her knees a little weak even when she hated him. “I didn’t play God. I played somebody who sees your potential and don’t wanna see you boxed in. That court shit? It was about control. But now, you free. I’m just the legal technicality.”

She glared up at him, lips parted like she was still trying to decide if she wanted to slap him or kiss him.

“Don’t look at me like that,” he said, in a low growl-like voice.

“Like what?”

“Like you already knew I was gon’ do whatever I had to for you, and you still mad I did it.”

Her throat tightened. She hated that he saw her like that—clearer than most people ever had. “You so fuckin’ cocky.”

“I know.” He leaned closer. “But I also make a mean bank transfer. You got your first check already.”

Ahvi blinked. “You paid me?”

“Upfront. You been cheffin’ in my life since the day you got out. Shit just official now.”

The tension broke, barely. She let out a loud breath and shook her head. “You’re the cockiest?—”

“True. I am cocky...got a big dick too. But I’m also hungry. So, what’s up, Chef?”

Ahvi rolled her eyes, heading toward the fridge. “You better be ready to cry over this pasta, nigga.”

This was the meeting Pimp mentioned in code, but it wasn’t the last trick he had up his sleeve. All that taking care of family shit he puffed his chest out about to Dro wasn’t just talk. It was Lunar’s way of life and he would stand on it. Even if Ahvi ever decided to walk away, she’d be in a better place.

Two hours later, Lunar’s house smelled like garlic, smoked paprika, and whatever black girl magic Ahvi kept tucked behind those big eyes.

Cooking for Lunar in their home felt good but no matter how much she wanted to bask in that, she was getting antsy. She was young. They were both young and needed to move around the world that way. Lunar spent his days in the studio and his nights with her and Kamari. Ahvi wanted to feel free, or maybe it was Ish’s talk about never needing a man all in her head.

Lunar stood way too close behind her.

“Back up,” she said without turning. “Let me breathe, nigga.”

“I want to be in your skin, Ahvi,” he confessed.

“Go watch TV or something. I don’t need an audience.”

“You do,” he said. “You too pretty not to have some nigga following you around like a lost puppy.”

She cut her eyes at him. “You a lost puppy now?”

“Sometimes,” he shrugged.

She paused. She didn’t say anything, but her shoulders softened. It was subtle, but he caught it.

“You ever think about having your own restaurant?” he asked, grabbing a towel to wipe Kamari down. He was eating solid foods now and making a mess with it.

Ahvi gave him a side-eye over her shoulder. “That used to be the goal. Now, I’m just a personal chef for my greedy baby and my boyfriend. Why?”

“Just asking.”

Ahvi turned back to look at him. “You don’t ‘just wonder,’ Lunar. Your ass be plotting.”

“That’s true,” he said, not denying it. “You’d run the hell outta a kitchen, though.”

“I know,” she whispered.

“It’d have your name on the menu…on the sign…in the city. You ever think about that?”

“All the time,” she said softly. “But I’m just now getting my first big girl job, so I think I need to slow my row.”

“I think you need to open your eyes and see what the fuck is before you. Do I need to remind you who the fuck I am, Ahvi?” He leaned into her, his deep voice brushing against her ear.

* * *

“This shit looks good from the outside,” Pimp whistled as they walked up to the standalone building that looked new, like no one had ever been there. Off to the side you could see the foundations of another building the company was planning to put up soon, to turn the area into a thriving retail area.

The potential restaurant space was two stories and symmetrically aligned on each side.

The outside of the building was brick with a modern glass front and sleek double doors at the entrance. From the photos they’d seen, it had a top-of-the-line industrial kitchen in the back—fully equipped, all appliances included—and a five-year lease agreement. It had potential.

Actually, it was perfect.

Lunar agreed, observing the parking available in front and noticing the sign that stated there was more parking in the back. “I wonder how much traffic run through here.”

Pimp shrugged. “Shit, we can ask.”

Lunar watched Pimp for a few seconds before his intrusive thoughts got the best of him. “You been good, though?”

Pimp looked up, his locs sweeping across his shoulders. “Here you go with that sappy shit.”

“Cause I’m checking in on my brother? Pimp, stop playing with me. You know I been like this.”

Pimp laughed and nodded. “I’m cool…you got me busy with the company while you sit down and fall in love and shit.”

“And that was the best decision of my life. I ain’t know what was gon’ come from me ducking off - couldn’t have imagined all the shit that’s changed in my life. But I don’t want to change none of it either.” Lunar revealed, spilling his thoughts onto the ground. With Pimp they were safe so he never held back. It just felt different finally getting it all out.

Nodding, Pimp stared off at nothing. “You in love?”

“Not sure - it feels too quick.”

“Time aside, you love her?”

Lunar sniffed, the hot air coating his face. Or was it the question at hand that made his body feel hotter? He made eye contact with his best friend. “I don’t know if I’ve ever really believed in God…I know he’s real in context but I didn’t believe he was as good as they said.” He coated his drying lips. “But then something shifted in my heart and my mind, and my body felt different. Big Lunar had to have called in his last favor - the first was Tiny finding something special and the second was everything coming into fruition. All the shit he told them they would be and could be then, me. But it wasn’t about me being successful…” Lunar smiled big. “Nah, it was him giving me the greatest love of all time.”

“So, it’s forever?” Pimp asked, holding onto every word his friend said because he hoped his mama was up there calling in favors on his behalf too. He wanted to be loved out loud and get married as much as the next person.

Lunar’s face lit up like a kid in the candy store. “Even if she think it ain’t real…I ain’t never letting her and Kamari go.”

The soft crunch of tires against the asphalt pulled their attention to the front parking lot. An all-black Audi rolled up, windows down just enough to let the music filter through. The driver stepped out with a kind of confidence that made people take notice without knowing why.

Devonte was the developer and owner of the property they stood in front of. He was in his early thirties, and well off. A chance encounter pulled him into commercial real estate. Now, he was wealthy beyond his wildest dreams.

He had light brown-skin, with sharp cheekbones, green eyes that caught the sunlight like glass, and a goatee that was lined so perfectly it looked airbrushed. He wore slacks, a black graphic tee with bold white lettering, and a pair of designer sneakers. His skin had that butter-slick glow, like he drank spring water and minded his business religiously.

“You Lunar?” he asked, extending a hand, knowing he knew who the rapper Nar was.

Lunar nodded, shaking it firmly. “Appreciate you meeting us.”

Devonte smiled, then turned to Pimp, eyes lingering just a second too long. “You with him?”

His question came out in a different way. Not like was he with Lunar, but was he with Lunar.

Pimp shook his head subtly, saying so much without saying a word. “Pimp,” he introduced himself.

Devonte’s grin widened. “Bet, y’all come on in.” He waved his hand, licking his lips while still checking Pimp out.

Pimp’s jeans hung slightly off his waist showing off his designer underwear every time his shirt lifted a little. His locs looked clean and his lineup was always on point. Pimp never left the house half stepping. The gleam in his eyes wasn’t missed. They looked happy yet had a layer of sadness… maybe because he was just unsure about life. Devonte didn’t know all this - but Pimp would be lying if he said he wasn’t interested in Devonte off the physical alone.

They followed Devonte through the front doors into the cool and empty restaurant space. Natural light poured in through the windows, stretching across hardwood floors and highlighting all the modern touches. The place had a faint smell of polished wood and fresh paint.

“This is nice,” Pimp whistled, trailing his fingers along the edge of the marble host stand.

Devonte walked ahead, but not without stealing another glance at Pimp. “Thank you,” he said.

Pimp looked over at him, then turned away to look at the bar which stretched across the back wall.

Lunar chuckled under his breath. He couldn’t wait to clown Pimp’s scary ass later. It was funny seeing his boy openly being flirted with. It was also beautiful because he’d never seen him vulnerable like that.

Most times, Pimp just popped up with someone on his arm—someone he couldn’t be in the open with unless it was a group setting. His friend didn’t get to experience love in the open and now that Lunar had, he wanted it for his best friend too.

They did a slow walkthrough.

Devonte pointed out the updates—soundproof walls, new HVAC, and custom shelving. He answered questions with ease but kept looking back at Pimp like he was still taking notes.

When they circled back to the front, Lunar paused. “This lease is nice,” he complimented, pushing his hands in his pockets. “But I don’t want to rent. I want to buy.”

Devonte raised a brow, impressed. “Buy?”

He loved to see black men making shit happen. It was like a breath of fresh air, especially when they were making it happen in his city. Black ownership was on the rise and he wanted to be at the forefront of it all.

“Yea - full out. No middleman. I want to put this in her name.”

“For your wife?” Devonte’s eyes went to Lunar’s ring finger.

Lunar shook his head while Pimp thought it was funny. “She ain’t my wife yet but she’s special to me.”

“That makes it even better.” Devonte’s mouth quirked up with a light head nod. “I’ll make the call.”

They slapped hands to seal the deal before the paperwork was drawn up.

When the room got quiet, Lunar decided to walk ahead. He wasn’t going too far since he wanted to be nosy and see how his boy handled the situation. Lunar knew if he stayed too close, Pimp would probably freeze up, since he was always being mindful of straight men—especially Lunar and his brother Bu, even when neither of them gave a damn. Like they’d expressed time and time again, they were rocking with whatever Pimp was rocking with.

As they walked back toward the door, Devonte caught up to Pimp and leaned a little closer. “You got a number? Just in case Lunar’s too busy and I need to follow up.”

Lunar’s head fell back laughing as he eavesdropped from the front door. Devonte had a little game.

Pimp didn’t hesitate as he pulled out his phone and passed it to him. “Put yours in here.”

“Appreciate it,” Devonte said, his thumb flying over the screen then his phone rang. “Need yours too.”

His bottom teeth grazed his top lip, then he smiled as he entered Pimp’s number. His teeth were beautiful with a bottom gold grill.

Devonte lingered at the doorway while they stepped out. Lunar didn’t say anything, but the grin tugging at his lips said plenty.

“What?” Pimp asked once they were back at the car.

Lunar chuckled. “I really be out here making dreams come true.”

“Nigga, calm down,” Pimp laughed, pulling the passenger door open. He glanced back one more time at Devonte who gave him a slight head nod.

Pimp allowed the music to play and Lunar to get on the road before he tossed out the inevitable. “Single’s dropping this Friday. But next week, you’re in the club doing an appearance.”

Lunar jutted his head back. “Damn, you just got my shit all mapped out?”

“This is what I do. Get your affairs in order because you sat down long enough, it’s time to give your fans what they want.”

* * *

“I love it up here,” Ahvi smiled, looking out at the rolling stretch of trees swaying under the gaze of the late afternoon sun.

“Bathing in the sun,” Ahvi mused. The words melted from her lips like honey. Slow, sweet, and sticky with a softness that clung to Lunar’s chest.

The sun poured across her face like it was in love with her too, like it had waited all day just for this moment to trace her cheekbones and kiss the edge of her jaw. Her eyes closed without effort, and her head tilted back like she was giving the sun permission to hold her.

Lunar wanted to close his eyes too. Wanted to slip into whatever tender place her spirit had wandered to. He wanted to feel the sun the way she felt it, wanted to taste the light, to let it pour into the places he usually kept boarded up.

Because when Ahvi talked about things like “bathing in the sun,” it wasn’t just words - it was a feeling, it was peace and it was freedom…and that kind of peace didn’t live in him, not easily at least.

He watched her in silence for a while, the way her smile didn’t reveal her emotions yet said everything. It was something about the way her chest rose in slow gratitude, even how her hand gently toyed with the grass like it held some kind of answer she hadn’t asked for yet.

Where once the sun had felt like an enemy, now he found himself wanting to fall in love with it too. Even if only because Ahvi loved it or the way it loved her back – that connection made him curious about the light.

Love did that, didn’t it? It shifted everything around you, turned old scars into something like art, made the monsters in the corner shrink down into wrinkled clothes tossed on the floor—things you could pick up and put away.

They were nestled into the earth, limbs tangled like vines on their hill because it no longer felt like just his. Ahvi was perfectly tucked between his legs, her back resting against his chest. Lunar wrapped his arms around her gently, like he was still learning what it meant to love her…to be this close to peace.

“I ain’t never really cared for the sun,” he murmured against her temple.

“Why not?” Ahvi asked, her voice eager to get more of him.

He hesitated, his eyes fixed on a cloud drifting slowly across the sky like it had nowhere else to be. “Because it felt like a cruel joke. How everybody got to wake up to it, when my daddy didn’t. So every time it hit me, I felt like it was laughing, mocking me…reminding me that not everyone got to see it.”

Ahvi nodded, her fingers pausing their dance in the grass. “Or maybe,” she said, tilting her head slightly, “they got to see it from Heaven?”

He didn’t respond right away, but his arms tightened around her.

“What if,” she whispered, “the best view of the sun is from Heaven?”

Her voice cracked just slightly, the way it did when she was trying to carry something delicate. “What if the best view of a son is from Heaven?”

Lunar stilled and the air thickened. He looked down at her, saw the way her lashes fluttered closed again, how her hand rested on top of his now - like she knew he needed to feel her in order to feel her.

He could feel the grief bloom between them. Suddenly it didn’t feel like a sharp thing, not anymore. Just the slow ache of missing what never really leaves you.

“Ish never danced,” she added quietly. “He just kinda swayed or bopped his head to old school rap - the kind he said was real music. He swore up and down none of us young folks knew anything about it.” She smiled to herself, eyes still closed. “He’d probably talk shit about your whole catalog, say you was just mumblin’ over drums.”

Lunar chuckled. “He wouldn’t be wrong.”

“He’d say you had potential. That you just needed a little seasoning.”

“Damn, now I miss a man I never met.” He squeezed her tighter.

Ahvi leaned back into him, her head nestled into the crook of his neck. “That’s ‘cause his spirit had that kind of reach. You’d’ve liked him. He’d’ve liked you too, once he got past the tattoos and the quiet.

Her mind went to Big Lunar and how much she wished she had a chance to meet him too. Just from the videos alone, she knew he was special. She understood what made her Lunar so special too. If reincarnation was real, she knew Big Lunar’s whole spirit was rebirthed into his son - his legacy.

They sat with that for a long moment, silence stretching like a hug. It was warm and all encompassing. arms wide open.

“You ever think about it?” she asked suddenly. “What’s next? After all this?”

He hesitated. “Sometimes, but I don’t know what to believe. Heaven, reincarnation, or just…nothing. It all feels so far away from what I’ve seen.”

“Yea,” she nodded. “I think about it too. Not ‘cause I want answers, but because I miss him. Missing someone makes you imagine where they went. You start hoping for something more…for somewhere more.”

She felt Lunar’s chest rise and fall beneath her. “Maybe that’s what faith is - not knowing, but hoping anyway... ‘Cause I know my daddy is where all the real niggas go.”

She turned slightly, just enough to catch his eyes. “And love?”

He looked at her then like she was the only real thing in the world. “Love’s the proof that something else is out there...that even if we don’t get answers, we still got reasons.”

The sun was beginning its slow descent, the sky blushing with golds and purples, as if it too were eavesdropping on them sitting there smiling and rubbing their feet together.

Ahvi reached for his hand and intertwined their fingers. “I think love is the closest thing to Heaven I’ll ever get down here.”

Lunar pressed a kiss to the side of her face, lingering there. “Then I must be getting closer every day.”

They sat in the quiet hum of the sunset, held by its warmth, and wrapped in a kind of stillness that didn’t need to be explained. For a moment, the sun didn’t feel cruel at all - it felt like a blessing, like something returned…something understood.

“If I want to give you the world would you let me?” Lunar’s deep voice seemed to vibrate through her body, making her heart race and her pussy crave him.

Ahvi shook her head. “Ish ain’t teach me how to accept…only take.”

“And what did Sheena teach you?”

“Probably none of the shit Tiny taught you.”

He laughed, “What did Tiny teach me, since you know every damn thing?”

“Love…Tiny taught you love. Sheena taught me how to be selfish and Ish taught me how to be a man. So no, I wouldn’t accept the world, the sun, maybe… I know the sun will rise every day but the world? The world ain’t guaranteed to no one we know.” She tried to joke. The again, you feel like the sun, so maybe that’s why I say I’ll accept that because on this journey you’re teaching me I can be soft and taken care of. But Ish and Sheena so deep in my head that I know I’ll fight you at every turn and I know you’ll get tired of fighting because Tiny ain’t teach you how to fight, she taught you how to love.” Ahvi fluttered her fingers over his, sucking in as much air as possible to keep her emotions at bay.

Lunar let her truth sink in. It had a lot to it but he was never one to run off. He would always stand solid on what he felt while going after what he wanted. And he wanted Ahvi and Kamari.

Resting his head in the crook of her neck. “I’m about to go out on the road… press runs, radio interviews and club appearances, I want you there with me.”

“Don’t sound like a good situation for a baby,” Ahvi replied, trying to weasel her way out of fully being submerged in Lunar’s world.

He not only came from money but he was a celebrity with fans, ex-girlfriends, and hoes he just smashed. He also liked to sometimes roll with niggas that toted guns. Nothing about that situation seemed like the best one for her.

Then there was him…that really scared her yet made her want to jump into his arms at the same time. Ahvi knew being around him outside of the house would really push her heart past its limits. That was scarier then niggas with guns because she grew up around niggas with guns. Hell, she was just robbed by a nigga with a gun.

“I ain’t never needed nothing more than I thought I needed my daddy.” Lunar turned her head so she could see his face. “But I need you and Kamari there.” Licking his lips he thought over his words. Was need a good word? “Nah I want y’all there. I couldn’t have gotten through this phase of my life without you. Don’t start pulling back now.”

“The world…I won’t take it,” Ahvi reminded him of their previous words. The ones where she revealed how much Ish and Sheena had damaged her heart. To anyone else, letting him whisk her off into a fairytale was a no brainer. But for Ahvi, it went against everything she’d ever been taught. Her life’s lessons were harder to break than a drug addiction.

Lunar kissed her neck, making goosebumps coat her arms. “Let’s start with the sun, Ahvi…if it gets too hot, I won’t keep you. I’ll let you run,” he lied.