Page 41 of Tangled Hearts

Noir and Knycole trotted through the mall trying their best to be happy. It was like as they grew older, their love lives turned into shambles. Still the one thing they could count on was having each other.

“Are we really some sad bitches,” Noir stopped walking, to look at her friend who’s sad face mirrored hers.

Knycole blinked a few seconds before the two of them burst into laughter. “Like, we dead ass in this mall looking like we lost our best friends.”

“I mean…” Noir shrugged. “You kinda did, bookie.”

“Bitch!” Knycole playfully swung at her. “You be taking shit too far.”

“Nah… I don’t take it far enough.”

There was always so much more Noir could say to her friend but knew it was best to keep it to herself. By no means was she a fake friend but she knew Knycole couldn’t always handle the truth. So, she gave her the surface level, while making sure to always be honest with her.

Knycole kissed her teeth with a shake of her head. “So, now that we pretending not to be sad, what store you trying to hit up. I got a pocket full of money and need to do some retail therapy.”

“Girl I’m still sad but let me spend this nigga money.” She said before yanking Knycole into a black owned luxury store.

The owner, Brittney Love, had some of the best pieces on the market and people far and wide wanted to shop her brand.

Noir had dubbed herself the queen of Brittney Love’s brand since she was usually always sporting her stuff.

While Noir skimmed through the racks, Knycole was still very much in her head.

The last she’d seen Hov, he walked away, leaving her with a bruised heart. She knew it was well deserved but that didn’t make the action hurt any less. Then add the fact that Rock hadn’t changed much and after being loved on by Hov, she felt like a dummy.

They flipped through a few racks of clothing but nothing seemed to catch their eyes. No matter how much the two of them wanted to pretend not to be sad, the emotions still lingered in their hearts. The pain burned their veins which made a hopeful shopping trip turn into a bust.

Noir huffed. “Let’s get drinks, shit.”

Knycole agreed without hesitation. Feeding her emotions with libations seemed like the best thing to do… it was needed.

Noir led the way. Once inside of Chrissy Cheesecakes, they were seated and given drink menus. When the drinks started flowing both of them loosened up.

“I’m thinking I should leave Christian,” Noir confessed, swallowing the last of her peach mojito. “Like, I can’t go out like a sad ass desperate ass bitch… you know?”

“But you love him, Noir,” Knycole tried to reason. She knew her bestie loved that man down and felt like just maybe they could get past him having an outside baby.

Shaking her head, Noir couldn’t disagree more. “I can’t deal with him running between the two of us. Like, the nigga ain’t gonna be a deadbeat so I don’t see how I could forgive him. Then I know it’s only a matter of time before he brings it to the house.”

“It?” Knycole snickered. “She’s a baby and I know she has a name.”

“Shit, you better figure it out if knowing means that much to you.” Noir wasn’t letting up on the way she felt. As far as she was concerned, the baby was just as much to blame as the baby’s mama and daddy.

“Ms. Nakorea definitely dropped you on your head.”

“Just like Nick must’ve dropped you. You over here with a good nigga and you want to play games. Meanwhile, my nigga done cheated and made a baby on me. Baby, I will happily switch places with you.”

Before Knycole could say something back, her eyes were pulled towards the door. Christian was making his way towards them but he wasn’t who had her breath caught in her chest. Hov, in all his fine glory, clothed in dark colors so you couldn’t tell where the clothes started or where his skin began.

Noir saw the look in Knycole’s eyes and turned to see what had her friend’s attention.

Just like Knycole, Noir’s eyes grew wide because one thing she could never take away from Christian, was how good he looked in any and everything.

His hair looked like it needed to be cut and the small facial hair on his face wasn’t well kept like she liked.

Christian looked like a man going through it and that made Noir’s heart flutter.

There was no reason for her heart to be the only one anxious.

“What’s up, Noir?” Christian’s head flicked back as he forced himself beside Noir making her slide over in the booth.

Noir rolled her eyes and twisted her body away from him. “Hey, Hov,” she greeted, her lips tight trying so hard to be mad. It wasn’t hard but she couldn’t lie and say Christian didn’t almost always make her forget how bad he hurt her. Almost.

Hov only nodded his head at her before his eyes were on Knycole. His heart skipped beats around her. She was everything for him and maybe that was the problem. He’d placed all his eggs in her basket when he should’ve saved some for his own.

Knycole squirmed in her seat, elated when the server came back to take their orders.

“Oh, I see we have guests,” she smiled. “Can I get you two anything?”

Hov looked at the drinks she sat on the table before looking up at her. “Uh, let me get two shots of tequila and bring her a bottle of water.”

“Sparkling?”

“Yea,” he nodded, his eyes going back to Knycole who sipped her lemon drop. “You ate?” He asked Knycole.

She shook her head hating how her pussy thumped at the rasp in his tone.

“Uh, let me get the chicken alfredo and some wings with fries.” Hov called off, already knowing what Knycole wanted without having to ask. He was always three steps ahead when it came to her.

The waitress smiled before she snapped her eyes to Christian and Noir. He was sipping on her drink which made Noir angrier. “Can I get you two anything?”

“Let me get what he’s having but not the alfredo…” his eyes swept to Noir who was still pouting without making eye contact. “A ribeye with mashed potatoes and mac n cheese.”

The waitress smiled before prancing off.

Silence fell over the table. Everyone was in their own world, with their own thoughts. The background chatter did nothing to ease them into conversation. The tension was so thick that even the waitress sitting their drinks down didn’t pull them together.

Hov reached for Knycole’s water, twisting the cap off with a familiarity that was almost tender before sliding it across to her.

Her eyes rolled, but his gaze dared her to challenge him.

She knew better than to spar with him, not here, not now.

Instead, she took a small, reluctant sip, her eyes flicking up at him, asking without words, satisfied?

“I love that,” Noir said, pulling everyone’s eyes to her.

Christian tossed his drink back without so much of a grimace at the hard liquor. “Love what?”

“The way Hov takes care of her,” Noir’s voice wavered, her eyes shimmering as she looked at Knycole.

“How he opens her drinks, orders her food… just sees her. Really sees her.” She shrugged her shoulders, trembling just a bit.

The pain was written all over her face. She saw the cracks in their foundation, the hurt that neither of them could hide, no matter how hard they tried.

Hov pulled his drink towards him. His eyes cast downwards. “She don’t love it though,” his voice was almost too low for him to recognize. The way Knycole had his heart feeling didn’t feel good and even being close to her didn’t relieve the pain.

“I do.” Knycole twisted her body towards him.

He met her eyes, his own dark and wounded. “I can’t tell.”

Noir wiped at a tear slipping down her cheek, her heart cracking as she watched them stumble through their pain.

Everything they once believed in was crumbling.

She couldn’t fix what was broken between her and Christian, and now she was watching Knycole fumble the one man who held her heart, all because she was too afraid to hold on.

Christian kissed his teeth. “Get out them folks business.”

“It’s my business too… like we’ve been friends forever so of course I feel a way when it ain’t how it’s supposed to be.” Noir continued.

“What about us? How you feel about us?” Christian’s light brown eyes almost made her weak in the knees. But looking at him made her remember how cute she thought their children would be and that made her remember he gave his first child to a bitch that wasn’t her.

“You asking me when you the one that ruined us!” She raised her voice.

“Okay, Christian, I don’t think this is the place.” Knycole sat up.

Christian looked hurt. “Me? She the one yelling and shit.”

“Why are you here?” Noir’s leg bounced under the table. She was willing herself not to knock his head off his shoulder. “Like, how you even knew I was here?”

“We just came here to eat but saw your car in the parking lot,” Hov explained. He knew how hurt his boy was behind Noir and maybe them forcing their way to their table wasn’t the best idea but he wasn’t going to hang Christian out to dry.

“You have the right to do that because you ain’t ruin you and Knyc…” Noir’s acrylic nail pointed at Hov. Her wet eyes went from across the table to Christian. “But you… you don’t need to be making your way to shit but that hoe and her hoe ass baby!”

“Aye,” Christian, pinched the bridge of his nose. “Watch how the fuck you talk about my baby. I know you hurt but she ain’t do shit to you.”

“Yes she did!” Noir tried to get up from the table like she wasn’t on the inside of the booth. Her quick movements rocked the table making drinks clink over.

“Noir,” Knycole squealed when the cold drink spilled into her lap.

“Come the fuck on,” Hov mumbled under his breath, grabbing napkins to slow the drinks from spilling all over their laps. “Let’s just go.”

“I’m cool. That’s Noir doing the most and talking out the side of her neck.” Christian’s patience was running thin. He just needed his girl to calm down.