Chapter 13

13

“ N oodle, it’s a little too early to be so amped up.” Qamar chuckled, his voice light as he playfully tugged her along the expansive driveway that stretched out like a parking lot, its concrete warm beneath their feet.

“I can’t wait to see Es. You told her I was coming?” Noodle’s eyes sparkled with anticipation, looking up at him as if he held the key to all her dreams.

Qamar felt a familiar tightening in his chest at that hopeful gaze, a reminder of the weight of expectations. The thought of disappointing another person, of not being enough, gnawed at him like a persistent ache. He wrestled with self-doubt daily, yet he masked it well, unwilling to let Noodle see the cracks in his armor. Just as he had with Esmeray, he was ready to embody the person Noodle believed him to be, even if it meant wearing a mask of confidence that felt foreign against his skin.

“Nah. I didn’t tell her. All she knows is I had to handle something really quick. Noodle?” he called her name softly, watching her gaze shift back to him, curiosity shining in her eyes. “Don’t ever let anyone make you feel a way. Even if it’s my people.”

“What does that even mean?” she asked, furrowing her brow, her innocence a stark contrast to the complexities of the world around them.

“Keep your business to yourself. I’ll tell them what I think they need to know.” With a gentle push, he opened the front door, and they were met by the familiar chaos of the house—a vibrant symphony of laughter and life that greeted them like an old friend. It was just as he’d left it the night before, a whirlwind of memories swirling in the air.

After their one-on-one conversation, his heart was heavy with the responsibility of leaving Siasia at his mama’s house. She needed to be ready for the storm that awaited her. While she slept, he had taken Noodle with him. The morning sun spilled through the car windows as they made their way back to Tiny and Maverick’s house in Jade City. His heart ached with the pull of family, but he couldn’t neglect Janay and the newborn, the tiny life that had just begun.

All movement halted as Qamar and Noodle stepped through the door, the energy in the room shifted as they entered; a moment suspended in time as the world outside faded away.

“This your kid, too, nigga?” French was the first to ask, gaining him a few snickers and side eyes while everyone waited to see if Qamar had indeed brought home another baby.

He could see their disappointment, and he gulped it down. Nosey Esmeray finally looked up from sitting with Aku. Her big eyes doubled in size as she jumped down in full speed to get to Noodle. Noodle just as excited to see her, crouched down to grab Esmeray up in her arms.

“Noodle!” Esmeray’s excitement was contagious.

And confusing. Everyone looked at each other for answers to who the cute little girl was and how in the hell did Esmeray know her.

Luna cleared her throat. “Qamar?” Her voice and eyes demanded an explanation.

Still young and innocent without an ounce of couth, Noodle smiled with her hand out and Esmeray now wrapped around her bony hip. “I’m Noodle.” She smiled.

No matter what question still needed to be answered, Luna couldn’t be mean or rude to Noodle. With just as big a smile on her face, she shook Noodle’s hand. “Luna. I’m Qamar’s big sister.”

“I know.” She pursed her lips. She turned towards French with an even bigger smile. “French?” she asked, already knowing since Qamar had shown her pictures of everyone he loved one night on FaceTime.

“How you know, Qamar, Noodle?” French inquired, searching her face for traces of Qamar. Technically, she couldn’t belong to him because she looked to be at least ten but stranger things had happened in their family.

“I’m not his daughter. Anything else you want to know, ask him. I’m just a kid.”

Qamar chuckled when she winked.

“Where is Belinay?” Noodle asked, looking around for traces of a newborn baby. Her face scrunched when she didn’t see her new little sister-niece.

Now, Qamar really had some explaining to do. Luna grabbed his arm to drag him out of the room. French followed closely behind them while everyone else sat back with wide eyes on Noodle.

“What the fuck, Qamar?’ Luna gritted once they were in Tiny’s office with the door closed. “You left your newborn baby last night to pop back up with another kid attached at your side.”

“Aye, calm down, Luna.” French put his arm out. “Give him time to answer.”

If looks could kill, French would be laid out from the death stare she gave him.

“Last I checked, I was grown as fuck. All y’all need to know is Noodle ain’t mine but that don’t mean I ain’t gone look out for her.”

“What’s her name?” Luna sighed, her shoulders sagging.

“What?” Qamar’s eyes bounced between her and French.

French smirked. “Nigga, what’s her name?”

“Who name?” Qamar was confused.

“You are such a damn lover boy. What’s Noodle’s mama’s name?” Luna crossed her arms across her full chest. Childbirth had done her body good. The once handful of breasts she had were now full and juicy.

Slowly, a smile expanded across his face. Thoughts of Siasia made his heart skip beats. She was so special to him. “Her sister’s name is Siasia.”

“Sister?” French crinkled his brows. “Where her sister at?”

“At Ma house.”

Luna’s arms went up in the air before falling by her side. “The fuck, Qamar?!” He was going to give her a damn heart attack with his rash decisions. “Did you forget Janay, nigga?”

“No.” He gripped the back of his neck, applying pressure to ease the headache that came on when he thought about how he was going to smooth things over with Janay and Siasia. “But she ain’t my girl.”

“You better get him, French. Javen!” Luna called out, ready to leave the men to handle Qamar because he had clearly bumped his damn head. “I swear Stephanie dropped you on your head when you were a baby,” she mumbled, rolling her eyes at Javen as he walked in.

“The hell you did that got my wife mad at me?” Javen asked, looking between French and Qamar.

Javen no longer towered over Qamar. They were almost at eye level now that Qamar was grown. After he turned fifteen, he shot up like a beanstalk and took the sports world by storm.

“It’s a girl,” French blurted with a cheesy grin on his face.

“Ain’t it always a girl?” Javen took a seat in the pink office chair behind the desk.

“But he just had a girl. A whole six pound baby girl.”

“Y’all niggas doing too much.” Qamar exhaled sharply.

French flopped on the small blue sectional. “Nah, baby boy, you doing too damn much. Like give your dick time to breath before you have a gang of baby mamas.”

Qamar kissed his teeth. “Fuck y’all. I know what I’m doing.”

“Then fuckin’ enlighten us.” Javen sat up with his hands clasped on top of the desk. “Because from where I’m sitting, this looks like a fuckin’ episode of Love and Soccer.”

“Nah, Flavor or Qamar,” French added, laughing like he’d told the best joke ever.

“Janay know we ain’t together.” He hunched his shoulders. “She’ll be okay.”

“Where the new girl at?” Javan asked French, knowing Qamar would beat around the bush.

“Stephanie house.”

“What?!” Javen shook his head in disbelief. “You know what, when this shit blows up in your face don’t come crawling to us.”

“Speak for yourself, nigga. I got Qamar’s back even when he’s wrong,” French declared.

“And that’s the damn problem. Y’all gotta stop babying his dick slangin’ ass. Let him hit his head and figure it out.”

Qamar tuned them out as they went back and forth. He would never admit it but Javen was right. The shit he was purposefully stepping in wouldn’t be as simple and easy to get out as he tried to convince himself it would be. Janay wasn’t simple. She wasn’t ready to let go of the idea of them being together and after having Belinay, her emotions were all over the place. He knew he had to be gentle with her because he never wanted her to feel less than. She just wasn’t for him.

Whatever decisions he made, he needed to be precise and make them quickly because his two worlds were merging fast.

Noodle sat in the swing with Esmeray securely on her lap. They were out in the backyard just chilling and playing. Malaysia had her eyes on them while she did whatever she was doing on her phone. Qamar allowed the blinds to close once he was content with it all.

“So, you just up and left to go where?” Janay asked while holding the bottle in Belinay’s mouth with her back propped against the headboard.

His light eyes coated her in all the goodness they did from the moment she noticed him in class. “Did you sleep good?”

“Where did you go, Q?”

“I had some shit to handle, Janay. I told French to help you with whatever you needed.”

“He didn’t lay down with me and make her. We need you ! Not your sisters. Not your brothers. And for damn sure not your baby mama.” Her round eyes poked at him. “So, again, what the fuck was so important that you left your newborn baby?”

His phone rung, grabbing his attention to it. Instead of answering it, he declined the call. Qamar’s eyes were back on Janay who had switched Belinay onto her shoulder to burp her. Holding out his hands, he grabbed his daughter. Across his own shoulder, he tapped her bottom to ease any gas she might’ve had.

“Don’t ignore me. You know I hate that shit.” Tears welled in Janay’s eyes.

“The test came back,” he confessed while walking around the room. His body moved in a sway that seemed to show how it wasn’t his first rodeo.

When he had Esmeray, the women in his family tried to do everything for him but Qamar wasn’t having it. He was hands on with her, watching, and learning, making sure he was the best father he could be.

Janay drew in a stuttered gasp. “Wh—what did it say?”

Qamar closed his eyes and inhaled Belinay’s scent. “It don’t matter.”

“But it does,” she whispered. Janay knew what the plan was but she didn’t expect for him to hold up his promise to her.

When they first met, he wasn’t the only dude she dealt with. Every other weekend she would go back home where her on-and-off dick appointment lived. Sometimes, he would even go down to Lynn Beach to slide between her legs. Then, she met Qamar. They had sex, and she found out she was pregnant shortly after. The timeline matched up with both of them since she had sex with them within the same three days.

Qamar didn’t believe he was the father because he wore a condom each time. When Janay reveled the truth—along with the other guy basically saying he would have nothing to do with it, he stepped up. In hindsight it wasn’t the best decision because it gave Janay unrealistic expectations.

“It don’t.” Qamar stared her down. “Belinay, the Turkish meaning of the moon’s reflection. She mine, Janay.”

“What about your family?” she whispered, still watching him move around with her daughter in his arms.

Janay knew she wasn’t the family’s favorite, which meant as soon as they found out Belinay wasn’t his, they were ready to drop their fake fa?ade. And she wasn’t ready to hear what Malaysia had to say.

He stopped walking long enough to look her in the eyes. “She mine which mean she my business.”

It was their pledge to keep the truth between just the two of them. Their little secret.

“Daddy!” Esmeray burst through the door with Noodle behind her. “Noodle want to see my sister.”

Noodle eased from around the door with a sneaky smirk on her face. She had put Esmeray up to taking her because she was tired of waiting. Morning had turned into afternoon with no sign of the other part of Qamar that she wanted to love.

As if Noodle belonged, he eased over to her so she could see the newest piece of his heart.

“Aww,” Noodle cooed. Her eyes bounced from Qamar to Janay, trying to see who Belinay looked like.

Her button nose scrunched which rubbed Janay the wrong way. “Who are you?”

“Noodle,” Esmeray spoke up with her nose just as scrunched.

Noodle was wrapped up in Qamar’s world so much so that she didn’t even hear Janay. “Can I hold her?”

Placing the tiny human in her arms, he guided her on how to hold her properly. “You gotta hold her head like this.”

“Is this right?” Noodle looked up at him so much admiration.

“Mhm. You gone babysit when she gets older?”

“Yea.”

“And me too?” Esmeray pointed at her chest.

Noodle smiled. “Both of y’all ‘cause I love y’all so much.”

“Q, who is she?” Janay had had enough of the private moment they seemed to be having. Her wide nose spread more. The pregnancy body was still cursing her and she hadn’t quite accepted the changes of carrying a child.

“Hey, I’m Noodle,” she introduced with the most innocent smile and eyes. “She’s so pretty and little.”

Looking at Noodle warmed Janay’s heart, removing all the animosity she had seconds before. Her innocent aura was contagious and blocked out all negativity. Noodle was special and as she faced life head-on, she would grow to master it—able to twist and turn people into puddy.

“We’ll talk later,” he directed to Janay. “Where yo’ mama, Es?”

“Gone on a date,” Noodle answered, still focused on Belinay.

Janay swallowed, waiting for Qamar to feel away. When he didn’t her racing heart slowed to a normal rate.

“Qamar!” Stephanie’s voice boomed through the hall, slicing through the air like a knife. The sound echoed off the walls, a familiar mix of authority and concern that made Qamar’s heart race. His eyes widened, darting to Noodle, searching for some kind of reassurance or explanation.

“Siasia down there,” Noodle finally admitted, her brow furrowed in realization, as if the weight of the message had just hit her.

Janay’s gaze flicked between them, confusion etched on her face. “Who is Siasia?” she asked, her tone a mix of curiosity and suspicion, as if she sensed the tension brewing beneath the surface.

“My daddy’s girlfriend,” Esmeray piped up, her innocent tone cutting through the moment like a bell ringing in a quiet room.

Before Qamar could react, Janay was already off, sprinting across the grass, determination in her stride. Panic surged through him as he watched her go, knowing that whatever confrontation awaited would only stir the pot further.

“Wait! Janay!” He chased her unable to catch up with her like he wasn’t the athlete and she didn’t just have a baby.

Stephanie stood in the hallway with her arms folded across her chest and smoke coming out of her ears. She was pissed that Qamar had left a complete stranger in her house without her knowledge. Then, he had the nerve to bring another girl into town when he just had a baby with another. Her son was out of his mind, and she needed to be the one to hold him accountable.

Janay rushed past Stephanie only to stop dead in her tracks when she looked at Siasia.

Siasia stood frozen, caught in the moment like a deer in headlights, clad in a pair of Qamar’s oversized sweatpants that hung loosely around her waist, a t-shirt that swallowed her frame, and one of his big jackets draped over her shoulders, making her look almost small and vulnerable. To top it off, she wore his giant slides that flopped with every anxious shift of her feet. The nerve of her, knowing full well who Janay was; the internet had already spread the images of Janay and Qamar at the hospital, cradling their newborn like a precious gift. A knot twisted in her stomach, a mix of dread and realization settling in as she braced for the inevitable.

“Are you out of your fuckin’ mind?” Janay raged. Her chest pumped up and down. Pissed was an understatement. “Qamar, I just fuckin’ know.” She pinched the bridge of her nose unable to complete a full sentence.

“Calm down and let me talk to you.” Qamar stood in front of Janay, blocking her view of Siasia.

Siasia’s foot tapped against the floor as she tried her hardest not to say anything.

“Nigga, fuck you!” Janay grilled him before spinning around to call her mama and get the fuck on.

The hard thuds of her stomping off seemed to shake the floor. Steam followed her, leaving a trail of a burning heart. She couldn’t believe Qamar could be so disrespectful. No, they were not together but she had just had his daughter. Like, how could he be so selfish to go out and give another girl pieces of him he withheld from her? If those were the games he wanted to play, she could play it too. First with taking her baby the hell away from him, his family, and the homewrecking bitch.

Luna stepped up. “Wait a minute, Janay.” Javen pulled her back, not wanting her to insert herself in Qamar’s drama. They needed to let him handle his shit like the man he was.

Qamar gave Siasia sympathetic eyes before turning to follow behind Janay.

“Mama, please come get me,” Janay sobbed into the phone, her voice trembling as she frantically shoved clothes and random belongings into her duffle bag, the zipper straining under the chaos. Each item she tossed in felt like a piece of her heart, heavy with confusion and hurt. Qamar’s baffling actions replayed in her mind, a stark contrast to the kind and sweet man she had always known, the one who had insisted they could only ever be Belinay’s parents.

With a desperate swipe of the back of her hand across her running nose, she tried to regain her composure, but the tears kept flowing. “Mama, I know, but please,” she pleaded, her voice cracking with emotion, the weight of her heartbreak palpable in every word.

Noodle looked at her in sadness, still holding onto a sleeping Belinay.

“Janay.” Qamar finally made it into the room. “Just let me talk to you.”

“Fuck no! You should’ve talked to me before you made the decision to bring another woman here. Be proactive instead of reactive, nigga.” She pushed her finger into the side of his head since he’d taken a seat on the bed.

Noodle watched, unfazed because arguing and fighting seemed to be the foundation of what a relationship was. It was all she knew based on her own parents who couldn’t seem to get their shit together.

“Don’t put your hands on me!” Qamar barked. “Aye, Noodle, take Belinay in there to my sister.”

“No, the fuck.” Janay stood in front of the door.

Noodle looked back at Qamar because Janay was a grown up and she was just a child. When Janay went to grab her daughter from Noodle’s hands, Noodle screamed, afraid of the baby falling.

“Bitch!” The words came out of his mouth before he could stop them. “The fuck wrong with you?”

At the same time, Siasia was running towards them. “Bitch, I will kill you if you put your hands on my sister again!” Spit flew from her mouth as Javen yanked her into the air like she weighed nothing. “Let me go.”

Janay laughed. “ Bitch? ” She looked at Qamar who had placed Noodle behind him while he held Belinay in his arms, protecting them the way she wanted him to protect her. “The mother of your daughter is a bitch? I bet you ain’t never said that to your precious little Malaysia.”

“Janay, watch the fuck out. You doing too much. I ain’t meant to call you out your name but I ain’t playing this childish shit with you when it comes to my kids.”

“She ain’t your kid!” Janay clapped, referring to Noodle. “Maybe a step kid,” she grimaced, cutting her eyes at Siasia who was still trying to get to her.

While hell broke out, Janay’s mother had arrived since she didn’t live that far. The sound of her phone ringing was the break they all needed. She answered as tears pooled in her eyes. “Mama, Qamar won’t give me my baby. I just want to take my baby and go. This is too much for her. Too much for me.”

“The fuckin’ dramatics.” He scoffed.

“I’m calm, just let me go,” Siasia’s chest heaved as Javen slowly placed her on her feet. Spinning around him, she darted to Janay, landing hard blows on her face and making her drop her phone.

Luna screamed. “Break them up!”

Qamar stood in shock, unable to do anything besides cuss and fuss since he still had Belinay in his arms.

Noodle saw her sister fighting and took off on Janay too. “Don’t hit my sister!” She swung wildly.

French snickered but went to grab Noodle away from the fight. Siasia was walking Janay all around the room, and she wasn’t letting up. Janay fought back but was still no match for the trailer park in Siasia.

“Siasia, let her go.” Qamar tried to pass his daughter to Luna but she was focused on getting the men to break the shit up.

Tiny and Maverick were out and would be ready for round two when they got home and realized the episode of Love and Hip Hop that was being shot in their home.

“Hold my baby.” He pushed Belinay into Luna’s arms.

Qamar pulled his pants up, trekking his way to where Siasia had Janay on the ground. Without hesitation, he yanked her into his arms while she still swung wildly. “Calm down, mama,” his gruff voice crooned in her ear.

As always, her body moved on his command. Unfairly, it belonged to him without question. Upset and embarrassed, Siasia wrapped her arms around his neck and her legs around his waist, burying her face in the crook of his neck.

“This bitch attacks me and you console her like I was in the wrong.” Angrily, Janay pushed her wild hair out of her face. “Give me my fuckin’ baby!” She went to snatch the baby from Luna.

“Didn’t that just cost you an ass whooping?” Luna looked her upside the head because under no circumstances would she tolerate Janay snatching her niece out of her arms. “Calm down and I’ll pass her to you,” she agreed while rolling her eyes.

Janay huffed, trying to calm herself enough to grab her baby. To think she’d just had a baby and already tussling with her baby daddy’s new bitch. Safe to say Renata tried to warn her. Told her the real Qamar would rear his ugly head as soon as she popped that baby out. All of that said and still, Janay wanted him to be hers in the pit of her belly.

“The fuck happened?” Renata asked after she’d beat on the door for what felt like an hour. “I know y’all ain’t in here jumping my baby?” Her dark eyes seared into everyone, stopping when they connected with Qamar who held Siasia like she was their newborn baby.

“Oh, I see what this is.” Renata kissed her teeth. “Get your shit and lets go, Janay.” She pointed her finger at Qamar to declare, “I don’t want to hear shit when Janay ain’t stunting you anymore. From this point on, it’s about Belinay and nothing else. You crossed the line so stay there.”

Qamar shrugged, truly unbothered by any of it.

Janay sucked in her tears as she gathered her things. Thoughts of nights without him close to help with Belinay created an ache in her chest. He had been such a good dad even when he found out he wasn’t biologically the father. She knew she could do it alone but didn’t want to. Still, that wasn’t something she would confess in a room full of people already judging her.

As she went to walk out the room behind her mother, Qamar gripped her elbow, pulling her close to him. With his lips puckered, he kissed Belinay on the head. Through all the chaos, she remained sleep like she was born in a war zone. Pulling away, he spoke to Janay through his eyes. She got the warning that didn’t need to be verbalized. The pain radiating through her wanted to blurt out how Belinay wasn’t even his daughter but even she wasn’t that crazy. That confession would only create more issues