Keep Going, Don't Stop

Ok ,so this is the new story I have been working on really hard ( I read so much stuff about pregnancy that I feel like pregnant) None of this is real lol and this is going to ask you a lot of imagination.  It’s really particular. Hope you’re going to enjoy though 

Month 4

Hmm…it feel good to sleep. I spend most of my time sleeping in here. There isn’t that much stuff to do . Expect fly. That is super cool. It’s heavenly and peaceful, warmth. A little dark but it’s because I can’t really see yet. This is why my other sense or more developed.  I’m sure you know already where I’m …and yes. I’m into my mother. And it’s time to eat. I will kill for more sugar. She did eat something I really liked the other day. It smell good , taste good. As you already know it , I don’t really eat. My mommy eat for me. 

“ Babe” she said 

Oh that’s her. This is my mommy who just talked. How do I know it ? It’s because I can recognized her voice even in the middle of other voice. This is just my mother and she have the sweetest voice. She is so beautiful. I hope my mommy is as beautiful that her voice is. I never see her. I don’t know how she looks. But I know my mama. We have a strong connection, she is the one giving me life. I’m in her after all and because of that I feel what she feels , I sense was she sense , I live what she live and her too pay attention in what I want. I think she love me like I love her. Our life are linked after all 

“ Babe” she repeated. Oh oh ! I woke her up. Oh that’s why she wasn’t moving since a while. Mommy was sleeping too. I should be sorry but I want to eat. Babe is my father’s name. How do I know ? Because every time she said “ babe” she felt happy and in joy. And this is always the same voice who answered. 

“ Yes Ahsha” he replied. Oh oh , daddy too was sleeping. Ahsha is my mommy name. Beautiful isn’t it ? Everything is beautiful about my mother. I sure. How do I know ? Because my father threat her like a queen, always. Just by saying her name , Babe make her heart beat faster. I heard it every time. Babe made my mommy happy. 

“ Babe can I have an Oreo milkshake ?” My mom asked and her voice was weird. She always use this voice when she want something from him. And she always get what she want. Oreo milkshake ? This is how it call ? Everything I learn is through how my mommy see the world. 

“Ahsha.. it’s 3am” answered Babe 

“ But that’s not me , that’s what your baby want “ 

Yes…she was right! Mommy and I make such a good team. She caressed her belly, like to caress me. Now I’m sure. Ahsha love me. And babe love me to. He caressed Ahsha’s stomach too. Yes , both of my parents love me 

” What can’t I do for this little monster”  laughed Babe. 

Month 5

She is moving, now mommy is moving. Walking precisely. I think we’re going somewhere. I follow my mother everywhere she goes. Before , mama was dancing , this is why I love dance in her belly. I wish she still could dance. She feel so happy and alive when she dance. She is a devil girl. Dance is her passion. If I’m a girl I think I’m going to dance too. If I’m a boy , I’ll have a dancer girlfriend. Haha don’t tell her I say that , mommy can go crazy sometime and again , it’s my fault. 

“ Derek I can drive myself” she said 

Derek ? But who is Derek. Do you know who he is ? You can’t see , you’re a grown adult that can see the world outside , can you tell me who is Derek. I already heard this name before , she said it couple time but not a lot. Her body have the same answer and effect than when she said “ babe”. Do I have two fathers ? Oh no I don’t want to have two father, I want my mother is with one man, babe 

“ I know but I still want to drive you there ” said Babe

Now I’m confused. I know his voice , this is the second voice I prefer in the word , the first is mama’s one, the way his voice have an effect on her, the way it sound in her stomach , the way his voice made her feel, it could it be just one person. I think my father’s name is Derek and ‘babe’ is just…another name she gave him. See, I learn fast . Mommy and Daddy I guess went outside the house. Did I said my future house is big ? It’s!  There is a pool and sometime mommy go swim , just like I do in her belly. It’s fun because we’re even more connected when we do the same thing. Daddy love go on the Jacuzzi . There is a weight room , where mama do her yoga exercise and I hate this. I don’t like it at all. It’s moving,  twisting. I prefer when they are watching a movie in the theater. It’s relax and calm.  They started to do the nursery , when I’ll sleep when I’ll born. They have a discussion about it , if the wall should be pink or blue since we don’t know which gender I’m yet. They even talked about if I should sleep with them or not. I want to be with them all the time. But Mommy said no when Daddy said he want to have me sleeping between them. I love being in the car , I feel like I’m going to sleep, take another nap. I talk to you later ok ? I have so much stuff to tell you about my parents

“ Carebear!!!!!” screamed the south girl 

No nap for me! This is Kyle, my mother’s best friend and her too is a dancer. This is going to bounce. Every time Mommy is with Kyle, she laughed a lot and the all stomach is tremble. I prefer when mommy is laughing though , she seems so happy when she does. Kyle is funny , even if I don’t understand the half of what she said. She have a really specific opinion of the fact  that my mother is expecting me. She was happy for my parent of course but sometime I feel like she doesn’t like me . But she already talked to me once , yes I said that. She came closer to mommy’s belly and talk to me. Kyle said me that she doesn’t have children , but she is going to be the best aunt , making me shopping if I’m a girl and give me advice with the women if I’m a boy. I felt a little pressure so Kyle was probably making a hug to my mama. I’m jealous, because she can , I can’t. Did I said I’m really can’t wait to born.

“ I will take a lemonade  and an Oreo muffin ” said my mom 

Yes! We’re going to eat again.  l love Oreo , even if I don’t know what it’s.

“ So how thing is going with the little monster ?” asked Kyle “ Do you guys want to know the sex”

“ Everything is cool ” answered mama and she caressed her belly , caressing me. It feel so good when she is caressing me. “ We don’t want to know. I hope it’s a girl but of course Derek want a baby boy to play ball with”

Daddy shouldn’t be worry. I will play ball with him , even if I’m a girl. 

“ Of course he does!” laughed aunt Kyle “ If he had put it down correctly he will get his boy”

That was what I was saying , in three , two and one. Mommy laughed and it bounce , making me move in the belly. That is funny haha. It’s like a little shake and it amused me. Mommy is happy , I’m happy. 

“ You know ” started Kyle “ I read couple thing about your condition ”

“ My condition ” interrupted my mother “ I’m pregnant Kyle. From the man I love and that I’m married with" 

” Yes , yes  yes let me continue. Some people say that if the intercourse go in some way or the other , then it make a girl or a boy “

The shaking was more intense and I heard Mommy’s laugh in echo. She is just so happy with aunt Kyle and make me have a lot of fun. Again mommy!! , I want another shake

” I don’t know what is funnier and worse. The bullshit you’re reading of the fact that you actually read some stuff about babies" 

“ You shouldn’t swear Ahsha . He or she heard everything you’re saying, and your voice is the one he or she love the most so continue and his her first word is going to be bullshit”

Bullshit!! I like this word and it make mommy laugh.  The shaking continue and I love it. I sense what she called lemonade earlier in the amniotic liquid and sugar. Sugar . Sugar. Sugar. Yes it’s sealed I love Oreo and bullshit 

“ Is it true ?” asked aunt Kyle 

“ What ?“ 

” That you know or remember the night you conceive it “ 

” Kyle…we were fuc… I mean we we’re making love everyday by the time , twice by day at least and every time climax in. It could be every possibilities! “ 

See , that was the kind of thing I don’t understand. They always talking about sex with aunt Kyle and I never knew what it’s mean. Maybe it’s some yoga exercise again. They have a weird name sometime. 

” Derek must answer to every of your desires now that he put you into this condition" 

That and my father. Kyle always talking about sex and my daddy. 

“ Kyle” screamed Mommy “ He didn’t do me anything ! And yes he answered to every of my desires, expect the sexual ones" 

Mommy Ahsha was in a different mood now. She wasn’t laughing anymore. She was..a little sad. She put a hand on me , I mean , on her belly. I know my mother and I feel what she feel , what aunt Kyle said have an effect on her , and right now my mother was searching for some comfort. Oh oh , a problem. I don’t like when there is a problem between my parents. When I was little , more than I’m right now, one day they had an argue. A big one. Mommy was so upset that she some blood coming out.  It scared everyone. Daddy , Mommy and me. She went to the hospital The doctor said it’s normal but since daddy and mommy try to not argue and most of the time they were happy. My mother love Daddy Derek , so much . No one can  know it like I do because no one can hear her heart beat when he called her name, when he touch her , when he tell her she is beautiful.

” I knew it “ spoke Kyle ” They talk about this too. The reduce of libido. I never thought it will happen to you and D-ro though”

“ Kyle! can you please go out your book and listen to me. He doesn’t even looking at me Before he wanted to do it all the time. All the time, now he is seeing my body deformed body. I’m not sexy. I can’t lift my legs above my shoulder now and to some mind-blowing position. We’re not screwi.. I mean we don’t have sex “ 

 Like my mother I was a little sad, I didn’t want  there is problem between them. What if I’m the reason. Is it my fault if my mama and my papa doesn’t have sex. And whatever have sex is  , it seems important to my mommy. Because it’s because of me if her body is deformed. That she can’t dance anymore

” Don’t worry Ahsha. He is probably scare of hurting the baby. Just by curiosity .Since how long ? “ asked aunt Kyle ” days ? Weeks ? Months ?“ 

” He made me an oral a month ago “ said mommy 

For couple second nothing happen and I was confused. Before my aunt Kyle touched me, caressing mommy’s belly. 

” Don’t worry. At the minute this little monster is out there, I take it with me for Derek and you fuck like animal haha”

 Shakes ! Mama was happy again. Me too , aunt Kyle. I can’t wait to meet you .

Month 6

I’m a little bigger now. I can move and fly in my mother belly. I have ten fingers and ten toes. When the doctor said it, daddy and mom was so happy. I grew. And I love that! The bond with my mother is even stronger. She is talking to me , like not about me , really to me. She caressed her belly and talk to me , like she was having me in her arms. And the good news is that…she stopped Yoga. Thanks God! I’m guessing I’m too big now. Mommy you don’t need yoga in your life. Our interaction are better too, when she is talking to me , if I move my feet she will feel it. When I first did it she screamed, really loud but she was happy, daddy was here too and him too was in joy. She also sense me and my respond. I can communicate with my mommy and my father sometime. Since I’m bigger, more developed I can feel my mother better. I still can’t see her but I can sense every of her move, with more precision. Like right now she is walking, probably in the house. She was holding my father’s hands. I wanted to communicate with her again , that she send me emotion again through the hormones I felt in her blood.. Yeah told you , I’m a grown baby now .

“ I hate that you have to leave” she said, unhappy. She was that close to cry. I hate when mommy cry, the shakes when she is laughing aren’t the same. There is an all other energy that I doesn’t like at all. I don’t know what is happening 

“ I know baby but this is work. Believe me , I don’t want to leave you guys ” comfort dad . He caressed her hand , between his. He was leaving, like he did couple times. My father is a basketball player. He is a devil , like mommy is a devil girl. But sometime the players have to leave to play games. My mother explained it to me once so this is why daddy was leaving now.  She keep saying that this is a part of the life and that she have to get use to it but I know the truth. Her heart can’t lie to be , she was sad every time daddy was leaving 

“ Have a safe flight” she slowly said

I think they’re going to kiss… And bingo. They’re kissing. Mommy place her hands in something hard and sweet , his jaw I think. I was feeling a wave of love and mommy receive a lot of different emotion on the same time. Joy . Happiness . Pleasure. I’m not sure of what a kiss is actually but daddy surround my mother waist. Maybe if I can move just a little… They parted. 

“ The baby is telling you good bye too” said mama and my father put his hands on her belly. 

“  miss you already” answered my dad

They kissed again , I think because her heart beat increase. When they parted again , a tear rolled on her cheek. I could sense and everything it was involving. I guess she is alone now. Mommy is a strong women , she would never cry in front daddy. But she couldn’t’ hide from me. I moved again , if she can sense me , maybe she would feel better 

“ I know angel” she said, to me “ I know it’s difficult , but at least I have you my baby" 

Yes mommy , you have me. And I can’t wait to be physically with you . 

When Daddy was away , somewhere , Mommy spend more time with her mother. Yes my mother have also a mother , her name is Sloane. You will love her believe me , she is so sweet . She is talking to me, even when I couldn’t hear her. Mama Sloane is always cool. I don’t like what mommy is eating when she is with her though. Mama Sloane is vegetarian and I have no idea what it’s mean , but it feed me, saying that she need to eat good stuff for me who is in her belly . If I hate it , I have to admit it , I grown more, it’s just Mama Sloane never gave to mommy Oreo. And I love Oreo , my mother know that. When I’ll be outside, I’ll eat Oreo all day. Oh no Mama Sloane will never let me. Oh I forgot to warn you…the mother of my mother isn’t like aunt Kyle, she isn’t screaming and make mommy laugh all the time, she just hugs super tight and…there we go. I sense some arms tighten around me and my mother. I told you so , Mama Sloane always hugs tight

” Mom" said my mama “ Can I breathe again ?“ 

Yes Mama Sloane , we want to breath! I heard her laugh and she release us. It’s kinda weird to hear my mommy said mom. Did my mother was in her belly too ?Is it possible that my mom was a baby . I’m with her since long enough to know how incredible woman she is. She in love of her job , she made her passion being what she does every day , she is a good person , always filled of emotions , she have a huge heart , I can say it because I’m close to his. My heart beat thank to her and everyday she is giving me even more life. My mommy is incredible. She love my daddy like she love no one else. I can say it , because her soul told me.  There is a lot of thing I don’t get it, but I know how amazing woman my mother is. She is a woman , not a baby so how could she have a mommy ? Mama Sloane always feed my mother. Hmm…soup. Told you , no Oreo. 

” So I do you feel “ asked Sloane 

That wasn’t a question to ask when Daddy was away. I knew it..now nostalgia and sadness came through me. I’m mature enough to recognize emotion now . Cool isn’t it ? Right now my mother is effect by the left of my father but it was something else. Something she never said at loud. I felt a threat , somewhere , into my mother heart. 

” I’m feeling good” lied my mommy. I knew she was lying. It wasn’t the true. Her voice sound differently. Her heart beat slowly and like always when she wanted some comfort, she touched me… I mean her belly. My mother wasn’t into Mama Sloane stomach that , I know that but it seems like mother/child bond is something strong. Because Mama Sloane always know when mommy is lying.

“ Ahsha , tell me what’s wrong . And I’m not talking about physically. I know my little baby is fine” asked the mother of my mother

Then I felt it, the shakes. The wrong one, not the one who indicated that she is laughing, the one saying that she was crying.

“ Mom.. I can’t do this ” cried my mommy. It broke my heart because I could feel the little fissure on hers. I know who can heal this and he wasn’t here . Her hand made the back and forth on me . “ I can’t let him go again. It hurts so much . I’m here , alone why I’m having our baby. Alone! I know I should be strong and not stress out, I don’t want to affect the baby but right now I’m not happy. He isn’t even here yet and I’m already a bad mother. How can I take care of a baby when I can’t take care of myself”

Mama Sloane should have to come closer to mommy and hugs her of something because she calm down and stop cry. I’m grateful for that. That mommy isn’t crying anymore. It’s a strange feeling when she is hurt. 

“ Ahsha don’t say something like that. You’re not a bad mother”

No mommy you’re not! I wish she could hear me! I can tell her that she is a good mother. Because I’m her child. She always take care of me , feeding me , making sure I’m ok. She stopped to dance for me. She is always careful of my needs. She always eat Oreo when I want to. Mommy please , listen to me! You’re not a bad mother. But instead , she talked to her mother 

“ I’m terrified. More the date is coming and more nervous I get. What is something bad happen during labor ? What if I’m not strong enough ? Or worse , what if my baby doesn’t love me ?  never been a mother, I have no idea what it’s looking like. I never make a baby bottle, I never learn a lullaby “ 

Mommy don’t worry about that. It’s not that big deal and…what is she even talk about . What is a baby bottle ? 

” Ahsha” started Mama Sloane “ you’re already a mother. You have this little life in and you and doing a great job so far. There isn’t any manual who can teach you how to be with your baby because this kind of bond isn’t indescribable .It’s in you. Let your heart do the rest. And you can’t tell me you’re not in love of this little wonder already “ 

Mommy heart beat faster , like when my daddy is around. She was happy and grateful. Proud. I really don’t know how interpret it. Usually she feel that way when she is my father 

” Expect my husband , there is no one I’m more in love with. Derek and him , is all my life mom" 

She love me! Not like she love daddy but she love me. Did you hear that ? I have to get out 

My all environment change, everything become tight for a second but all I can’t focus on is my mommy scream

“ Aaaaaarg" 

She was holding her belly , holding me . Everything happened so fast. Am I coming on hearth ? 

” Mom…what’s happening ?“ she asked to her mommy, she was affray , really ! Me too! Mommy was is happening ?

” Ahsha sh….sh Ahsha everything is fine. It’s a contraction. You just had your first contraction baby !“

But her vital sing didn’t change. Mama Sloane was telling her that it was a good thing, I can say it  in the one of her voice. She wanted to be reassuring but at this, no one is better than my daddy 

” Is it hurting him ?“ my mommy questioned 

” No at all. He probably got scared because you got scared that all”

“ Ok..Ok” spoke mommy , she was calming down “ I’m going to call Derek though. I need to hear his voice ”

I can’t wait to witness the love that there is between my parents. 

Month 7

 I sleep less than before . It’s always a lot for you , who are always up but Mommy Ahsha voice always make a perfect lullaby. I became bigger now. Even more so I can’t do more stuff , like having my hand in my mouth. This thing is so cool . I fly more too and I drive mommy crazy. She always tell me to stop moving but I can’t help myself, it’s so cool cool. Sometime I want to be out there , with you and some other time I’m so good here. Mommy feed me. She talked to me more , like always. It’s warm . Why should I leave her ? Oh I didn’t notice, we’re not home.  Mommy was sit , to a table because her stomach touch the board. Yes I became that big hihi. Maybe they were at the restaurant. Sometime, when she isn’t too tired , Daddy bring her to the restaurant. There isn’t Oreo most of the time but they have strawberries

“ Do you want a camera Derek ?” yelled Mommy. Oh oh she wasn’t in a good mood. 

“ What ?” asked daddy 

“ You’re staring at this girl over here. You really have some damn nerves!“ 

Oh now I’m sure. She is pissed. 

” Ahsha” started my daddy , he wanted  to calm her but the hormones who was flowing in our blood weren’t being that easy to calm. Sometime it happened. Mommy went crazy sometime and even if I understand better some adult stuff , I still can’t imagine other"

“ You know , you’re the one who did that to me . You got me pregnant and now that I look like an elephant you think you can sex eyes every bitches you see with a nice butt. I’m done. I want to go home and right now!”

 I better go back to sleep. I don’t want to hear them argue… But I couldn’t. Daddy and mommy voice in the car were just so loud 

“ I know I’m not attractive anymore but Derek you still can pretend!”

She was crying now. I could feel every of her cries came through my home, where I was. Her nerves was cracking. She was tired, exhausted , out of strength and all of this because of me. And daddy. He have something to do with too. Lately, mommy felt less loved by daddy

“ Ahsha stop saying stuff like that. You’re still really attractive and I wasn’t…”

“ Oh please cut this shit right now. You was looking at her. You was fucking her in your mind. I’m not idiot! You don’t even looking at me anymore! All I’m for you is a baby maker. When was the last time you touch me huh ? I can tell you , three months! And what you did was oral" 

I was still trying to sleep but feel that my mother isn’t fine doesn’t help me to sleep. I need her to be ok. I can’t explain why  even if I hate that my parents argue. When I’ll be born , I will make them smile and laugh all the time for they don’t argue 

” Ahsha it isn’t easy for me either! Don’t you think I don’t suffer that I can’t make love to my wife “ spoke my daddy. It was bad. Really bad! My father was getting upset too. They’re both stubborn. I guess I will be too. In fact, there is no chance I’m not stubborn. 

” Isn’t easy for you ?“ repeated mama ” You do realize that the baby is into ME ! Me Derek!!!

So it was about me. They were arguing because of me. I feel really bad.  Usually when they argue , they calm the thing, kiss … I know what it means now. That’s when mommy receive endorphins and daddy is the reason of it. But maybe this time their problem was bigger. If I could just know what sex is… 

“ Ahsha I want you ! Believe me I crave having sex with you , but we just can’t! Period! I’m sorry for having watching this girl earlier.“ 

” I’m sorry too" 

Her heart stop for a second, so does mine. The feelings were coming from all part. My mommy wasn’t ok and deep down in her , it was something who was there since three months. Something I can’t understand but it was hurting her. My mommy was in pain and there was nothing I can do about it. She wasn’t holding her stomach like she always do when she need comfort. I moved my feet , knowing that she was feeling me kick in her , but she doesn’t even answer. Right now…it was like she wanted to be disconnected with me. If I could cry , I definitely would

Month 8

Mommy was lay down on the bed. I think this bed is huge. She moved a lot on it. Like I move a lot in her. Right now , I just love exploring my gesture with my arms and  legs 

“ Derek can you please tell to your child to stop playing ball in it!” mommy said 

Nope! I’m having fun over here hihi . A hand came on her stomach though. It apply some pressure and the receptivity felt more intense. That doctor!!! They learned that the last time they went to check on me. I doesn’t like this doctor at all. He always looking me when I’m naked. It’s kinda weird to go to the doctor. Mommy and daddy can see me , on a screen they call monitor. I don’t like that because they can see me and I can’t. I’m grow enough now. Even mommy want me to go out but the doctor said it wasn’t the time yet . Plus she never told them which thing I’m. A girl or a boy. Even if my parent doesn’t want to know Last time she teaches them some techniques to communicate with me. Now I can’t do what I want anymore and need to be a good baby as they said all the time . 

“ Please my angel ” said daddy  ” let your beautiful and lovely mother sleep a little “ 

Told you so! Now I have to be good all the time 

” Keep talking to him babe , he is listening to you “ said my mother 

Does I have the choice. Daddy voice soothes both of our hearts. The way he is talking is just so beautiful. It’s pretty rare that my father is talking to me and feel that he love me is more complicate than for my mother. I don’t feel his heart or sense his body answer. All I have from my daddy is his voice , his touch. It immobilize me when he is speaking to me . 

” Here is your father baby “

 I know daddy! 

” I want you to know that I can’t wait to meet you and see to who you’re looking like the most. I hope it’s to your mother. I hope you’re going to be as beautiful and pretty that her. You already mean everything to me angel , I love you. Did you heard that angel , you’re already love by mommy and daddy “ 

He kissed me, through my mother , before kissed my mother, on the mouth. We both sleep , daddy was just the best to love us 

I woke up quickly after but I make careful to not wake up mommy. I moved the less than possible. It’s daddy hand who woke me up. He was caressing me, all the time since we fell asleep . He was obviously busy , with something else than my mother. I checked her heart and she was still sleeping

” Wow the baby actually feel when she have an orgasm …oh ok it’s not dangerous… pregnant women can have unusual libido…. There is no danger for the baby during intercourse"

What daddy was doing ? he wasn’t talking to me , he was probably watching thing on his tablet , like he always do. I should go back to sleep , with mommy

Doctor day! Did I told you I hate that. But my parents are always exciting to see me. It’s funny because once, daddy wanted to put what they can see me , a monitor in the house , for they can see me when they want but when mommy decided to don’t know which I’m they leave it. Why would they don’t want to know . I want to know . Mommy laid on the table. Something spread on her stomach , I never really feel it , but mommy said that is cold 

“ Ok… Everything is cool" 

Oh oh I don’t know this voice. It wasn’t the usual doctor. I know.. I was sleeping the all time they went there. I sleep a lot more now. More I got bigger and more a sleep. I’m tired of being here , I want to be in my mommy arms. I wish the doctor will say that I can come out. I wonder how this is going to go . Mommy said she was affray the other day. Is it going to hurt ?  

” Yes this baby girl is absolutely perfect" she spoke again

Wait!!! What did the doctor just said ? About me ? Out the fact that I’m perfect

“ Oh I’m sorry you didn’t want to know" 

Mommy was happy though , she laughed and it shake. Yaaay!! Some fun again . Daddy caressed me , before kissed mommy on the mouth. They kissed all the time you know 

” It’s ok “ said my father ” We’re glad to know. Now I have a queen and a little princess" 

So this official. I’m a girl! 

I can say when it’s the night now. First…because I can see. Not really and the light have to through mama skin. This is why I can tell than now it’s the night. It’s peaceful at night. Usually mommy watch a movie , she go in my room. Yes , I have a room and  she like go there before sleep. There she talk to me, now that I’m a girl they bought me some much stuff. Do you know what a tutu is ? Or a bear. Aunt Kyle laughed so hard the day she came with a bear wearing a tutu . Mommy laughed too but the shakes aren’t funny anymore. I barely have place to move without mommy know it. I like to communicate with her, but more I move and more she felt it and it’s bothering her. I sleep a lot more , like always and I spend less time with my parents. Oh…there is some movement. Daddy came on the bed and he was massaging mommy feet. Like every night. Her body send me a relaxing charge in my organism. I like to wake up when my mother is ok , and pleased. Like right now. They didn’t argue since the last time , when they were at the restaurant. They were happy and you know what they said …happy parent mean happy baby. 

“ Come here ” said my mommy 

I discern some move and I guessed daddy lay down next to her. I know what it’s mean , they’re going to kiss. And I was right. Daddy crushed his lips on mommy and something sweet caressed them . Mommy opened her mouth and something else entered . Mommy like that , because the feeling came through her body , and of course mine too. It’s strange because through this I sense a male sensation in mommy . Is it my dad ? we already communicate , sometime but right now it was different. He was giving to mommy something , and by this new path , it was transformed before get me. Tenderness. Daddy is sweet with me , loving me by loving my mother. Before, when they kissed it never had this effect . The sensation brutally stopped , the connection broken , like the electric wire as been disconnected 

“ Don’t…” begged mommy “ Don’t stop babe”

She was afraid and her heart beats faster. Mommy wanted Daddy to continue what they were doing but she was scared that Daddy refuse to connect with her. But my father kissed my mother again as mommy lay down even more comfortable on the bed. The connection was back but differently. Mommy heart didn’t get back to the normal , it was worse. She raise her head and the tension in her neck was hurting her , I can say it but she didn’t care because daddy mouth was above her head. Some flame slide her neck and close to her breast.  Her hands travel on something rough but warmth , it was daddy back. Daddy is really strong you know.   Mommy fingertips touch some fabric and went lower on daddy body. But she stopped. Suddenly , some breeze filled the room. She wasn’t having her pyjama now and my father lay her down on the bed again . I think now mommy is naked. Totally naked. The circle around her waist when she was wearing her panties wasn’t there anymore. If I can focus maybe I can tell you where daddy is kissing. This is a game I love to do. I called it “ where daddy touch mommy”. Right now it was her lips, I know that because the connection is strong. It stopped which send mama in agony. But the fire came back somewhere…on her neck. Daddy’s tongue. I learned that when last time they were eating ice cream ( by the way I love ice cream too with Oreo ) mommy said to him to stop doing that with his tongue on her , only his tongue can electrified her skin like it was right now. The second spot was…mommy chest. I’m not able to describe you the next because it attacked us. Me and mommy. I felt daddy like he was on me , with more sensibility , just above her stomach. If it had been just that. But something down my mother activated , hitting her and the adrenaline flow in her veins. She became ecstatic, loving it. Her breast was massaged as something warm and wet was sucking on her other nipples. Daddy 

“ Aaaaanw Derek” she moaned. Her body answers intensified in all sense . Coming from everywhere.  My father killed her though , he stopped all he was doing on her breast and keep kissing her body. His lips closed on me, her stomach.  He caressed me and I heard a small voice of him 

“ Please don’t be scare” reassure me. He was talking to me

I was expecting something big happening. Something hurting me or hurting my mama. But I doesn’t feel anything ,physically speaking, what I do feel was through mommy .Something entered in her , not like the hormone like endorphins in her veins , floating around me. Not  Something, daddy’s finger entered in mommy and she loved it. LOVED IT !!! The pleasure wave in her all body. She even screamed , not in the scream of scare , or when I kick her really hard , or when she is angry. This scream was different, pleasing her. She wanted to scream again , and the sensation who was making her scream. Daddy’s finger came in her. Mommy ’s body move on the bed , in a tempo going always faster. 

“ Shit Ahsha!“ 

All stopped! All became black and I thought mommy was dead. Every light turn off

” I can’t…“ spoke Daddy , was it close to cry ?  He was sorry ” I can’t do this baby “

If he was close to cry , Mommy cried right the way. Feeling rejected! 

” Dereeek!!“ she continued to cry 

” Are you fine ?“ asked daddy 

” I’m fine Derek. She is fine! Baby we’re fine “ she stopped and caressed his jaw . When my mother wanted to comfort my father she know exactly how do to it ” I need this babe and everything is fine about this. I know my body , let me take the lead if you’re scared, I know my body and all he want it’s you “ 

She pushed on his shoulder and this time my daddy lay on the bed. She did something she ever did before. Or at least I was never been awake when she did. She mount on him. I know that because her legs were at each size of his waist. Oh oh daddy too was naked.  Because the skin to skin touch awake another connection , not complete but it was tantalizing for mommy. From her hand , she was carrying something thick and hard , I’m not sure of what it was and mommy put it into her. There I understand. It was a piece of my father because now , now the contact was there , and I sense my father Précense into my mother fulfilling my mother desire. It been a long time it didn’t happened , but her body dance and the hard piece came even deeper in mommy. I wasn’t hurt. She wasn’t hurt either. The pleasure intensified. It was slow and passionate because her heart was calm , happy.  Daddy put his hand on each side of her waist 

” You’re so beautiful my queen “ he groaned ” carrying my little princess" 

It was the kind of stuff she love to hear. She was feeling desire , wanted and beautiful. Daddy wasn’t disgust by me and the stomach , he was loving her.  I could say that by the strength in their connection. Mommy wanted more . She searched for some more sensation and her hips move faster and faster , daddy coming in her

“ Go ahead Derek” she told him

Her all body moved, fly in the air  for a second as daddy come deeper in her ; getting more. She sense him in her 

“ Yeees ” she screamed , in paradise. Mommy and daddy wilding continue to connect with each other. It was like she was becoming weightless every time. They even  forgot I exist. But I was glad they did. The moment was all about them. And the experience was unique. Feel the love shared between my parents , through their union with something so sensitive. Mommy’s emotion , sensations , feeling were sending her all over the edge. She was feeling like a woman , being blessed. Daddy in the other hand was becoming a little scary. Even if mommy wasn’t scare. Like I said sometime I don’t understand everything. Don’t blame me 

“ Fuck Derek!!!Yes take me !!” yelled mommy 

The all atmosphere changed. Mommy changed. Daddy lay her on the bed again. On the board if I can be precise. He parted her legs and inched so hard in her that this time I moved in the stomach. But he didn’t hesitate to do it twice, a third time , again and again. The linkage have something  more wild and exciting. The adrenaline excited mommy 

“ Oh yes I’m going to fuck this shit!!! ” he groaned again and the all world tremble again. It wasn’t disagreeable. Plus my mother was pleased. Her heart beat faster but I wasn’t worry. Down her body was confusing, He placed her legs on his shoulder and her entrance was more delightful for daddy. He keep stroking in her , merciless and my mommy keep being in heaven. A contraction was coming, it begin to shake me. Daddy stop !

“ FUUUCK DEREK DON’T STOP” !!! screamed mommy. 

No he shouldn’t continue. He is going to kill my mother I don’t want my mother die. She wasn’t hurt. Her heart was fine. Her body was fine. There is just fire building inside of her. The sensation she was looking for but in 100 hundred more intense. 

“ BAAAAAAAAAAABBBBBBBYYYYYYYY!!!! Yes there. Right there baby!!!” she continued to beg him 

Nooooo . If daddy touch her there it will be worse. Never mind he touch her there and I was right. Her back arched  got away from the bed. What I was wrong about is that Daddy wasn’t killing her , he was giving her life . Everything stop for a long second and mama scream in a huge pleasurable scream 

“ That’s right baby , cum all over my d*ck" 

When I thought it wouldn’t be possible, my parent connected even more closer and tighter, with some liquor. Daddy fell on the bed next to my mother both of them breathless. Does my parents just had sex ? What I know is that my parent love each other , and love being connected. 

I’m done! I am getting out today! I want to meet aunt Kyle! I want to meet Mama Sloane. I want to meet my daddy. And I want to meet my mother. I want to me in her arms. I want to see her. And I want to eat Oreo myself. I’m getting out today! I don’t care ! They shouldn’t have make a baby if they didn’t want it to be stubborn like them . Sorry mommy daddy , no barbecue today 

NARRATOR  

The Roman decided to throw a barbecue with friend and family. It was Sunday. Ahsha was height months along , and indeed exhausted. Everyone welcome the news that the baby girl was on the way with big pink balloons, purple cupcakes and all girly stuff. For sure this little girl was expected. Ahsha was holding the salad bowl , on her way for the back guard. The noise scared everyone , capturing the attention of everyone. Because the bowl Ahsha was holding fell between her hands, in the same time that her waters. After the shock she searched for her husband’s look 

” She is coming ? “ asked Derek 

” Yes… Yes baby our daughter is coming" 

It was the calm before the storm 

________________________

The doctor took me and put me on my mother , on her skin , against her heart. I was right. She was the most beautiful person on hearth 

Author’s Note: This idea hit me today and I wanted to share. This takes place in season 3. I was also inspired by a discussion on one of itsashethingtv’s videos. LOL!

Breaking News: Derek Roman has been traded to the Miami Heat.

      The red print scrolling across the screen caught Ahsha’s attention. She paused her television so she could re-read the caption. Was she seeing things or did the news have the wrong information? Derek Roman was the Devils, how could they possibly trade him off to Miami after winning the championship? She hadn’t talked to Derek in months. After she was fired from the Devil Girls, she cut herself off from anything related to the Devil’s except Kyle, Raquel and her parents.  German wanted to give their relationship another try but she nipped that in the bud before it went too far. She needed time to herself after an eventful couple of months. Having German back in her life would only complicate things and she didn’t need the extra stress. She went with her gut instinct and backed out of the relationship before someone got hurt.

          She had moved into a small apartment and worked at a bank until she could find better employment. At the moment, she wanted to be independent and it was a nice start for her. Being single for the past few months helped her mature and gave her a different outlook on life. But seeing Derek Roman’s name flash across the screen took her back to a time she wasn’t able to forget. Sure, she had completely cut him off but she had never thought about him leaving LA…..for good.

…………..

“I’m assuming you heard the news,” Sloane said, inviting her daughter inside. Ahsha wiped at her red eyes, trying to get rid of the evidence of her emotional drive over.

“Did you know,” Ahsha asked accusingly.

“No, I actually thought it was a rumor until this morning. Have you talked to him since…”

“No. He probably doesn’t want to talk to me after I told him to go on and forget about me. Haven’t talked to him since,” Ahsha explained, plopping down on the couch.

“That’s what happens when you cut yourself off from everyone. I told you to stop closing people out. He tried talking to more than once, even talked to me about you.”

Ahsha sat forward. “He talked to you?”

“Yea, he did. He was just asking how you were doing. That’s after you stopped returning his calls. You stay cooped up in that apartment, I even started worrying about you.” Sloane grabbed her daughter’s hands. “Look baby, I know the last few months have been hard for you. You may try to act like everything is fine and I’m proud you are trying to move on but you have to face this. Talk to him before he’s gone. You don’t want that hanging over your head in the future,” Sloane replied in a soothing tone.

“What if he doesn’t want to talk to me?”

“That’s on him. At least you’ll walk away knowing you tried Ahsha.”

……………

“This can all go,” Derek ordered, taping the last box in his kitchen. “My bedroom still needs to be packed up and downstairs too. I’ll be giving all of this to charity so make sure the boxes are labeled.”

“Yes sir.”

Derek’s assistant rushed into the kitchen with his phone up to his ear and paperwork in his hands. “Ahsha Hayes is here to see you Mr. Roman.”

“Ahsha? You sure that’s who it is? Natalie said she was on her way over.”

“Yes I’m sure. Do you want me to tell her you’re busy,” he asked.

“Go ahead and let her in,” Derek replied hesitantly. What could she possibly want? They hadn’t spoken in months and she made it pretty obvious that she was done with him. He didn’t even have time to gather his thoughts. What would he say to her?

“Weird seeing this place empty,” a small voice said. Ahsha stayed in the doorway, with her arms crossed. She bit down on her bottom lip, a nervous habit Derek had picked up on when they were together.

“What are you doing here Ahsha,” Derek asked.

Ahsha wasn’t surprised by his nonchalant tone and irritated body language. She was the one who shut him out in the end. “I wanted to tell you bye in person. Heard about your trade. Congratulations.”

“Thanks. New town and fresh new start,” he replied smugly.

Ahsha nodded. “Good. Kinda weird how they just shipped you off after winning the championship.”

“I asked for the trade. Felt like there wasn’t much left here for me. Time to move on.”

Her heart sank to her stomach. The feeling of rejection was hanging in a dark cloud over her head. She could sense Derek really didn’t want to talk to her. “Oh. Were you going to say goodbye or just leave without saying anything?”

“I wasn’t aware that I had to tell you anything. I was told to back off, remember?” He mirrored her rigid stance. “Why are you really here?”

“I told you to say bye since you were just going to leave. I know we didn’t end on good terms but damn, I deserve that much,” Ahsha exclaimed, trying to hold her emotions intact.

Derek stared back at her, his face emotionless. “You told me to leave you alone and I did that. That’s on you Ahsha.”

“You know what, I don’t even know why I put myself through this. I’ve been nothing but nice to you and you wanna be an ass. Fuck you!”  

“Is everything okay in here sir,” one of the movers asked.

“Yea, it’s cool,” Derek answered calmly before reverting his attention to Ahsha. “Fuck me huh?” Derek chuckled. “It’s funny how you pushed me away when I tried to fix things. You told me to move on with my life. I’ve moved on, how about you do the same?” Before he could catch himself, the words were out like daggers. He watched Ahsha’s face fall as she looked back at him.

“You…you moved on,” Ahsha asked. “Oh. Well I guess I’ll leave you to pack up. Good luck in Miami,” she croaked, the large lump forming in her throat. Don’t you cry in front of him, don’t you dare.

Derek watched as the woman he loved turned to leave him. He caught her eyes glossing over as she tried to hold the tears back. Ahsha was trying her best to hold herself together until she got in the car. “Ahsha,” Derek said, his voice barely a whisper. He was having a hard time controlling his own emotions.

“How did we get to this point,” Ahsha replied. “You wanna know what I really came here for? I came here to apologize for shutting you out. I came here to tell you I made a mistake. But I didn’t expect to leave here feeling as low as I do now. How dare you talk to me like that when you’re the one leaving without saying bye! I opened my heart to you and you stepped on it! Yes, I was wrong too but I came here to fix it. So if you wanna leave like what we had was nothing then fine. I can’t stop you.”

“Why did you shut me out Ahsha?! Don’t come over here acting like I’m supposed to forget about that! I know I fucked up but you hold some fault in this too,” Derek snapped. “You wanna know why I’m leaving?! Because you shut me out and I felt like there was nothing left here for me. This whole city reminds me of you, do you know how that tortures me? You wait until I’m leaving to come over here. Where were you a few months ago, huh? I have one question for you. Are you truly happy Ahsha?”

“Of course I’m happy. Why wouldn’t I be?” she lied, her voice suddenly seeming small. The question came out of left field and stunted her instantly.

“That’s a lie. Try again,” Derek said, coming closer. “You wanna know how I know? Because you’re here. You wouldn’t be here if you were happy. You would have forgotten about me by now.”

“So you’re leaving because of me,” she asked, her head still hanging. Her eyes were blurred with tears she didn’t want him to see.

“I’m leaving because I can’t be with you. Do you really think I moved on? Moved on with basketball but not with a woman.  You’re the woman I want to be with Ahsha, even if I have to spend my entire life making it up to you.” He placed a finger under her chin. “Look at me. I’m sorry.” Ahsha leaned her head against his chest as a cry escaped from her chest. “Shhh, don’t cry. I’m so sorry.”

She wasn’t happy about him leaving but she knew this wasn’t the end. What they had was too deep.

Hello everyone! Welcome to the third and final part of the Defense series. I cannot wait for you guys to read this series, you’re in for a crazy ride!

Most of the chapters in this series will be inspired by Banks’ songs, the song inspo is real right now! 

The song that I seeked inspiration from is, Alibi by Banks

Here is the link to the song

I hope you enjoy this first chapter.

—–

“Mom, can I stay over Dad’s for dinner?” Mackenzie asks Ahsha who just came in from a long day at work at the dance studio. The mom had been working on choreography at her dance studio and was in need of a well deserved nap.

“Yes sweetheart. Where is your brother?”

“He’s hanging out with Daddy. Do you want to speak to him?” The eleven year old has a sly smile on her face as she looks at her great aunt, Katharine.

Ahsha tenses up at the mention of Derek’s presence and she finishes putting the papers into their appropriate files.

“No Ken, it’s okay. I can just talk to him later.”

“Ken, is that your mom?” Derek asks as he strolls into the room with Carter at his side, the two just finished watching basketball.

“Yeah, here dad!” Mackenzie cheers and practically throws the phone into her father’s hands. Derek chuckles at his daughter and shakes his head.

“Thank you, Ken.”

Derek and Ahsha have not spoken to each other in two years and had just finished with the finalization of their divorce.

“Hey.” Derek answers the phone, letting out a light chuckle at Ahsha’s incoherent rambling on the other end of the phone. He hopes that she says something to him over the phone.

“Hey. Derek, I have to go. I’ll be at the mansion to pick up the kids around eight, if that’s okay.” She blurts out and smacks herself in the head for talking, grabbing her laptop.

“Yeah, it’s fine Ahsh,” Derek answers and his eyes widen at the mention of his wife’s nickname, Ahsha’s heart skips a beat. “Remember, you’re always welcome over for dinner.”

“Thanks Derek. I really need to go, I’m in the middle of something important. I’ll talk to you later.”

“Okay. Talk to you later.” Derek retorts.

“Bye.” Ahsha says and quickly hangs up the phone. She feels her heart racing once again and feels tears rushing to her eyes. She quickly wipes them away before they turn into full on sobs.

“You already cried over him last night. When are you going to stop?” She asks herself, unable to stop the tears from flowing this time.

Her phone rings once again and her heart races as she closes her laptop. She grabs the phone and realizes that Kyle is calling her phone.

“Hey Carebear!” The blonde answers excitedly. Little does Ahsha know, she is making her way up to her condo now.

“Hey.” She answers the phone, sounding glum.

“Carebear? Spill it.” Kyle drills, sensing the tone of her best friend’s voice.

“I’m fine, Kyle.” Kyle’s phone cuts off and she knocks on Ahsha’s large white door. Ahsha jumps up and opens the door for her best friend. Kyle walks right into her best friend’s condo and gives her best friend a tight, comforting hug as she cries in her arms.

“Sister intuition told me you weren’t fine which is why I came over. Now spill it.” Kyle says as she lets her best friend go and takes a seat next to her on the chair, putting her Celine bag on another chair.

“Derek invited me over for dinner and I don’t know if I can go. Kyle I’m not even over him yet.” Kyle nods her head in understanding and rubs Ahsha’s back.

“I know it’s been a year since the divorce and I know how hard it is seeing him everyday and not being able to still jump in his arms and tell him you love him. It’s okay to still be upset. Getting over him is going to take some time, take as much of it as you need but don’t rush it.”

“I still love him.” Ahsha admits for the first time since the day of the divorce being finalized.

“And that’s okay, love.” Ahsha wipes her tears away and wraps her arms tighter around Kyle, holding her close.

Ahsha’s phone rings once again and she sees Derek’s number pop up on the screen. Kyle gently rubs her back as she picks up the phone. “Hello?”

"Mommy can you please come for dinner? We’re having chicken parmgon.” Chloe answers. A chuckle escapes Ahsha’s lips, giving both her and Kyle some light at the end of the tunnel.  

“Chloe it’s parmapon.” Lillianna answers, causing Mackenzie and Katharine to crack up at her.

“Sweetheart, it’s Chicken Parmesan.” Mackenzie says before taking the phone. Ahsha sits at the other end of the phone chuckling at her girls.

“Mom can you please come for dinner?” Ahsha’s eldest inquires.

“Please mom?” Carter says, standing next to his sister while his father is still busy preparing dinner in the kitchen.

“Pleaseeeee?” All four kids beg, warming Ahsha’s heart.

“Fine, I’ll come to dinner tonight. Auntie Kyle’s coming too.” Kyle’s face has confusion written all over it.

“I’m doing what?” She asks.

“Okay mommy! I’ll talk to you later, bye!” Mackenzie answers before she quickly hangs up the phone, seeing her father walking into the den.

“What are you guys doing?” Derek asks, noticing Mackenzie’s nervous expression. Chloe and Lillianna look at each other with their eyes wide open.

“Nothing!” The twins exclaim at the same time.

“Chloe and Lilly are up to no good like always.” Carter says, causing the twins to give him the side eye.

“They look just like Ahsha.” Katharine laughs out loud as she sees the twins’ little faces.

“Right?” Mackenzie chimes in and sits next to her great-aunt on the chair.

“I’m going to take the chicken out of the oven. Dinner should be ready in about fifteen minutes.” Derek tells everyone and leaves the den.

“Kids.” He scoffs as the thought of Ahsha coming for dinner crosses his mind.

Back at her apartment, Ahsha is now tapping away at the emails on her laptop while a million and one questions escape Kyle’s lips.

“What if you two get back together again?”

“Kyle.”

“Ahsha. I’m just asking Carebear, it’s so obvious that you still love him.”

“Really? How so?” The mother asks as she stops typing up the roll sheet for tomorrow’s hip hop class. The conversation strikes a nerve and she tenses up.

“Shall we talk about when he walked in here with the twins yesterday? You couldn’t stop staring at him.” Kyle says as Ahsha looks down at her lap.

“Yeah. But.”

“There’s no buts Carebear. Plus you told me twenty minutes ago that you still love him. I may be blonde, but I’m not stupid. Let’s go to dinner, I’m hungry.” The blonde chuckles and wraps her arms around her best friend.

“I’m not driving.” Ahsha tells her. The two best friends head out the door and get into Kyle’s car.

En route to the mansion, Kyle starts to ask questions again. “So are you excited to finally talk to Derek?”

“I don’t want to talk to him Kyle,” Ahsha replies bitterly. “The last time he and I had a full conversation, it was the day I divorced him.”

Kyle stays quiet and continues driving, knowing Ahsha’s stubbornness will wear off after a while. “What?”

“Nothing.”

“What, Kyle?”

“You don’t think you guys gave up too easily? I get that he was hurt about Mary and that he decided to shut down, but you shut down on him too.”

“Kyle, I really don’t want to discuss why he and I divorced. I am trying to move on.”

“Move on or keep stuff from me? Carter told me that you still cry in your sleep. I know today wasn’t the first time you’ve cried like that.” Kyle takes a glance at Ahsha before she pulls up to the red light.

“It happened once or twice.”

“Not counting tonight. Last night, two nights ago?” Kyle asks, seeing Ahsha crumble.

The young mother looks out the window, feeling her heart racing. “Yeah.”

The blonde stops the car and looks over at her friend again. “Like I said, It’s okay to still be upset babe. You two have been divorced for a year, no one says you have to heal overnight.”

“It’s easy for you to say when you’re married and you two are going strong, Kyle. Do you know how bad it hurts to see him everyday and know that what we had is gone?” Ahsha asks as tears fill the rim of her eyes.

Kyle pulls into the driveway at the mansion and hugs Ahsha after putting the car in park. “I can’t go in there crying.” Ahsha jokes and wipes her eyes.

“I’m right here, remember.” Kyle tells her and grabs her hand.

“Thank you, Kyle.”

The two get out of Kyle’s car and walk to the door of the mansion. Kyle knocks as Ahsha stands there somewhat frozen in fear of what the evening holds.

Max the Pit Bull barks in excitement as he smells Ahsha’s scent and runs in circles around Katharine who makes her way to the door. “Calm down, buddy.”

Katharine opens the door and beams as she sees Ahsha. “I missed you!”

“I saw you earlier at dance, Kath.” Ahsha chuckles and hugs Katharine back.

Max waits for Katharine to stop hugging Ahsha before he jumps on her and then jumps back down. “Max!” Ahsha coos and plays with the large dog who is very excited to see her.  He excitedly rolls over and lets her rub his stomach. He snorts out loud and moves his large legs as Ahsha reaches his ticklish spot.

“Mommy!” The twins scream and run to their mother. Ahsha perks up and stops rubbing Max. The dog gets up and runs out of the room, going to greet Derek in the kitchen.

“Hi my babies!” Ahsha coos and kisses Chloe and Lillianna all over their little faces. They let out their little laughs and hug their mom.

Ahsha puts the girls down and notices Lillianna’s hair is out of its ballerina bun and into a regular ponytail. “Where’s your pretty bun, Lil?”

“I like ponytails better, mommy.” The three year old sighs.

“Auntie Kyle!” Lillianna screams, making Kyle laugh.

“Lilly pie!” Kyle happily cheers and picks Lilly up, kissing her all over her face.

“What about me?” Chloe says, crossing her little arms in disbelief about her godmother’s behavior.

“If you aren’t your daddy’s twin.”

“No! I’m Lilly’s!” Chloe replies as Kyle kisses her cheeks. Kyle places both the girls down and notices Ahsha and Katharine in conversation.

The twins run off to go tell Derek that Ahsha and Kyle arrived. Ahsha and Kyle take off their shoes and place them next to the door with everyone else’s shoes.

“Hi mom!” Mackenzie calls out and rushes to give her mother a hug.

“My big baby!” Ahsha says and wraps her arms around her oldest child.

“Your favorite baby.” She reminds her mother as Ahsha kisses her forehead.

“Actually, I think Carter’s my favorite.” Ahsha says as she sees her son coming into the room to greet her as well.

“Hey!”

“It’s not my fault I’m mommy’s favorite.” He replies as he hugs Ahsha as well. Ahsha presses a kiss to her little boy’s forehead and holds both of her children close to her.

“I love the both of you.”

“We love you too.” The two siblings reply at the same time. The three let each other go and they go to hug Kyle.

“I’m your favorite, right Auntie Ky?” Mackenzie asks, batting her big brown eyes.

“Yes, you are, my sweet Kenzie.” Kyle tells her and kisses her forehead, wrapping her arms around her goddaughter.

“Me too?” Carter asks, seeming hopeful. Kyle laughs loudly and hugs her godson.

“Yes, you too, my handsome.”

Derek walks into the living room with the twins at his side, he looks at Ahsha and suddenly forgets what he has to say. He is taken aback at her beauty.

Even in a pair of leggings, a Loyola Marymount hoodie, no makeup, and her hair up in a bun, Ahsha Hayes could still be the most beautiful person to Derek.

“Dinner’s ready?” Katharine asks, noticing Derek and Ahsha looking at each other without breaking their gazes.

Katharine and Kyle look at each other and wink. “Yes.” Derek states as Lilly bumps his side on purpose. She and Chloe look at each other and laugh loudly, the two wink at each other.

“Yeah, dinner’s ready.” He replies again, rubbing his head.

“Let’s eat!” Chloe cheers and rushes into the large dining room, pulling Lilly with her. “They still love each other!” Chloe excitedly whispers to her little twin.

“I know!”

Everyone follows behind the twins, unaware of their whispers to each other regarding their parents.

Taking their seats, Ahsha notices that she is sitting in between Mackenzie and Kyle.

Derek says grace and then everyone passes around the food. The parents each help out the twins with getting their chicken and spaghetti on their plates.

The dinner table was filled with small conversation as everyone enjoyed the delicious dinner prepared by Derek. Ahsha internally sighs, appreciating the taste of Derek’s cooking all over again. Chloe and Lilly were the first to finish and were excused from the table to go play. The kids finish eating and everyone around the table shared stories about their day, except for Ahsha who stayed quiet, feeling awkward in the presence of her former lover.

The sound of her ex-husband’s deep voice was enough to send Ahsha’s heart beat into shock. The angelic voice was enough to take her brain to places she had forgotten all about in the past year. The thought of the former baller turned Devils CEO’s body pressed against hers made her soak in a place where she thought was a desert.

“Well guys I have to go. I have a presentation that I have to prepare for class tomorrow.” Katharine tells everyone.

“Go ahead, Ms. high schooler.” Ahsha teases. The seventeen year old lets out an exasperated, “Two more weeks until graduation.”

Katharine gives Kyle, Ahsha, and Derek hugs. “Goodnight guys.”

“Goodnight. Let me know when you get home.” Derek calls out. Ahsha and Kyle finish eating their food and are stuffed.

“Will do, nephew!” Katharine teases as she makes her way out of the dining room. Derek rolls his eyes at his younger aunt’s statement. Having a great aunt who is eighteen years younger than him seems a little embarrassing, but having her around was like having a younger sibling.

Katharine says goodbye to her great-nieces and nephews, then heads home to her parents, John and Elise.

The girls run back into the dining room. “Daddy what’s for dessert?”

“Apple pie and ice cream in thirty minutes.” He answers. The two run back into their playroom right after they get the answer they were looking for.

The table falls awkwardly quiet as the three adults sit in silence, not knowing what to say next.

Ahsha realizes that she has to use the bathroom.

“Excuse me.” She says and gets up from the table feeling hot, dizzy, and nervous. The young mom wanders upstairs and straight into her large, spacious, old master suite without even realizing her actions. She heads straight to the bathroom and starts to use it. Looking to the left to grab toilet paper to wipe with, she notices that there is barely any toilet paper left.

She uses what she needs and gets off of the toilet. She then gets dressed again and goes about her business in the bathroom.

After washing her hands she plans on getting more toilet paper but remembers she cannot reach. “Okay, jump.” Ahsha says, speaking to herself jumps as high as she can to grab the toilet paper.

“Dang it.” She says aloud and continues to try and reach the toilet paper.

Derek finds himself checking up on Ahsha who has been gone for a while. He makes his way to the master suite and hears Ahsha trying to reach the toilet paper and chuckles. He knocks on the door and she answers it, breathing heavily due to jumping around.

“Do you need help?” He asks, sending an entire army of butterflies to her stomach.

“I got it.” She snaps, realizing that her tone came out somewhat harsh when she sees his face change.

“Sorry I didn’t mean…”

“It’s okay. Here.” He tells her. He comes behind her and wraps her arms around her waist, picking her up so that she can reach the basket with the toilet paper. She grabs a roll and Derek gently places her back down, slightly hypnotized by the smell of her perfume.

“Thanks.” She tells him and looks up at him, realizing that she cannot look away from his eyes.

She notices what is happening and excuses herself. “I’ll see you downs…” she is cut off by her ex husband’s lips covering hers.

Without giving any thought to their ordeal, the two continue to kiss. Ahsha forgets about the toilet paper in her hands and lets it fall onto the bathroom floor.

Derek picks Ahsha up and places her on the bathroom counter, still attacking her with body with kisses.

He starts to slip his hands underneath Ahsha’s hoodie and she quickly removes it without hesitation. She grabs Derek’s white tee shirt and slips it over his head and goes back to kissing him. In one swift motion Derek manages to pull off Ahsha’s leggings and lacy peach thong. She feels the cool air in the bathroom hit her bare center and she shivers.

Derek presses hard kisses to Ahsha’s neck and she pulls his pants as well as his boxers, revealing his large, erect piece.

The kisses on Ahsha’s neck start to move down to her breasts as Derek twirls his tongue around her hard, sensitive buds, causing her to moan. Derek’s large hand covers Ahsha’s bare center and she nearly jumps when his large finger traces a circle around her clit and she bites her lip.

Derek senses her body’s reaction and gently moves his two fingers into her. Ahsha struggles to hold on to the bathroom counter and nearly falls off when Derek places her back on. Her fingernails claw at Derek’s back as he continues his hard movements. Ahsha’s moans grow louder and before she knows it, Derek’s face is now in between her legs, cleaning up her juices himself.

Ahsha’s legs turn into jello as Derek continues his work at making her moan his name. “Derekkkkkkk.” She screams as she releases into his mouth. The feeling of euphoric pleasure takes over and a smile graces her lips as he continues to pleasure tease her with his soft lips.

“Please Derek!” She screams, begging to feel him inside her warm body. Derek gives in to her plea and stands back up, moving himself into her, nearly shocking her. Her eyes roll to the back of her head and she rubs Derek’s back as his lips devour the sweet spot on her neck.

He stops to look at the beautiful woman that he is having sex with after a year. His brown eyes scan her beautiful face, sensing her love filled emotion.

Ahsha looks into his eyes as his movements continue. Their eyes automatically read “I still love you.” and Ahsha lays her head on Derek’s shoulder as he quickly moves in and out of her. She feels herself release for the second time and Derek moans when he feels Ahsha’s walls tighten around him once more.

The dancer picks her head back up and presses another kiss to the baller’s lips, this time pouring pure lust is in the kiss.

As Derek keeps moving Ahsha feels his piece pulsing inside of her and decides to mess with him a bit by going faster than his pace. She smirks as he slows down, this time stroking her hard and slow.

He releases inside of her and kisses Ahsha’s lips. The both of them stay silent, the pleasure still takes over them and without a word, Derek slides out of her, leaving her sore.

Ahsha gets up and quickly gets dressed, finally realizing what she had just done with her ex husband. Derek passes her her gray hoodie.

“Thanks.”

“You’re welcome.” He answers.

Ahsha finishes getting dressed and fixes herself in the mirror. Derek does the same and lets her leave the bathroom first.

He runs his hands over his face and realization of recent events hit him. “What did I do?” He asks, feeling nauseous and dizzy due to his actions.

Ahsha practically races out of her old bedroom and downstairs to Kyle who looks at her best friend as if she has two heads. She notices the small mark on her neck that wasn’t there an hour ago and her eyes widen.

“Girl!” Kyle screams, causing Chloe’s head to snap up.

“We have to talk later.” She whispers, running her hands through her short hair.

“I’ll tell you everything.” Ahsha whispers back as the kids go back to playing amongst themselves.

Derek is in the kitchen moving the warm, freshly baked apple pie slices to plates when Kyle walks into the kitchen. “What the did you two do?”

“Nothing.” Derek quickly chirps and finishes plating the desserts.

“D-Ro.” Kyle sternly says, causing Derek to look up from the plates.

“Ahsha and I had sex.” He admits, tears threatening to rush down his eyes. Kyle’s heart breaks as she hears Derek’s voice crack.

“You did what now?”

“I’m pretty sure I messed things up even more, Ky.” Derek says, trying not to become too upset in front of one of his best friends.

“No you didn’t. Look, between me and you, Ahsha still loves you even if you think she doesn’t. You didn’t mess things up. Who knows, maybe this was a good thing.”

“How Kyle?”

“I don’t know, but it could probably help you two get back together again.” She says, rubbing his arm. She heads out the kitchen, leaving Derek to ponder his conflicting thoughts.

Kyle sits down next to Ahsha in the den as Mackenzie tells Ahsha a story about something that happened earlier in the day. Derek walks into the room waiting for Mackenzie to finish telling her story. She finishes and looks at her dad. “Pie time?” She excitedly cheers.

“Pie time!” Derek mimics.

Everyone walks back to the dining room and sit down for dessert. Ahsha feels a little awkward as Derek passes her some pie and ice cream. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.”

Derek takes his seat and starts to eat his dessert with Ahsha completely on his mind.

The group finishes their dessert when Ahsha notices that it is now eight thirty and that the kids have to be in bed my nine thirty.

“Okay guys lets go home and get ready for bed.” Ahsha says to her four kids.

“Goodnight daddy!” Chloe and Lilly cheer and run to go hug their father. Derek laughs and kisses his little girls’ faces.

“I love my girls.”

“We love you too.” They tell him and let him go.

Carter is the next to go hug his father. “I’ll see you tomorrow dad.”

“Sounds like a plan to me CJ. You know we still have that basketball game to watch.”

“The one where the Sixers beat the Devils! Yes!” Carter cheers excitedly, causing everyone in the room to laugh.

“We’ll see about that, Car.” He tells his son and rubs his head.

Mackenzie is the next one to say goodnight to her father.

“I love you daddy.”

“I love you more, Kenzie.” Derek presses a kiss against his daughter’s head. A feeling of sadness waves over Derek’s most sensitive child and he hugs her again.

“I’ll see you tomorrow okay baby?”

“Okay.” She tells him and holds back her tears.

“Hey, no crying. I’ll be right there to pick you up from school.” He tells her and presses another kiss to Mackenzie’s forehead. The young girl leaves her father’s side and heads to the corner of the room to grab her backpack.

Kyle says goodnight to Derek as Ahsha helps the kids out their backpacks on.

Ahsha says goodnight to her ex husband, also holding back tears. “I’ve been crying way too much today.” She tells herself as Derek pulls her in for a friendly hug, holding her tight.

“Goodnight.” He tells her.

“Goodnight. Thank you for inviting Kyle and I over for dinner.” She tells him and lets him go.

“You’re welcome. You’re always welcome to come for dinner, Ahsha.” He tells her, looking deep into her eyes. She quickly averts her attention elsewhere.

“Well I’ll see you guys tomorrow.” He almost immediately says, trying to relieve the awkward tension.

Derek opens the door and the army of four children run out of the mansion and straight to Kyle’s Ford pickup truck.

Ahsha and Kyle follow soon after.

“Drive safely!” Derek shouts, waiting for everyone to get into the car.

“Thank you!”

Derek chuckles to himself and closes the door to the now empty mansion. He looks out the window and sees Kyle drive off, heading back to Ahsha’s condo.

“Max!” He calls out. The large dog comes running out of the den and straight to Derek, sensing his sadness. Max whines and licks Derek’s hand.

“I miss her, buddy.” He tells his dog and heads upstairs to take a shower feeling upset over what happened earlier in the evening. Max does not leave his side and crawls into bed with him later in the evening.

Back in the truck, the kids are talking amongst themselves when Lilly starts to speak up. “Mommy, are you happy?”

“Yes, Lilly I’m happy. Why sweetheart?”

“Nothing!” She quickly says, earning a confused look from Mackenzie. Kyle pulls up to Ahsha’s condo and puts the car in park.

Ahsha leans over and hugs her best friend. “Thank you so much Ky.”

“You don’t have to thank me Carebear. You know I love you.”

“I love you more.” She tells her. Kyle hugs her tighter.

“Call me later.” She whispers in her ear. Ahsha nods her head, understanding what Kyle meant and lets her best friend go.

“Let’s go little people.” Ahsha tells her four kids. They all climb out of Kyle’s truck.

“Goodnight auntie’s babies!” Kyle calls out.

“Goodnight auntie Kyle!” All of the kids cheer at the same time causing Ahsha and Kyle to look at each other and laugh. “Alright girl.” “Let me when you get home.” “I will, Carebear.” Kyle drives off while Ahsha and the kids go into their condo. Mackenzie and Carter head to their rooms while Ahsha goes with the girls so that they can get ready for bed.

Whoever said that getting four kids ready for bed was easy lied like a cheap rug.

“Mommy can you tell us a story!” Chloe eagerly asks as she climbs into her bed.

“What would you guys like to hear?”

“How you met daddy and got married!” Lilly cheers, pulling her fluffy blanket over her small body.

“Of course.” Ahsha tells herself. She takes a deep breath and tells the story, smoothing down her eyebrow, a nervous habit of hers.

“I met your dad when I was fourteen. We weren’t friends but he loved me very much. One day, a couple years later, I was running outside and I ran into your dad. He and I started talking and he asked me to be his girlfriend, then we got married a year later.”

“Can we have more details?” Lilly asks, shocking Ahsha.

“How in the world are these little three and a half year olds so smart?” She asks herself, internally groaning.  

“One day, babies.” She tells her little girls and kisses their foreheads.

“Mommy loves you guys.”

“We love you too.” They tell her and settle into their individual beds. Ahsha turns their lights off, leaving their matching Elmo night lights on.

Ahsha closes their door and leaves to go check on her other two children.

“Lil?”

“Yeah Chlo?”

“Mommy and daddy need to get married again.”

“I wish they were married.” The twins wish out loud before closing their eyes, heading to sleep.

Ahsha goes to Mackenzie’s room and finds her daughter already asleep. “Goodnight baby.” She whispers and kisses her daughter on the cheek.

“Goodnight mommy.” Mackenzie whispers back and reaches her arms up to hug her mother. Ahsha wraps her arms around her daughter, holding her tight.

“I love you.”

“I love you more, Ken.” Ahsha answers and kisses her daughter one last time. She leaves her bedroom, closing her door.

Mackenzie opens her eyes again and jumps up, seeing that Ahsha is gone so she grabs her cell phone.

“Kath! I think my parents kissed!” She texts quickly, before heading to sleep.

Ahsha makes her way to Carter’s room and finds him sleeping as well. “Goodnight mommy’s big boy.” She tells him and kisses his forehead and gently hugs him, silently thanking God that he does not wake up too easily to her being in his room. Carter keeps his eyes closed, feeling exhausted after a day of basketball with his father after school.

The young mother heads out of her son’s room and she goes back to her room feeling a sense of emptiness, so she goes to take a shower. She removes her hoodie and immediately smells Derek’s signature scent of Gorgio Armani’s Acqua Di Gio written all over it.

She throws the jacket into the dirty clothes bin and continues to undress herself. She makes her way to the bathroom and starts to take a shower.

She closes her eyes and lets the water hit her face. Flashbacks of Derek standing with her in the shower pop up in her head, she feels herself wanting to reach out and grab him. She opens her eyes and begins to wash her body of the day’s events.

“You just had to go over his house.” She tells herself as she finishes showering and turns off the water. She dries herself off and walks back to her room with her towel wrapped around her wet body.

She lets out a sigh and finishes the rest of her night routine by getting dressed for bed in a large tee shirt and a pair of shorts. She gets into bed and grabs her phone, scrolling through Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram and is interrupted by her phone ringing.

“Ahsha Marie!” Jelena fake scolds on the other end of the phone.

“Jelena Anne!” Ahsha mimics, her voice unknowingly cracking.

“What’s wrong love?” Jelena asks, sensing the tone in her best friend’s voice.

“Nothing. I’m fine, J.”

“Come on, you’re like my sister. You can’t make an attempt to cover your feelings Ahsha.” Jelena tells her, tucking a piece of hair back in her curly bun.

“Jelena, I’m fine.” Ahsha tells her, her voice cracking even harder. She quickly wipes her tears away.

“You’re okay.” She tells herself as the tears continue falling.

“I’m coming over.”

“You don’t have to.”

“You’re my sister. I’m not going to let you be upset by yourself.” Jelena insists and starts to put her shoes on. She hangs up the phone and Ahsha texts Kyle.

“Can you come over?” She sends and lays down in her bed. Crying was something that Ahsha Hayes had not done since the divorce.

Jelena and Kyle get to Ahsha’s condo at the same time and rush to their best friend’s door, being careful of the noise. The Roman kids are irritable when woken up, but just like their father, they all sleep like rocks.

Ahsha comes to the door no longer crying, her eyes bloodshot.

“You guys didn’t have to come over.” She tells the two women and they both hug her without saying a word. Ahsha gives in and allows herself to cry in her friends’ arms.

“Aww Carebear.” Kyle says, gently rubbing Ahsha’s back. Jelena gently closes and locks the door and goes back to tending to her best friend.

“Let’s go sit down.” Jelena suggests. Ahsha sits in the middle of the short, comfortable chair while Jelena sits on the right side of her and Kyle sits on the left.

“What happened babe?” Jelena asks, holding Ahsha and trying to calm her down. Ahsha begins to speak but is very incoherent so Jelena just holds her.

“I know you haven’t spent much time crying over this but it’s okay.” Kyle encourages and lays her head on Ahsha’s shoulder and tries to comfort her as well.

“I can’t keep hanging on to him.” She sobs out. Kyle removes the large throw blanket from behind her and places it on hers and her two friend’s legs.

“Hey, look at me,” Kyle tells her and moves her head off Ahsha’s shoulder. The blonde wipes her best friend’s tears away and gently caresses her cheeks. “It’s okay to still be upset, Carebear. He means a lot to you and losing him was heartbreaking. You haven’t given yourself time to grieve.” Kyle says and wraps her arms around Ahsha tighter.

“You’re going to get better. I promise Ahsha.” Kyle reassures, pressing a kiss to Ahsha’s forehead.

“I promise too Carebear.” Jelena also promises, grabbing her best friend’s hand.

Something inside of Ahsha has a small glimmer of hope that things between her and Derek would be fine, but of course her stubbornness would never let her admit it out loud.

“What if I don’t get better?”

“You will, in due time, love.”

In due time.

And that was chapter 1. I hope you enjoyed reading this long chapter, and if you listened to the song, I hope you enjoyed that as well!

Thank you so much for the kind words and support on the Prelude I posted last week. As promised, I have the official first chapter of Vows here for you this week! If you missed the Prelude you can find it (click here) here. Vows is basically my version of the summer special. Hopefully we get the real thing very soon! Enjoy!

Chapter Inspiration Song: TeachMe-Musiq Soulchild

I don’t own the characters. All characters belong to James LaRosa, VH1 and Viacom.

Guard your man. Those words were like a broken record repeating in Ahsha’s head as she walked out of the arena. She knew how low Jelena would stoop to mess with her, but she never thought of her trying to hurt Derek. Jelena and Derek were friends, or at least that’s what Ahsha thought. A friendship didn’t mean anything to Jelena when she was on a mission. Stabbing Terrence in the back was proof of that. If Jelena had to betray a good friend in order to get what she wanted, she would do just that and more.

Ahsha’s heels clicked loudly against the pavement as she rushed to her car. Derek was waiting for her at her mother’s house and she was already late. Her phone flashed with six missed calls and ten text messages. The man was probably worried sick or thinking she had changed her mind. A lump formed in Ahsha’s throat as she started her car. What would Jelena do to hurt them? Why couldn’t they live happily without any drama? Worry was suddenly replaced by anger. All Ahsha wanted was to be happy and she couldn’t get that luxury with the Devil herself plotting on her. If she knew all of Derek’s secrets, she had to know about the cocaine. If the league found out about it he could get banned for life.

Ahsha tapped her fingers against the steering wheel. Maybe getting married was a bad idea. Jelena was going to make their lives a living hell until they were no more. Their love was strong, no doubt. But Derek would be devastated if his career was put in jeopardy. Basketball was his life and he worked so hard to get to where he was. Tears began to roll down Ahsha’s cheeks. She knew exactly what she had to do and it was going to hurt.

Before she pulled out of the parking lot, Jude and Zero caught her eye. Both of them were clearly upset about something and they appeared to be arguing. She rolled down the passenger side window to eavesdrop on their conversation.

“I can’t believe you would do that,” Zero yelled.

“You suggested it. Look, let’s just get out of here, okay,” Jude exclaimed, though his voice held a hint of calmness. “We have to have each other’s back. That’s the only way this works.”

Zero looked as if he had a rebuttal but decided against it. He simply nodded and followed Jude to the other side of the parking lot. Shortly after they disappeared, Terrence bolted out of the arena and to his car. What was he still doing in the arena if he had left before her? Ahsha hunched her shoulders and pulled out of the parking lot.

The drive to her mother’s house seemed to take an eternity.

………

Derek called Ahsha’s phone again only to be answered by her voicemail. This wasn’t like her. Now he was beginning to really get worried. Taking a deep breath, he rested his head against the cool leather seat. “Anthony, let’s go by the arena. I can’t get a hold of her.”

“You sure Mr. Roman,” Anthony asked, looking in his rearview mirror.

Taking one last look at his phone, Derek nodded, “Yeah.” As soon as the limo pulled away from the curb, Ahsha was pulling up in front of the house.  “Wait, here she is.” Derek stepped out of the car and met Ahsha at her door. The dancer slowly stepped out of the vehicle, closing the door and leaning against it. Trying her best to hide her tears, Ahsha kept her head down. Suddenly, her world seemed to spin off its axis. She had rehearsed how she would break the news to Derek on the drive over. Seeing his excitement fade broke her heart.

“Sorry, I got caught up at the arena,” she replied nonchalantly. “I was trying to find my parents before we left but they weren’t there.”

“Oh. I thought something happened. I’ve been calling you for the past 45 minutes,” Derek explained, glancing at his watch. “You alright?” Ahsha’s eyes were glossed over as though she had been crying. Her body language was also off. There was his answer. She was afraid and wanting to back out.

“Um, yeah,” Ahsha lied. What she wanted to say was an afterthought. She couldn’t even gather up the courage to tell Derek that getting married wasn’t the best idea. Not right now. Heartbreak was already written on his face and she could barely handle it.

They could wait a few years after everything calmed down. Ahsha couldn’t take the risk of Jelena sabotaging Derek’s career. If that meant holding off on getting married, then that’s just what they had to do.

Arching a brow, Derek took Ahsha’s hand, “What’s wrong? You’ve been crying.” Derek was very observant and could read Ahsha like a book. It was no secret that something was bothering her. Though he already knew the issue, he wanted her to say it. “Getting cold feet?”

The worry etched on Derek’s face broke her heart. Eloping was her idea and she was so ready to marry him. Instead of providing Derek with an answer, Ahsha wrapped her arms around his neck. She wanted him to know that she wanted this. But she wanted him all to herself. With none of Jelena’s scheming or any of the other drama. “Can we go back to the house, please,” she muttered against his shoulder, her tears soaking his suit jacket.

“Okay,” Derek whispered, his grip around her waist loosening. Pain laced his tone.

The ride back to the mansion was silent. Derek sat on one end of the seat while Ahsha stayed on the other. He wasn’t even able to hide how upset he was at this point. Derek was hurt more than anything else. He didn’t realize how badly he wanted this until it was snatched away. Occasionally, Ahsha would glance over at him. With a clenched jaw, Derek kept his eyes on the window. He could feel her staring at him but he didn’t utter a single word. The painful silence almost made their ears ring. Unspoken thoughts tortured them both as the driver turned toward the interstate.

Ahsha attempted to call her parents again but ended up getting their voicemails. Maybe they decided to go on a date since they hadn’t been able to spend much time together recently. Placing her phone back in her bag, Ahsha rested her head against the seat and dozed off until they reached the mansion.

……….

The player remained silent as they entered the house. Ahsha headed to the bedroom, while Derek went towards the kitchen. The silence was deafening and she knew that sooner or later they would have to talk. Communication ruined them before and Ahsha refused to let it happen again. Sitting on the edge of the bed, Ahsha waited for Derek. She twirled the engagement ring around her finger as her heart raced. Would he be understanding and listen to her feelings? They had gone through enough and things were beginning to look up for them. Derek proposing had to be one of the happiest moments of her life. Possibly sabotaging that happiness made her sick to her stomach.

After a few short minutes, Derek was making his way to the bedroom. Time seemed to stop as his feet hit each oak step. The heavy thud his shoes indicated how upset he was about that night.

Derek paused in the doorway when he finally reached the room. Stuffing his hands in his pockets, he eyed his fiancée, his face blank.

“So you’re just going to give me the silent treatment all night,” Ahsha asked, her eyes still settled on her ring.

Following her gaze, Derek replied, “I’m cool.” His eyes stayed on her finger for a few more seconds before he retreated to the bathroom. A stoic expression still graced his face as he began removing his suit jacket.

Ahsha watched him for a few seconds before standing to her feet. “Derek…”

“Ahsha…I’m fine. Really,” he repeated in an irritated tone. By this time, he had disappeared into the bathroom.

They were not going down this road. Derek deserved an explanation. “No, it’s not fine. We can’t just go to bed without talking.” The player reappeared. Ahsha was now standing in front of the bed, waiting on him to return. “It’s not that I don’t want to marry you, Derek. That’s not it.”

Trying to keep his cool, Derek rubbed a hand down his face. “Then what is it? Because earlier you were so sure this is what you wanted.”

“This is what I want. Trust me,” Ahsha argued, walking towards him. Once she heard him scoff, she froze. He was hurt.  “I just…I don’t want it like this.”

Derek leaned against the door frame and continued listening. He didn’t argue or interrupt. He simply listened instead of getting defensive. But, his body language was very defensive and the tension in the room thickened.

“I talked to Terrence earlier tonight,” she began, causing Derek to perk up. Now she had his attention. Taking a few more steps towards Derek, she continued, “…and he told me that Jelena is in control now. Somehow she got the team from Oscar and kicked Terrence out of the deal.” The player remained silent, though he saw where this was going.

“She will try to break us up now that we’re engaged. She’s in full control now and you know that means trouble. Terrence even said she would go as far as exposing your secrets to ruin you. I can’t let that happen. You’ve worked too hard for what you have. Maybe…maybe if we waited awhile, she’ll lay off. I don’t know,” she explained, tears streaking her cheeks. These tears didn’t come from a sad place. Ahsha was angry. Angry about Jelena constantly sinking her teeth into her happiness and sucking it away.

Hoping her explanation would soften the tension, Ahsha slowly walked over to her fiancé and laid her head on his chest. “I’m afraid of what she might do to us. That woman is miserable. What she did to Terrence is proof that she’s evil.”

Apprehension set in as Derek stood with his hands in his pockets. Did Ahsha not have enough faith in their love to think he would let Jelena ruin what they had?

“I want you,” Ahsha whispered, her doe eyes peering up at him. Slowly, he linked his arms around her waist. Lightly kissing the tears away, Derek walked them over to the bed and pulled Ahsha on his lap.

Watching Ahsha hurt over a plan that Jelena possibly had made his blood boil. He had witnessed the damage Jelena could cause and he didn’t voice his thoughts most of the time. Like others, Derek often wondered how Terrence could love such an evil person. When it came to Ahsha and his relationship with her, he refused to let anyone ruin that.

“Baby, Jelena isn’t ruining a thing,” he began, his tone much softer. “We’ve worked too hard to get to this point. I don’t care what she’s threatened to do, that won’t stop what we have. Understand?”

“What if she exposes you trying to get back at me? You know she’ll try it,” Ahsha added. The thought of Derek possibly being blackmailed made her stomach turn. “What if…”

Derek silenced her with a soft kiss. “All those what ifs don’t scare me. Jelena isn’t going to take our happiness. Whatever she attempts to throw our way, we’ll face it together. We’re a team.” Eyes wide, Ahsha looked up at her man. “Look, you’re about to be my wife. I’m not about to let her get in the middle of that. I have your back and you have mine. That’s all that matters.” With words so genuine, Derek had Ahsha wondering why she doubted their strength in the first place.

A small smile formed on Ahsha’s lips as Derek wiped her tears. “I love you,” she hummed sweetly.

“I love you too. Which brings me to this,” he began. “Nothing’s wrong with eloping but I don’t want you to feel like that’s what we have to do.”

She frowned, “What do you mean?”

Grabbing her hand, Derek went on to explain, “This is your special day and I want it to be a good memory for you. I’m sure you want to share this moment with your family and friends, right? I mean…if you don’t then that’s fine but I don’t want you to feel like we have to take that route.”

Like many girls, Ahsha had imagined what her wedding day would look like. As a child, Ahsha believed she would marry Michael Jackson one day. Often using her stuffed animals as the audience and pretending to walk down the aisle with her father. She had no idea who her father was at the time but she dreamed of the day they could meet. Having him walk her down the aisle was a figment of her imagination for so long. The fact that it could actually happen now, made her emotional. After 22 years of waiting for him to appear on their doorstep, Ahsha had given up hope of ever meeting her father.

Ahsha wanted a dream wedding. She wanted the fancy dress, the pictures, the first dance and the many memories. Those moments needed to be spent with the people she loved. Sloane wasn’t the type to control Ahsha’s decisions, but she would be hurt if they got married without her being there. Ahsha was supposed to go dress shopping with her mother. They had discussed this long ago when they attended the wedding of one of Sloane’s friends from college. “I’ll be sipping on red wine while my baby tries on the most beautiful dresses.” Her mother would be heartbroken if they didn’t share this moment. Not having a wedding meant missing out on a lot of memories and Ahsha wasn’t sure if she wanted that for herself.

“Ahsha,” Derek shook her out of her inner monologue. “I know you’re not materialistic but I want this to be special for you,” he said, lacing his fingers between hers. “You deserve it.”

The dancer turned to face her fiancé. “I want a wedding,” she whispered.

A wedding. The ‘w’ word didn’t even fall from Derek’s lips years ago. He assumed he would never settle down because the women he dealt with weren’t the type you married. They simply scratched an itch while he did the same for them. Many of them didn’t even spend the night and when they did there was no intimacy. No cuddling. No kissing. No talking about the future. Just a simple fuck and off to sleep they went on opposite sides of the bed. Sitting in front of him was a woman who was a great contrast to those he encountered just a short time ago. Ahsha was everything you could possibly want in a woman. A dream girl as Derek described her.

“Then a wedding it is. I guess we should let your parents know that a wedding is coming sooner rather than later,” he grinned.

“We should,” Ahsha added.  

The smile on Derek’s face wouldn’t be disappearing anytime soon.

………

Later that night

That night Derek laid awake as Ahsha was sound asleep on his chest. Glancing down at her, Derek sighed in content. Finally, he felt like his life was headed in the right direction. Never had he dreamed of having a wife.  A steady girlfriend was almost laughable.

Derek scrolled through his Twitter timeline. Sleep obviously wasn’t finding him tonight. LA Devil to tie the knot with Devil Girl. Will it last? The news was buzzing about them. Most of the media was waiting on the relationship to fail. The comment sections connected to most articles only brought on more hate. Men making disrespectful comments about Ahsha’s body while women called her gold-digger and typical NBA dancer. Though Ahsha was loved by many, she had haters who wanted to see her fall hard. Derek sighed and placed his phone on the bedside table. Reading those comments only made his blood boil. People were ignorant.

As soon as he closed his eyes, his phone began vibrating. Who on earth would be calling at this hour? At first he ignored it but when it began ringing again, he reached over and saw it was Terrence.

“What’s up, bro,” he answered only to be greeted by a panicking Terrence.

“Jelena got shot,” he exclaimed, breathing heavy. “I went back into the arena and found her in Oscar’s office! I don’t know if she’s going to make it. I knew I shouldn’t have…” Terrence’s words were running together. Derek could barely catch everything he was saying.

“Whoa, calm down T. I can barely hear you,” Derek said, gently moving Ahsha to the side and stepping out of the bed. “What happened?”

“Somebody shot Jelena at the arena. We’re heading to the hospital now,” Terrence stressed. By this time, he was sobbing. “We’ll be at LA Regional.”

“Alright, we’re on the way. Headed out the door now,” Derek replied, hopping to his feet and grabbing his tennis shoes. Immediately after hanging up, he shook Ahsha awake. “Baby, come on. We have to get to the hospital.”

A groggy Ahsha sat at the edge of the bed. “Go where,” she asked, wiping at her eyes.

“Hospital. Jelena’s been shot,” Derek exclaimed, grabbing Ahsha’s shoes and placing them on the floor in front of her. “Here’s my jacket.”

“Shot? By who,” Ahsha questioned, wrapping Derek’s jacket around her shoulders. Jelena had many enemies and had gained a few more that night. “Is she okay?” As evil as Jelena could be, Ahsha didn’t wish harm or death on her. The Devils organization had already lost Raquel.

“I don’t know,” Derek muttered, running a hand over his head. “Terrence said it doesn’t look good though.”

Both of their stomachs dropped. “Wow,” was all Ahsha could say as they rushed out of the room.

………..

Media was already crowding around the entrance of the hospital when they arrived. News trucks lined up along the curb, waiting to get an interview or sound bites from Devils’ employees. Derek placed a protective arm around Ahsha as they walked up the sidewalk and to the hospital doors.

Members of the media were already shoving microphones and recorders in her face.

“Ms. Hayes, what can you tell us about your teammate? Was someone after her,” a news lady asked, following them down the walkway.

“Move back,” Derek snapped as more cameras swirled around them.

“Have any idea who could have shot Jelena Howard,” another person shouted.

“When’s the wedding,” another person added, stuffing their camera directly in Ahsha’s face. The dancer was getting flustered with all the attention. She knew this was the price she had to pay being connected to Derek Roman.

That set Derek off. “Aye, get the camera out of her face. We’re just trying to get in here to see about our friend. Back up,” he exclaimed, pushing one of the cameras back. Finally, reaching the entrance, Derek helped his fiancée inside. “Damn press,” he muttered.

“They didn’t ask you a single question,” Ahsha joked, trying to bring some type of happiness to the somber moment. “Everyone wants to be the first to print the story.”

The waiting room was silent compared to the chaotic scene outside. Terrence sat in a corner with his head buried in his hands. Derek and Ahsha glanced at each other before making their way over to the other side of the room.

“Hey, T,” Derek said, taking the seat next to his teammate.

“Her mother is already blaming this on me,” Terrence sniffed, still hiding his face.  “If we didn’t have that fight, she would have been leaving with me. All because I couldn’t trust her.”

“None of this is your fault. Give her mom some time to process it all,” Derek explained. “Where is she anyway?”

“Heading this way from San Francisco,” Terrence answered. “I swear if she doesn’t make it…”

“She’s going to make it, Terrence,” Ahsha attempted to reassure him, only earning a hesitate head nod. “I’m going to go get some hot cocoa from the cafeteria.”

When she returned 10 minutes later, Derek was standing in front of one of the large windows. Ahsha joined him. “Where’s Terrence,” she questioned, rubbing her hands up and down Derek’s arms.

“I think he went outside or to the vending machine,” he answered, still staring down at the parking lot. “This is just crazy.” Derek shook his head. The past few weeks had definitely been a whirlwind. Life was throwing them daggers and he wasn’t sure how many more they could survive.

“You okay,” Ahsha cooed, wrapping her arms around Derek’s waist. Staring at their reflection in the window, she caught the worried expression etched on Derek’s face. She had never seen him look like that.

First Raquel, now possibly Jelena. Any minute could be a person’s last and that scared him. He couldn’t even imagine what Terrence was feeling. “Not really. It’s crazy how one minute a person can be here and in the next…they’re gone.” Their eyes connected in that moment. “I can’t even imagine what Terrence is feeling. I swear if anything ever happened to you…” Derek couldn’t even finish the sentence. Gathering Ahsha in his arms, he pulled her close to his chest as if he was protecting her from the cruel world.

“Excuse me,” a voice behind them interrupted. “Are the parents of Jelena Howard here?”

“No, not yet. Everything okay,” Derek asked with a frown.

From the expression on the doctor’s face, everything was not okay.

Thank you for elaborating on what went down that night, as we left off on one hell of a cliffhanger. 

You described Ahsha’s feelings perfectly and I’m sure that’s exactly how she would’ve reacted. We saw the look in her eyes once Terrence said “Guard your man!”. Ahsha doesn’t play about her boo Derek - therefore that gun shot did Jelena a favor lmaooo. 

Did I just say that? 

I guess I did. 

Poor Derek had no idea what was going on, he was right to think that Ahsha had gotten cold feet - however I’m glad she got the chance to really explain, to which was such a relief for him. Or shall I say the both of them. From what we saw on the actual show… it was very clear that Ahsha wanted nothing more than to be his wife, so you really conveyed that brilliantly sis. 

Now as for the news on Jelena’s shooting/Terrance’s reaction… 

I’m sorry, but I actually can’t feel bad for Jelena any longer. Just when we all thought she had some human in her after all… she did what she did to the only man/person that has taken her for the evil bitch she is, and has loved her unconditionally. 

Did I feel bad for his ass? 

“Fool me once… shame on you. Fool me twice… now I’m the damn fool.” Terrance needs to recite this to himself every night before he goes to bed… or JAIL, because I think he did it. 

Yeah sis… I caught what was said. I won’t reveal it just in case I’m wrong or you want others to figure it out for themselves. BUT I caught what was said *winks*. 

Finally Derek taking a second to realise how this could’ve easily been Ahsha instead (though she’s not hated) was truly touching. I am simply in love wiht their love. 

That cliffhanger hurt my damn heart. To see Derek waiting and the look on Ahsha’s face killed me. It will be interesting to see how they handle that situation in the summer special when we see it 100 years from now. That line from Terrence had Ahsha thinking and you know she’s a true ride or die. 

I could imagine Derek being heartbroken about Ahsha getting cold feet and it made me very sad. I pictured his face in my head the entire time. Thankfully, his future wife told him what was up and he reassured her that they can get through anything. Now they can have an actual wedding! 

I literally just laughed my ass off at the fact that you found the Jelena and Terrence situation funny. LMAO! Because it is. Terrence needs to get his life in order, for real. As for if he did it or not…I have no idea. Well actually I do have an idea for my story but I’m not telling you! 

Isn’t Derek the sweetest? If anything happened to Ahsha, that man would go nuts. 

Thanks for all the support and love throughout this series. I really appreciate all that you guys do to show support. This is the official end of Vows. Catch up on the series (here). I haven’t been able to add working links to the most recent chapters for some reason. I’ll try to get that fixed soon! Enjoy!

Characters belong to James LaRosa and VH1/Viacom.

7 years later

“I can’t take this anymore! You’re too selfish and I’m done. I want a divorce,” Ahsha screamed, jabbing her manicured hand into the man’s chest.

“Baby….please, just listen,” he replied, begging his wife to stay but her bags were already packed.

“Cut! Great job, you two. We’ll break until tomorrow,” the director yelled, jumping down from his chair.

“Thanks,” Ahsha beamed, shaking her co-star’s hand before heading back to her trailer. She had been ATL living for the past two months, filming a movie. Being away from home was difficult but it was such an amazing opportunity and she couldn’t pass on it.

It had been 7 years since Ahsha married her dream man. Since then, life had been headed in the right direction. Outside of photoshoots, television appearances, and now a movie, Ahsha was also creating a dancewear clothing line. Things were looking up and her marriage was also on the up. After the honeymoon phase, they hit a huge bump in the road. One they thought they’d never get over but thankfully they recovered. Now they were even stronger and the terrible time brought them closer.

Like Derek had promised, they built a kingdom. He was still captain of the Devils, while balancing his many endorsements and shoe line. The Romans had surged to power couple status. Ahsha had since retired from the Devil Girls to focus on her career outside of the arena. She still did a bit of choreography for the team. Kyle was their new captain and enjoyed having her best friend back at the arena from time to time. Giving back to where she started was never a problem for Ahsha.

Once Ahsha reached her trailer, she went straight for her phone. Any free time she got went to Facetiming with her family.

“Hey baby,” Derek answered, with a huge grin on his face.

“Hey handsome. How are you,” Ahsha beamed, taking in Derek’s sweaty appearance. “Let me guess. You were in the gym?”

“Gotta keep this body right for you,” Derek replied. “You done for the day?”

“Yes. All I want to do is go back to the hotel and sleep for a week,” she groaned, relaxing on the comfy couch in the corner of her trailer.

“They working my wife to death? Well, one more week and you’re back home,” the baller stated. There was no doubt that they were missing each other.

“I miss you guys. This week is going by so slow,” Ahsha sighed. Even though she had been away from home several times, it was still hard leaving her family behind. Tears formed in the corners of her eyes when she thought about all she had missed in the past two months.

“Baby, don’t cry. We all miss you too and can’t wait to have you back,” Derek cooed. “You already know who’s missing you like crazy.”

“Yeah, I know.” That only made more tears roll down her cheeks. “I better let you get back to your workout. Call me when you make it home.”

“Now you know I’m not letting you off this phone with you crying like that. Do we need to come-“

Ahsha quickly wiped her tears. “No, no. You don’t need to come. I know you’re busy too. I need to stop being a big ol’ crybaby,” she laughed between sniffs. “I’ll talk to you later, okay?”

“Alright,” Derek hesitated, leery on letting Ahsha off the phone when she was upset.  This was the same way she used to get when they had hit a rough patch. She’d shut down, thinking she was doing Derek a favor. “I love you.”

“I love you too,” she declared, blowing a kiss that was caught by her husband on the other side of their Facetime call.

One more week seemed like an eternity.

……..

A Week Later

Derek was exhausted, though he’d never show it on the outside. Taking care of home by himself while Ahsha was away, plus dealing with his own business was taking a toll on him. Ahsha had done it on many occasions, so he figured he’d better suck it up and not complain. Sloane and Pete had no issue helping their son-in-law. Plus, his father came by to help out when he could. Derek Livingston gave his son space and time to figure out if he wanted a relationship with him.  It took a long time for Derek to even call him again and that was understandable. They were still working on their relationship but they were off to a good start. Without Mary Roman in the picture, they could actually get to know each other.

Leaving his last meeting for the day, the baller rushed to his car to head to the airport. His wife was on her way back to Los Angeles, from Atlanta after spending two months there filming a movie. The former dancer was in high demand and Derek was proud of the brand she had built for herself. Ahsha never came off as a gold digger. She never cared about how much money Derek was making or how much fame would come from being with him. None of that concerned her and Derek respected her drive to make a name for herself, outside of being his wife and Pete Davenport’s daughter.

On his way down the interstate, his Bluetooth rang over the radio. “Hey bro,” Derek answered.

“Aye man. Just calling to check up on you and the family,” Terrence replied. A year after the wedding, Terrence was traded to the Houston Rockets, who needed a few more pieces to be a championship team. Terrence was wanting a new start after the Jelena fiasco and being traded was a blessing. Sure, he hated leaving behind his best friend and other teammates, but he needed a fresh start somewhere outside the Devil’s arena. He planned to only play a few more years before retiring.

“Everything’s good. Still learning to cope but we’re better. How you been? How’s the wife and baby,” the player questioned. Derek was happy to finally have a nephew. Terrence had settled down and started a family. He never thought he’d find ‘the one’ after Jelena, since he assumed she would be the one he’d marry years ago. His wife crept into his life when he wasn’t even trying to find love. They were now married with a son. Funny how life throws you curve balls and you somehow come out on top or completely fall from your high horse. Jelena on the other hand, never returned to the Devil Girls after her recovery. Doctors told her there was a small chance that she would be able to dance again. After intense rehab, Jelena was able to walk, but dancing just wasn’t the same. She didn’t want to be anywhere near the arena after the shooting. The former Devil Girl was living in Sacramento, running her own business.

“They’re great. TJ is a handful, man. Always getting into something. Bianca had to child proof everything in the damn house,” Terrence laughed, watching his son play with his blocks. “He’s actually sitting over here being destructive now.”

“That’s not surprising at all. Tell little man and the wifey I said hello. I’m actually headed to the airport to pick up Ahsha. I’ll hit you up later. Maybe we can make a trip down there soon,” Derek suggested, taking the LAX exit.

“Sounds good. Talk to you soon, bro. Tell everyone I said hello and I miss them.”

Derek hung up with his best friend and pulled into the busy parking lot. Families hugged their loved ones goodbye or welcomed them in front of the glass double doors. He wasn’t able to get through the airport without signing a few autographs and taking pictures. Fans approaching him didn’t bother Derek much, so he had no problem showing them love in return.  

Finally reaching Gate C, he stood where Ahsha could spot him in the crowd. Not that a 6’4 basketball player didn’t stand out enough. Derek watched as everyone but his wife walked through the gate. After a few minutes, he spotted her turning in circles searching for him.

“Looking for someone,” he asked, brushing against her before wrapping his arms around her waist.

“Ahh! You scared the shit out of me. Heeeey,” Ahsha exclaimed, throwing her arms around Derek’s neck. “Did you get even finer since I’ve been gone?”

Bending down and pecking her lips, Derek led her over to baggage claim. “Hmm, I don’t know. All I know is my wife is looking good, as usual. I missed you.”

“I’ve been spending extra time in the gym. Trying to get up on your level,” she joked, flexing her arm. “I missed you too. A lot.”

“Well we have a lot of catching up to do since you’re back,” he added, kissing her again before grabbing her bags from the baggage claim belt.

“It feels good to be back. I was starting to get homesick,” Ahsha said, lacing her fingers between Derek’s. They were headed towards the exit and having a hard time maneuvering through the crowd, while trying to catch up with each other.

“Feels good to have you back, baby. Now let’s get out of this place before I lose my mind,” Derek suggested, wrapping a protective arm around her waist.

Once they were in the car, Ahsha leaned over and kissed her husband again. “You didn’t burn the house down while I was gone did you?”

Derek laughed. “What are you trying to say? Nah, everything is still intact. Don’t worry.”

The couple gazed at each other a little while longer before Derek pulled out of the parking lot and back onto the busy interstate. Their linked hands rested on top of the console as they sat in silence, both in deep thought. The past few years had been eye opening for the both of them. Just when you think you’re happy and heading in the right direction, life snatches the rug. Derek and Ahsha were living proof of that. They were happily married, moving forward in their careers until the unthinkable happened. It was a shock and a moment neither one of them would ever forget. Though, they were in a much better place now, their lives would forever be changed. During that time, they grew closer and the bond they had now was impossible to break. They were stronger.

A few more minutes ticked by until Ahsha finally broke the silence. “Can we visit him before we head home?”

Derek glanced at his wife, his brows furrowed together. “You sure? If you want to get a little rest, we can com-“

“I need to see him. Please, Derek,” she repeated, her eyes still focused on the fast moving cars outside the window.

Not pressing, Derek nodded and took the nearest exit. This was difficult each time they went and it wasn’t ever going to get easier. But somehow, they both found it helpful. It had taken a lot of time to get to this point. Derek hadn’t been since Ahsha had been in Atlanta. He couldn’t do it alone and having her there by his side made this easier.

Pulling up to the cemetery always sent both their hearts into their stomachs. Ahsha’s grip tightened around Derek’s hand. “Ready,” she whispered.

“Yeah, let’s go,” Derek replied.

Arm in arm, they walked over to the grave, the lump immediately forming in Ahsha’s throat. Seeing the tombstone reminded her that this was real life. Even when she had dreams that she had woke up from the nightmare. This was their reality.

“Hey baby, sorry mommy didn’t bring you anything this time. I’ll make sure to bring another firetruck the next time we stop by. Your daddy and I just wanted to come spend time with you. Miss you,” Ahsha spoke, tears falling down her cheeks.

Derek’s breath got caught in his throat. He told himself that he had to remain strong each time they made a visit. Mommy and Daddy’s Little Angel, Darryl Roman. Every time Derek saw that name carved into the stone, he broke down. That nightmare of a day almost seemed like yesterday to them.

Not too long after they were married, Ahsha found out she was pregnant. They were beyond excited. Like most first time parents, Derek and Ahsha were careful with everything they did once Darryl arrived. They wanted to be the perfect parents to their baby boy. On a rainy Saturday afternoon, their lives changed. It wasn’t about how perfect they tried to be or how careful they were with their bundle of joy. What happened wasn’t their fault and out of their control. Ahsha was heading to her mother’s house to drop off Darryl. The Devil Girls were having a last minute practice and she was late. Knowing she was carrying a precious package, Ahsha made sure to drive the speed limit. If she was late, so be it. Getting to her destination safely was her biggest concern. As she pulled off on a green light, another car ran a red light and t-boned Ahsha’s. Sadly, Darryl didn’t survive and Ahsha walked away with a dislocated finger. Guilt suddenly ate away at her. For months, the mother felt guilty about being alive. Darryl was only 5 months old. He barely lived his life and no one would get to watch him grow. Would he play basketball like his father? Who would he marry? Would he have grown into a big hearted person like his mother? No one would get the chance to see it and that crushed Derek and Ahsha. In that moment, Derek realized how important family was to him. Here he was not sure if he wanted children and Darryl was a gift that changed his life. He never thought he’d love a person as much as he loved his son. It was a feeling that he really couldn’t put into words. The news was shocking to him and he felt numb for a while.  He wasn’t sure how to feel. When that guilt ate at Ahsha, that’s when he knew that he had to be her biggest supporter, like she was his. Derek never left his wife’s side and always reminded her that it wasn’t her fault. Even in his weakest moments, he refused to let go of Ahsha. That tragedy was a huge challenge for them and somehow they pulled through. Not once did either one of them feel like the other was going to give up. The storm only made them stronger and even though it was still a tough pill to swallow, the couple was in a good space now.

“Hey son,” Derek muttered. “I still have that basketball net set up in the backyard. Your mother still laughs about me putting it up when you were born. Guess I thought you’d be shooting hoops straight out the womb,” he chuckled. “But…I wish you were here to test it out. I miss you like crazy. I know you’re watching over us up there.”

Ahsha wiped Derek’s tears and rested her head on his shoulder.

……….

You’re never given more than you can handle. That’s what Derek’ grandmother told him when he was going through a rough time. Whatever trials you face, they are put there for a reason. Sometimes you never find out what these reasons are. He kept repeating that advice to himself, especially on those hard days. Derek and Ahsha survived the storm and were surprised with a miracle.  A miracle that they cherished and couldn’t be more grateful for.

Ahsha took one last look at herself in the bathroom mirror before turning the light off and heading back into the Master suite. She placed a hand over her stomach as she heard loud giggles coming from the bedroom.

“What are you two doing in here,” Ahsha hummed, watching Aubree mimic her father as he watched basketball highlights on his tablet. Aubree stayed stuck under Derek. When he left for practice, she often wanted to follow.

“Watching basketball,” Aubree sang, cuddling into her father’s side. The mother shook her head and climbed into bed, leaving Aubree in the middle.

“Leave us alone, we’re catching up on these highlights. I see the Rockets got that butt spanked again, looks like Terrence will be getting a call tomorrow,” Derek laughed.

“You’re teaching her bad sportsmanship, Derek. She shouldn’t tease people when they lose,” Ahsha warned, playing with one of Aubree’s tight curls.

“I’ll make uncle T a cake to make him feel better,” the 3-year-old replied, not phased by their conversation because her attention was stuck on the highlights.

“Awww, I think he’ll like that, sweetie,” the mother answered, kissing her daughter’s cheek. “You want to watch a dance movie after you finish with those highlights?” Ahsha prayed their daughter would be a dancer, but Aubree was too much into basketball. The girl carried a miniature basketball with her everywhere she went. Aubree swore that her dolls wanted to play basketball just like daddy. She had Derek wrapped around her little finger.

“No,” came Aubree’s simple reply, causing Derek to laugh.

“She’s definitely a Roman,” he chuckled, ruffling his daughter’s hair.

“That can be a good thing or bad thing. Hopefully the baby baking in here now takes mommy’s side,” Ahsha joked.

That got Aubree’s attention. She crawled out of her father’s embrace and joined her mother, resting her tiny head on Ahsha’s stomach.

“Is the baby talking to you,” she asked sweetly, her doe eyes peeking up at Ahsha.

“Yes. They said they love you very much and can’t wait to meet you.”

Derek’s heart melted as he watched his two favorite girls bond. After Darryl, they weren’t even trying for any more children and they were blessed with Aubree. She was such a light in their darkest moment. Now they were expecting another baby and they both knew this one would also be the light of their lives.

“How did they get in there,” Aubree questioned, her frown looking just like her father’s.

Derek and Ahsha could only look at each other and laugh, while Aubree awaited her answer.

Children were definitely little angels placed on earth.

Thanks again for riding with me on this journey! That’s a wrap on the Vows series. I have some projects planned after this one. So there’s more work coming soon. I’ll update you all on that tomorrow. I hope you all enjoyed this story as much as I did writing it. Hopefully, I didn’t make anyone cry or want to beat me up. Thanks!

Here’s Aubree: 

This series has taken us through many DOWNS *side eyes you*, as well as several ups. As always your writing is nothing short of amazing sis, and I can’t wait to read more of your angst ass work haha. 

Now let’s get into this epilogue… 

You just couldn’t help yourself could you sis? It wouldn’t be a story by Bri without someone dying, getting hurt, getting ill or simply getting some bomb ass sex lmaooo. Why must you play with our hearts like this though? Please understand why I call you Jamesina/Shonda Crimes Jr. lol!  

Finding out that they lost their first child… 

That is such a heartbreaking thing for any parent to deal with, let alone our faves. The fact that this was out of both of their control makes things much harder to deal with. It’s understandable for Ahsha to feel guilty since she managed to walk away from the accident, however sometimes… things happen in life in which we cannot explain or prevent. You just have to simply leave it in the hands of God, and pray that something better comes out of it. And something better did come out of this tragic loss. 

Plus… the fact that Derek didn’t blame her for a single thing, yet merely supported her only made them stronger as a unit. 

And now look… God has given them two blessings! Aubree’s cute little self & baby Roman baking in the oven lol. 

Aubree has noooo time for Ahsha - straight daddy’s girl and I’m dead lmao. Hopefully their next baby is #TeamAhsha that way both teams will be even. Just the thought of them living happily with their kids just warms my heart. 

Once again sis, thank you for this brilliant series ❤️ On to the next one… 

Hey loves, I got a wonderful prompt idea from octaviabrittany a while back. Thanks for this idea girl! In this prompt, the Devil’s world is flipped upside down. Instead of having a three year relationship with German, Ahsha has been with Derek Roman for three years. German is a creepy guy that she met in college but he recently got a job with the Devils.

This is the prompt I had trouble finishing yesterday. Thankfully, I was able to finish it with a little inspiration from another show. ENJOY! 

The light from the sun, warmed Ahsha’s back as she laid in between the plush pillows.  Smells of maple syrup, bacon and homemade biscuits filled the air. Ahsha smiled to herself as she felt one side of the bed dip under Derek’s weight.

“Good morning,” she murmured, still basking in the night before. After three years together, Derek finally asked for her hand in marriage.

Ahsha had met him in her sophomore year in college after winning courtside seats to a Devils basketball game. After the game, she met the star player and when he asked for her number she refused. Derek Roman didn’t have the best reputation when it came to women and Ahsha wasn’t going to be another notch on his belt. Five months later, they ran into each other again at the Farmer’s Market.  Derek loved getting out and enjoying the beautiful city while also connecting with people. He got lonely in his mansion without anyone to talk to besides his chef and the occasional groupie he invited over. The second meeting between Ahsha and Derek resulted in them building a friendship before dating a whole year later. After graduating from college, she moved into an apartment and began her master’s degree in Advertisement. They took their relationship slow and it seemed to work best that way. Derek was irresistible to many but Ahsha played hard to get with him for the longest. When she finally gave in it made Derek the happiest man in the world.

“Morning beautiful,” Derek grinned, his voice still heavy with sleep. “Sleep well?”

“I sure did,” Ahsha replied, moving in to capture his lips in a tender kiss. “I’m starving.”

“I am too,” Derek whispered against her ear, his lips trailing to her shoulder where he nipped at her skin.

Closing her eyes and leaning back against his chest, she began, “About that…I was thinking we could hold off on sex until we get married.”

The mood was officially dead. Derek rested his chin on her shoulder as he tried to hold back a laugh. “Really Ahsha? I know it’s almost April 1st and all but that’s a bad joke.”

“I’m not joking babe. I want us to be strong emotionally and on a mental level before we take this big step,” she explained, turning to face him.

“Um, I think after three years we’re pretty strong on all levels,” Derek insisted, pulling at a strand of Ahsha’s hair. “We wouldn’t last a month.”

“I think we could if you really put your mind to it. Please try…for me,” she begged, sticking out her bottom lip.

“Ugh, okay. You better be glad you’re cute,” Derek answered with a slight chuckle. “Alright, we can give this a try I guess. I still don’t think it’ll last but we’ll try.”

Ahsha laid across his chest and traced his abdomen as she spoke. The large diamond on her finger glimmered in the light of the sun. “Thanks for understanding. To keep our minds off sex maybe we can do other things, like visit the museum, go to the zoo and take in some movies. There are so many other ways we can bond without having sex.”

“Like I said, we can try but I guarantee we will fail miserably,” Derek added, running his fingers through her hair. “I have practice later and maybe we can take in a movie when I’m done.”

“Sounds like a plan. Now let’s go eat,” Ahsha explained, sliding off the bed and grabbing her robe.

……………..

Straight out of college, Ahsha was hired on as the assistant director of the Devil Girls dance team. She had interned with them for two years before they decided to hire her on to help Olivia Vincent, the head director. Although Ahsha would have enjoyed dancing on the team, she wasn’t allowed to be a dancer while dating a player. Olivia rewarded Ahsha by allowing her to be the head choreographer on top of her assistant director duties.

Ahsha’s desk was full of costume ideas, future choreography plus themes and music. It was a complete mess but she found this was the only way she could function. “Whoa that thing is glittering from all the way over here. Congrats on the engagement,” Olivia beamed, entering the spacious office. “I may have to ask Chase for a bigger ring to compete with yours.”

“Ha! Thanks Liv. It’s actually a little too big for my taste but I’m getting used to it,” Ahsha replied, closing her laptop and resting her chin on her fists. “What’s up?”

“We have a new guy that just started today that Oscar wants everyone to meet. He’s downstairs in the Playground,” Olivia explained, twirling her wedding ring around her small finger.

“Yeah sure. I can take an earlier lunch I suppose.”

The two women headed towards the elevator that would take them down to the underground club. The Devil’s Playground was where all the action took place and where most of the trouble occurred. A large crowd of people were gathered in the middle of the room when Olivia and Ahsha entered the Playground.

“Oh there you two are. German, these two ladies are the master minds behind our dance team. They’re the reason the Devil Girls are known worldwide. This is our new team physical therapist, German Vega,” Oscar announced, introducing the two directors to their new fellow employee. Too bad one of them already knew him…very well.

“I’m Olivia Vincent and this is-“

“Ahsha, wow you look-I wouldn’t have even noticed you,” German expressed, his eyes widening as he took in his ex-girlfriend’s appearance. “Nice to meet you Olivia.”

“Good you two already know each other,” Olivia added, throwing an inquisitive look at her co-worker.

“Yeah, she’s an old friend,” German answered, his eyes still on Ahsha.

Ahsha knew she had to say something to break the awkwardness forming in the room. “Congrats on the new job.”

“Thanks. I’m happy I get to work with my favorite team. Such a blessing,” German replied, smiling from ear to ear. Ahsha immediately caught on to the double meaning.

“That’s good to hear. I’ll see you around.” She couldn’t get out of the room fast enough. Having her ex-boyfriend back in her life was a complete nightmare. They didn’t end on the best of terms and he had texted her a month ago saying he could possibly be interviewing with the Devils. She never told him that she was the assistant director of the Devil Girls because she knew he would try even harder to get a job with the organization. Now that he was actually inside the arena, she wanted to bash her head against the wall. German would definitely be on her tail now since he was close to her. Why did she have the worse luck?

“Hey baby,” the familiar voice called out. Her instant headache began to subside as she turned around to face her fiancé. “Where you headed off to with that frown on your face?”

“Back to my office,” she answered innocently. “I’m about to take lunch, you wanna join me?”

“I would but I have a meeting in the next hour or so. We’ll catch up later tonight,” Derek said, kissing her cheek.

………….

As Ahsha cleared her lunch from her desk, she heard a light knock at her door. “Come in.”

“Nice office.”

Recognizing the voice, she quickly turned around in her seat. “What…what are you doing in here,” she asked, feeling as if her privacy was being invaded. “Okay, I see we will have to set some boundaries. Just because we work in the same building does not mean we need to visit with each other. I would be perfectly fine if we didn’t even speak.”

“Don’t be like that Ahsh,” German pleaded, running his fingers over the trophies on her shelf. “I can’t act like we don’t have history. You’re going to act like we didn’t date for a year?”

Ahsha stood to her feet and leaned on her desk. “I don’t give a damn what kind of history we have. That history went out the window when you slept with my best friend. I have nothing to say to you German.”

“So that year in college meant nothing to you,” he pressed, now sitting in the plush chair in front of her.

Narrowing her eyes until they were almost slits, Ahsha spoke between her teeth, “No.”

German tried to hide the hurt but it was all in his eyes. “Wow. Well I beg to differ. That year was the best year of my life.”

“That’s enough, I would like for you to leave my office please.”

“You know I still love you and if you give me another chance I coul-“German stopped midsentence once Ahsha slammed her left hand on her desk. The large diamond jumped out at him like a large billboard screaming she was no longer his. She had moved on to someone else while he still wanted to fight for her. “You’re engaged.”

“Yes, and I’m very happy with him so you won’t be needing that chance with me again. Goodbye German,” she spat, shooing him away as she sat back down in her office chair. Crossing her legs, she gave German the most sinister glare she could muster up.

“Who is he,” German questioned, the hurt clearly etched on his face.

“That’s none of your business. Do I need to have security remove you from my office? That wouldn’t be a good look on your first day.”

That last warning had German standing to his feet. “I’ll see you around,” he threw at her as he turned his back to leave.

She had a feeling that wouldn’t be the last of German Vega.

……………

Since Derek had a meeting that would last into the evening, it was the perfect time to get extra work done at the office. Ahsha’s desk needed serious organizing and now was the best time to do it. Plugging her iPod into her ears, she began swaying to the sounds of Jill Scott’s Golden. Her life truly felt golden and she couldn’t complain. Perfect job, man of her dreams, good health and family. That’s all she could ask for and she had it. The lyrics and beat caused her to move her hips as she began filing away loose papers. The song took her back to cleaning up on Saturday mornings with her mother. Sloane was a huge Jill Scott fan and they would listen to her albums as they did chores and worked in the garden.

Ahsha got really into the song and began singing, not realizing how loud she was until she turned to find her fiancé standing in the doorway. A big smile spread across his face as Ahsha snatched the headphones from her ears. “How long were you standing there,” Ahsha asked, smiling shyly.

“Long enough to hear your beautiful rendition of Jill Scott,” he answered sarcastically. “The meeting ended early.”

“Oh, that’s good. Did you want to go out to eat tonight or cook something up at home?”

“Eat out,” he winked as he closed the door behind him and slowly approached his soon to be wife from behind.

“Derek,” she whined, sinking into his embrace.

“Ahsha,” he mocked, rocking them back and forth. “Everyone is gone and I couldn’t help myself after watching you and those little moves.”

“We’re supposed to wait until our wedding night,” Ahsha replied, wrapping her arms around his. “Plus, I wouldn’t dare do that in my office. Someone could walk in on us.”

“I locked the door so problem solved,” he whispered in her ear, laying a light kiss against her skin.

“Remember you promised that…” Ahsha began but her voice trailed off as Derek’s lips grazed her neck, causing the familiar quiver between her legs. Maybe they wouldn’t last until the wedding. Hell, they didn’t even have a wedding date set yet. “Okay, maybe we can start after we set the date.” As she turned in his arms, his hands traveled to her firm backside.

“Oh, but weren’t you the one saying we needed to connect on an emotional level,” he teased, squeezing her bottom.

“I mean…we still can take in a movie and do other couple things. Sex is just a perk,” Ahsha hinted, raising a brow.

A mischievous grin graved Derek’s face before he turned her back around and walked her towards her desk. She grunted loudly as he bent her over the glass surface. “Hey, I’m trying to organize this stuff,” she laughed as papers went flying to the floor. A knock at the door interrupted their little moment. “Who the hell is that? I thought you said everyone was gone.”

“Well I thought so,” Derek snapped, zipping up his pants. “Who is it?”

“German.”

“What the entire fuck,” Ahsha growled under her breath. She turned into another woman when people messed up sexy time with her man.

“Who,” Derek asked, cracking the door.

“Oh I was looking for Ahsha,” German replied, peeking between the crack of the door.

“Ahsha is busy, may I ask who you are?”  It was obvious the two men hadn’t met yet from Derek’s reaction.

“I’m German Vega, the new physical therapist for the Devils,” he said.

“Okay and I’m Derek, her fiancé. Nice to meet you,” Derek hissed, clearly getting irritated with the stranger on the other side of the door.

“Derek, I got this. Excuse me,” Ahsha cut in, pushing Derek to the side. “German I thought I told you to stay away from my office.”

“I didn’t like how we ended on bad terms earlier. I came by to apologize,” he expressed, still staring at Derek behind the door. Ahsha rolled her eyes and stepped out into the hall, closing the door behind her. “That must be your fiancé.”

“Yep and you’re not starting out on his good side right now. Look, I will not have this discussion with you again. Do not come by my office. Do not speak to me. Do not go around here acting like we’re the best of friends. If you can’t respect that then I’ll have to turn you in for harassment and I have no problem doing that,” Ahsha warned. “I’m being very nice to you and I want to keep it that way instead of getting ugly.”

“It’s hard knowing you’re in the same building when I’m still in love with you.”

“Well go work with another team. Your fault,” she snapped turning on her heel.

Once she was back in the office, she spotted Derek standing in front of the large windows. His jaw tensed as she shut the door. “Ex-boyfriend huh?”

“Yea, sadly. He just started here today.” It didn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out that Derek was bothered by the fact that German was working in the same building as his fiancé. He wouldn’t admit being annoyed by it but Ahsha could tell without him saying a word. Hell, she’d be annoyed if one of his exes became a Devil Girl. “You don’t have to worry about me running off with him. Trust me, I’m not happy that he’s working here either. Sorry I didn’t tell you earlier, I kinda forgot.”

“Naw, I’m not mad about your ex being here. I’m pissed that he interrupted what I was getting started,” Derek chuckled, changing the subject. “Why would I be worried about him when I know you’re coming home with me? He stays in his place and I won’t bust in his face. That simple,” Derek replied, pulling Ahsha into his chest.

“Here’s to hoping you don’t have to bust his face. I told him to lay off and that I’m happy with someone else.”

“Mmmm, good. Now maybe we can pick up where we left off when you get home,” Derek insisted, capturing her lips in soul luring kiss. Deepening the kiss, Ahsha stood on her tip toes and wrapped her arms around her love’s neck. Nope, they wouldn’t make it to their wedding day.

……………

The fireplace was lit, the bottles were popped and Ahsha and Derek were enjoying each other’s company in the mansion’s den. After a long day at work, they both needed a moment of relaxation. As Derek massaged Ahsha’s tired feet, she explained how she met German and why they didn’t last. Although Derek told her it didn’t matter because he was in the past, she insisted that she tell him anyway.

“We met at this party in college my freshman year and it went from there. I thought he was all that and more until he slept with my best friend. He was dating us both at the same damn time and it went right under my nose. I dumped him and didn’t see him…until now. It sucks that we’re working for the same organization,” she explained, frowning in disgust. “But I don’t want you to think that him being around means I’ll let him back in. I love you and German can’t change that.”

“I know,” he added, placing her foot back on the floor and laying down next to her. “And I love you.” Ahsha’s sweet smile only warmed his heart even more. “Which is why I’m going to honor your wishes about this no sex thing. If that’s what you want to do then we’ll do it.”

“Awww babe, thanks for that. I know it’ll be rough for both of us but I really want to give it a try. And it’s okay if we don’t make it until then, at least we can say we tried.”

“So let’s say we accidently didn’t try tonight,” Derek implored, leaning into her lips.

“Derrreek,” she sighed.

“Alight, alright, alright,” he laughed. “I’ll go get a board game.”

…………

4 months later

Hand rested upon her growing belly, Ahsha flipped through her recent book of choreography. The Devil Girls were going to have a busy few months with many appearances and traveling. Ahsha had her work cut out for her with wedding planning, a baby on the way and Devil Girl events. Being pregnant wasn’t her plan but like she thought, it was difficult to wait out on sex. They lasted an entire week before Ahsha was the first to break. One day she literally attacked Derek in the shower and two months later she found out she was pregnant.

“Ahsha,” came a voice from outside her door.

“Come in,” she replied, already knowing who it was. “What do you want?”

“Just wanted to drop these off to congratulate you on the Devil Girl’s winning that award the other day. I’m sure all the credit goes to you and your choreography,” German said, putting the bouquet of flowers on Ahsha’s desk.

“Thanks but I can’t accept these from you,” she replied, pushing the vase back in his direction. “I’m not trying to be rude. I-me accepting these from you will just have you thinking there’s something left of us. I appreciate your congratulations though.”

“Ahsha…”

“Please leave,” Ahsha pleaded, running her hand over her stomach. “I can’t be under any extra stress right now.” German’s eyes widened as they fell to the small bump hidden behind a large, flowy shirt.

“You’re pregnant,” he whispered in horror, his hands falling to his side.

“Yes, I’m just starting to show so it’s hard to hide now.”

“Is there a problem here,” Derek asked, stepping into the office with his glare on German. “Hey baby.”

“Hey,” Ahsha muttered, leaning back into Derek’s embrace as he put a protective hand over her stomach. “I think you should leave German.”

With the happy couple standing before him, German picked up the vase of flowers and walked out of his ex-girlfriend’s office. Hot tears began to roll down his cheeks as the feeling of regret panged in his chest. He had lost her for good.

Ahsha was living her life like it was golden, and it wasn’t him making it shine.

Drabble #4. Episode 6. Trust 

Summary: This takes place in episode 6, after the Devil Girls performance. Obviously we don’t know how the next episode plays out but here’s my version of a certain event. Enjoy.

Ahsha could barely concentrate on anything that day. She woke up feeling odd. It was a feeling that she couldn’t shake. Two days earlier, German dumped her when she admitted to sleeping with Derek. Although the breakup closed the door on the relationship, Ahsha didn’t feel right. Her nerves were all over the place, making her ill. Derek allowed her to stay at the mansion since she had nowhere else to go. To Ahsha’s surprise, Derek was giving her the cold shoulder. She thought he would be ecstatic about her finally being free of German. But he wasn’t and showed little affection. His behavior was weird and didn’t match the same emotion he showed her during their “goodbye”.

As they walked through the foyer, Derek suddenly stopped in his tracks. “Why do you do this,” he asked, resting his hand on the round table that sat in the middle of the marble floor. His intense gaze landed on the picture they took for their magazine spread. Those times seemed simple compared to the moment they were in now.

“Do what,” she asked, still standing by the front door. Her heart was thumping against her chest because she knew this conversation would be tense. The bite in Derek’s words created a chill in the air.

“Only run to me when it’s convenient. German breaks up with you, then you run to me. When are you going to come to me because you want to,” Derek explained with his back to her. She didn’t have to even see his face to know he was upset.

Ahsha had no idea how to answer that question due to it never crossing her mind. How could Derek accuse her of not choosing him when she told him she wanted him days ago? How many ways could one tell a person, “I want you”? But Ahsha didn’t get it. Her mind couldn’t wrap around what Derek was conveying. Her actions and words didn’t match and that was a problem.

“No answer, huh? Unbelievable,” Derek scoffed, leaving Ahsha with her mouth open.

“What makes you think I don’t want you? I told you-“

The baller’s head snapped back around as fast as a whip. “That’s exactly what I’m talking about, Ahsha! You telling me is completely different from you showing me. When things get rough, will you just run back to German again,” he exclaimed, his voice raising with each word. “I’m your second option when he fucks up!”

That hit Ahsha like a ton of bricks. The man who still held every bit of her heart was accusing her of not loving him. Ahsha’s blood literally boiled as Derek’s words registered. How dare he! “That’s what you think? After I risked my career to be with you? I put everything on the line because I wanted you. Even after the coke incident, I chose you Derek! I’ve always chosen you-“

Derek’s anger intensified the more Ahsha spoke. Was she seriously not hearing him? “If I was such a risk then why the fuck were you with me then? Why do you keep playing this game if I’m a risk? Answer me that. I know I screwed up but I’m trying to fix that! I’m fighting to get back what we had and you won’t let me. It’s like you’re waiting on me to mess up again,” he yelled, pain pouring out of his voice.

“Because I love you!” Ahsha’s voice echoed off the walls of the foyer.

“You love me but German protected you, right? That’s what you’re going to say next. You’re going to walk out that door and run back to him like you always do. Am I right,” Derek shot back. He was laying it on her thick. Derek had grown tired of the constant rollercoaster ride. Being deeply in love with someone and feeling like you were never good enough was painful. German could commit murder and Ahsha would still feel safer with him. At least that’s what it seemed like to Derek.

Tears began to spring from Ahsha’s eyes. Any other time Derek would kiss them away but this time he couldn’t. He had to let her know how he truly felt, even if it hurt her feelings. “It’s not that simple,” Ahsha muttered, wiping at her eyes.

Instantly, he heard the fear and sadness in her tone. Ahsha sank down in one of the chairs sitting near the kitchen. Derek had finally hit a nerve and made her realize how problematic her behavior was.

“Baby, I’m trying here. I can’t keep putting my heart out there and not getting yours in return,” he spoke, his voice still full of so much frustration.

Ahsha’s life had become a complete mess in a matter of a few months. Everything happening didn’t allow her to step back and realize how her actions were hurting people. The fact that Derek thought she didn’t want him broke her heart into pieces. The love she had for Derek couldn’t be matched with anyone else. What they had was special and she wouldn’t trade it for the world. Though these feelings were inside her heart, Derek would never know them if she didn’t open up to him.

Now Derek was standing directly in front of her. His angry expression had finally softened. “You have to stop running. Sooner or later you have to face your issues…even if it hurts,” he said softly. Grabbing her hands, he continued, “Look, I know I hurt you and it’s hard to trust me. I would never intentionally hurt you or let someone else do it. Once you realize that I can protect you and let me be there for you, then we can move forward.”

The tears were streaming down her cheeks at this point. “I’m sorry.”

“You’ve gotta let me be there for you,” Derek replied, staring deeply into her eyes.

Ahsha looked down at her hands and took a deep breath before speaking, “Derek…I love you. It wasn’t my intention to drag you along and play with your heart. I’m truly sorry for that. I didn’t realize that I made you feel that way and I hate it. Things have been so crazy and I feel like I’m drowning,” she cried, a lump forming in her throat. Ahsha wanted to tell Derek about German and how he stalked them at the park. She wanted to tell him everything. “I’m really scared, Derek. I feel like something bad is about to happen and it’s all my fault.”

Derek thought back to their moment in the bedroom days ago. Their goodbye. Ahsha had told him she wanted him but had to be with German. That had been bugging him for days. “What’s going on, Ahsha?”

“It’s German…he’s…he’s done something horrible. I don’t want you to think I’m running to you because I’m afraid of him. The entire time I was with him I just wanted you,” Ahsha sobbed. Right then and there she broke. The hardened exterior she had built up around herself crumbled. “I needed you! Every day I tried to fight it.”

He absolutely hated to see her in this state, especially when he had no idea what was wrong. “Shhh, I’m here,” he cooed, pulling her into his chest. “I got you. What did German do?” Derek couldn’t stop thinking of what she said that day and the state she was in now.

Their goodbyes days before were actually hellos. Hellos to a new stage of their love. Their relationship had moved to another level and their bond was about to be tested in more ways than they knew.

Ahsha drew in another deep breath. “He killed Olivia,” she whispered, a deep pang forming in her chest. Saying those words out loud made them that much more painful.

Derek’s eyes widened but he wasn’t able to respond. The couple’s moment was interrupted by a loud crash on the upper level of the mansion. Derek jumped to his feet.

Bonds were about to be tested.

Hey my lovely Dersha fam! It’s 1:40 AM over here on the west coast, season 4 was VERY disappointing and I need some good ol Dersha moments in my life and I know you could use some too so here’s the chapter! Enjoy and read in your own time, there’s no rush. Please don’t forget to like, comment, and reblog! Happy reading! 

The night was still young, and many events had come and gone. Derek and Ahsha’s youngest was over a friend’s house enjoying being a child while her sister Faith was out on the town enjoying her life as a teen. Her parents just happened to be under the same roof. Derek kept himself occupied downstairs while Ahsha remained upstairs freshening up in the bedroom. Ahsha stood still in the shower letting the hot water stream down her naked, thick, chocolate frame. Once the water became too hot for her to stand, she stepped out. Grabbing her towel from the railing, she stepped down to wrap it around her body whilst grabbing another to securely wrap around her hair. Once her hair was secure, she made her way out of the bathroom and into the bedroom to change. The door was cracked open and she could hear Derek’s baritone voice down the steps as she moved around the room. He was trying his best to whisper to whoever he was talking to, but he surely didn’t succeed with that because his “ex-wife” could hear every word. It wasn’t her place to care who he was talking to, but she did. Against her better judgement she started walking down the stairs.

“Yeah she’s at a party with friends and Ava is at a sleepover. Ahsha? No, she’s not here, it’s just me right now. She’s supposed to stop by, so we can handle some…work things” Derek blatantly fabricated. Ahsha had made it to the bottom of the staircase after hearing him say that. If he’s lying like that, it must be that bitch. He was too busy lying through his teeth he barely noticed her presence in the living room. It wasn’t until after he turned his head that he saw her, in nothing but a towel. Immediately she drew him in and he lost his focus, completing forgetting who he was talking to.

“Babe? Derek? Are you still here? DEREK!” Nicole called out to him. This had him back at attention.

“What you say babe?”

“I was saying that the business trip will last for two weeks”

“Two weeks? Isn’t that too long though?” He asked, while still gawking at Ahsha. She returned his gaze, sliding her tongue across her moist lips.

“Most definitely but I can’t get out of it so, I mean, I gotta roll with it for now”

“Aight, I understand. Well I guess I’m gonna see you once you touch down then?”

“Of course, I know it’s late notice baby, but I promise I’ll make it up to you” She pleaded.

“Business is business. I get it. Speaking of business, I gotta cater to some of my own” He settled, trying to get her off the phone now.

“Ok. I have to finish packing anyway. I’ll call you when I land okay?”

“Ok. Safe travels”

“Thanks, handsome. I’m gonna miss you though”

“Miss you too. I really gotta go babe” He told her.

“Ok, talk to you later” He hit the dial tone before giving himself time to respond back. He threw his phone on the table turning his attention to a very naked Ahsha.

“How long were you standing there?”

“Long enough” She leaned off the wall and moved towards the couch to sit, with her arms folded across her chest.

“You ever wear clothes?”

“Not around you” She snickered. He darted his eyes back at her.

“Oh, come on, I’m just playin damn. Relax! What’s got you all worked up?”

“Seriously Ahsha? After what we just did, you’re really asking me that right now?”

“Oh that? Please Derek we could do a lot worse! It’s not a big deal. Shit happens” She shrugged unbothered.

“It is when I have a girl”

“Like you were thinking about your “girl” hours ago when you were on top of me” Reading him for filth seeing through all the bullshit he was trying to feed her. He sighed under his breath.

“Does she know?”

“No”

“Why not?”

“Because it was a mistake and I’m not going to blow up my world on a whim”

“A mistake?” She scoffed with revulsion.

“Yes, a drunken mistake and it’s never happening again”

“Oh word?” She scrutinized.

“Yup” He acknowledged quickly. She peered at him up and down then swiftly got up from the couch. She slowly approached him, with purpose in every stride she made.

“What are you doing?’

“Everything you want me to do”

She straddled his lap, wrapping both legs tightly on both sides of his waist. She reached for his hand and he flinched away trying to get her off him, but his efforts prevailed. She scoped his hand again pressing her body firmly on his causing his head to lean back against the foot of the sofa, making sure it was secured under her naked ass from her breasts placing the other beneath the towel. She trickled his fingers down her navel before inserting two of his clean fingers inside of her wet peach. She wanted him to feel what she was giving.

“Aaah they still fit perfectly D” She moaned low in his ear. She was still working his fingers through her walls, up, down, and around picking up the pace. Derek was stunned by what she was pulling but she definitely had his undivided attention. He was turned on in the worst way right now. He wrapped his whole arm around her waist, gripping her ass while she kept his fingers knee deep in her pussy. He placed his free hand on top of hers guiding his fingers in and out of her, switching the tempo. She grinded against him throwing her head back using his shoulders for support. He lifted her up higher while the two fingers disappeared in and out of her, over and over.

“Touch me Derek” His name left the tip of her tongue as she begged for more. He followed her request, planting his prints all over, pulling her in, sucking mercilessly on her neck.

“Ooooh, yes, just like that. Fuck I’m cumming”

“Let it go baby” & she did just that, crying out in ecstasy as her juices spilled into his fingers. After coming down from her sexual high, she grabbed those same two fingers dragging them across her lips, sucking them dry until there was none left. At that instant, she pulled him near and tenderly kissed his lips, ensuring he got to taste her. She parted his lips with her tongue and eased it in his mouth and he returned the favor. Mouth’s still meshed together, he lifted her off the sofa into his arms, her towel dropping to the floor. She encircled her legs around him, her arms around his neck with lips still intact. Their kiss only got nastier as Derek carried her up the staircase and into his bedroom. Round two was in effect and neither one of them were prepared for the chaos that awaited them.

———–

While her parents were back home getting cozy with one another, Faith was doing her best to not get caught up in the party crowd and stay to herself, avoiding trouble. While trying to stay out of trouble, she also was on the hunt for her best-friend.

Where the hell did you go Alicia? She mumbled to herself as she maneuvered through the crowd.

“Looking for someone beautiful?” A familiar voice sounded behind her back. She turned to face them.

“I am actually, and I doubt you’ll be able to help me find them”

“Let me be the judge of that. Your boyfriend right? Welp that’s an easy find cuz the nigga ain’t here!” He laughed to himself.

“Bye Carter” Faith began to walk away, unamused but he caught her arm.

“Hold up, hold up girl! Come on, I was just playin”

“I know you were. That’s the problem, you’re always joking around. You can never be serious about anything”

“That’s not true, I could be serious about you, but you’re making it hard for an brotha”

“Hard? If you think this is hard, then you really have been living under a rock longer than I thought” She teased him before trying to walk away and he trapped her arm again.

“Wait, wait. Okay, all jokes aside, I’m sorry. Listen you said you were looking for someone, maybe I can help”

“Unless you’ve seen my light skinned wild bestie, I’d think not” She groaned putting her manicured nails on her hips.

“You talking about Alicia?”

‘Yeah, What, you’ve seen her around tonight?”

“Not recently. But when I did see her, she was headed upstairs with some dude” He explained.

“Morris” Faith muttered to herself.

“What?”

“Morris, that’s her boyfriend. Trey’s best-friend also”

“Oh okay, I see. Speaking of best-friend’s and boyfriend’s, where’s your better half?”

Faith didn’t answer and snatched the drink out of his hand and downed it.

“You know where I can get more of this?” And with that, they both walked outside. Meanwhile back upstairs, her two besties were going at it, but not in the way Faith expected them to.

“Soooooo you lied to me?”

“Don’t be so dramatic. I didn’t lie, I was just waiting for the right time to tell you”

“BULLSHIT!” Morris spat.

“Come on baby it wasn’t like that” Trying to calm him. He shoved her away.

“No no no baby my ass! Don’t touch me, foreal. So, you mean to tell me that, we actually aren’t going to college together next year?”

“No, were not”

“So, if we’re not going together, then where are you going now?” He grilled her.

“That’s the other thing I needed to tell you…..I’m not going to college at all, not with you, not with Faith, not with anyone”

“What are you not telling me Alicia?”

She put her face in her hands, handing her head low in shame.

“I never applied anywhere”

“Are you serious right now?! So not only did you lie about us going together, but you also lied about even applying anywhere! What the fuck Alicia!!”

“I’m sorry! Please, you just don’t understand”

“You’re right I don’t!” He roared growing angrier by the minute.

“I didn’t want to lie to you!”

“BUT YOU DID!!!!”

“I know! Okay! And I’m sorry! I’m just not sure what I want to do yet. I don’t know if I even want to go to college”

“Why didn’t you just tell me?”

“I was afraid of what you might say, and I…. didn’t want to disappoint you”

“& how’s that working for you?” He looked at her in dismay and regret written all over his face then quickly turned away. She walked up to him placing a hand on his back, with tear filled eyes. He backed away and she stretched her arm out for his hand.

“I’m so, so, so, so, sorry baby” Her voice cracking. She squeezed his hand tightly and moved to turn him around and wrapped her arms around his neck, holding him. She kissed his cheek repeatedly and a tear fell from her eye. He took ahold of both of her hands and gazed in her eyes.

“I love you Alicia” He declared.

“I love you too” Massaging his cheek.

“But you still lied to me and now I don’t know if I’ll be able to trust you after this”

“Morris I..”

“I just need some time to think”

“Just to think right. You’re coming back. You and I are forever. We’re going to be okay right?” She smiled tearfully.

“Right?”

“I gotta go. I need some air”

“Morris wait” He kissed her knuckles then quickly walked out of the room.

“Morris don’t walk away! Morris! MORRIS!” She shouted from the door, but he was long gone. Alicia felt her heart breaking into a million pieces. Her legs buckled and she fell to her knees. She gripped the bed for balance and began to sob loudly. She had made the biggest mistake of her life and was about to lose the boy she loved as a result. She sat on the edge of the bed and cried her pain away until she ran out of tears to cry.

Most of the party had moved outside in the backyard and Faith and Carter just happened to have followed the crowd this time. They had been conversing with each other for over an hour now, laughing and drinking, drinking and laughing mixed with a speck of flirtation.

“Okay you were totally right, dark and dark is better than dark with the light”

“Told you! My dad taught me everything I know about alcohol”

“Why is that?” She pumped him for information while sipping on her cup.

“He used to be a bartender, high clientele back when we were in Chicago”

“And your mom?”

“Pediatrician. Her and my dad have been together way before I was even thought of” He told her proudly.

“Must be nice”

“It is I guess. What about your parents? Wasn’t your mom a dancer?”

“Yeah she was. She used to dance for the Los Angeles Devil Girls when my dad played for the Devils. That’s how they met”

“Some love and basketball kind of shit then” He joked.

“Yeah, yeah I guess you can say that” They both cackled. From a distance, anyone could see she was having a good time with a handsome stranger. She kept laughing while Carter watched on in awe of her beauty.

“What?” She giggled.

“Nothing…. I just…you’re so beautiful when you laugh”    

“Carter” She blushed.

“No, I’m serious. I hope your boyfriend tells you that cuz it’s true”

“He does but, maybe not as often as he should” She admitted looking away.

“He’s a fool then” She peered up at him, smiling hard, placing a strand of her hair behind her ear dipping her mouth back into her red cup.

“Oh well what do we have here” Trey’s tone came out of nowhere, his shadow coming towards them.

“I see you wasted no time homeboy”

“We were just talking Trey” Faith interrupted.

“Yeah man, were just talking. Waiting on you to get here”

“I see. Well I’m here now so you can fall all the way back from my girl now”

“Just keeping her warm for ya” Carter winked, tantalizing him.

“Okay guys that’s enough” Faith did her best to dilute the situation from getting any worse.

“You right Faith, I got what I came here for. I’m gonna leave you two lovebirds to work this out. This has nothing to do with me. Faith, I’ll see you at school”

“Cool. Thanks for the drink”

“Anytime” He gaped at her once more before finally making his exit. Trey was fuming on the inside.

“Now I see what you like to do while I’m not around!”

“You know you gotta a lot of nerve busting up in here like you run shit when I haven’t heard from you all day! What’s your problem?”

“I came here to explain that to you, but your attention is clearly elsewhere”

“Don’t you dare! I did nothing wrong, we were just talking!” Faith hollered throwing her drink in the opposite direction.

“Where were you?”

“Doesn’t matter now does it?”

“See now you’re being an asshole”

“& you’re acting like an hoe so I guess were even” He retorted.

Her hand collided across his face hard.

“Fuck you Trey! Alright, Fuck…YOU!” She stormed off. He touched his red cheek, trying to put his jaw back into place.

Back upstairs, Alicia had managed to stop crying but she made no attempts in leaving the room. She used her phone as a mirror to fix her makeup. A light sounded on the bedroom door.

“It’s open”

“Oh, hey Licia, I didn’t know you and Morris were in here. My bad, I’ll come back later when ya’ll finish your business” He chuckled softly.

“Nothing to finish. He left” She said sadly.

“Left? What do you mean he left?”

“We had a fight, and he walked out on me. So I’m pretty sure he left the party”

“You good?” Cameron quizzed. Before he knew it, the tears started flowing again.

“Hey, hey, what’s wrong?” Cameron closed and locked the door behind him before sitting beside her.

“Everything Cam, I fucked up”

“Fucked up how? What happened?” He pried cradling her in his arms whilst soothing her back.

“I lied to him about applying for colleges”

“Why?”

“Because I wasn’t sure if I wanted to go or not and I was afraid that if I didn’t apply anywhere he would leave me” She answered, tears streaming down her cheeks. She cried harder.

“Maybe it’s a good thing” She lifted her head up.

“Good thing? How could this possibly be a good thing?”

“There’s a reason why you lied and it’s not because you didn’t want to lose him. It’s because you and I both know that you’re denying yourself of what you really want”

“And what’s that?” She suspected.

“You and me. Alicia, it’s always been you and me” Cameron caressed her cheek pulling in to kiss her but she moved her head away and stood on her feet.

“Cameron…No”

“Come on Alicia, we know why you are with this clown. I wasn’t ready for us before but I am now”

“You’ve got to be fucking kidding me. You know if this is your idea of a joke to comfort me, I’m not impressed”

“I’m serious” Cameron stood in front of her lifting her chin. She didn’t look at him.

“Listen to me, I know I screwed us up before but I swear to you that I’ve changed this time”

“Cameron, that was the 9th grade. We’ve been over for a while now. Our time has passed, I love Morris I’m sorry”

“No you don’t! You’re just using him to make me jealous! You love me I know you do, you don’t have to worry no more babe, I’m here right now” He forcefully kissed her lips and she bit down hard on his lips.

“Are you insane? This is why we didn’t work out. Everything I do doesn’t have to do with you!”

He tried kissing her again.

“Stop Cameron! I told you it’s over! I love Morris, okay it’s always going to be Morris” She made herself clear preparing to leave the room but he wasn’t taking no for an answer. He flipped her back around.

“You’re mine Alicia. You hear me? Mine!!” He shoved his tongue down her mouth and she was hitting him left and right struggling to get away. He picked her up from her feet and threw her on the bed, scooting her down, trying to get to her jeans.

“I said stop!!” She fought him. She punched his chest and he slapped her across the face, finally pinning her arms behind her back.

“Hey guys have you seen Alicia? I’m trying to get out of here”

Faith says outside of the hallway to some of her classmates.

“Last time we saw her she was with Morris in one of the bedrooms”

“Which one?”

“Across the hall by the bathroom” They walked away.

“Thank you” She walked over to the room trying to open the door noticing it’s been locked. She knocked.

“Alicia? Are you in there?”

She heard her and started screaming at the top of her lungs.

“Faith!!! Help me please! HELP!!” She kept screaming but then Cameron silenced her mouth with his hand.

“Shut the fuck up bitch!” Removing his jeans and ripping her shirt open.

“Alicia! Oh God!” She heard muffled screams and instantly panicked. In the midst of panicking she came across Morris.

“Damn Faith you- “

“Alicia is in trouble I need your help!”

“Slow down Faith what are you talking about?”

“She’s in that room, and I don’t think she’s alone” He peeped over his shoulder going towards the door shaking the knob.

“It’s locked” He turned towards Faith.

Cameron was kissing all over her body, her arms still pinned.

“Cameron please don’t do this” She cried hysterically.

“If I can’t have you, nobody will” He revealed, pulling out his penis from the peak of his boxers removing her panties roughly. Before he could get them completely off, there was a loud bang on the door and Morris busted it down.

“GET THE FUCK AWAY FROM HER!” He charged at Cameron, grabbing his shirt and docking him in the face. They wrestled on the ground while Faith ran in to get Alicia out safely.

“Alicia!”

“Faith, get me out of here!” Her cheeks had been tear-stained. She helped her get dressed and collected her out the room but she didn’t want to go just yet.

“I’m not leaving without Morris!” She ran back into the room and found Morris on top of Cameron, beating him into a bloody pulp.

“Baby stop you’re gonna kill him!” Morris kept delivering blows to his face back and forth but Alicia managed to get him off.

“Morris STOP! PLEASE!! He’s not worth it come on!”

“Your football career is over! You’re spending the rest of your life in jail for this, I promise you that! STAY THE FUCK AWAY FROM HER!!” They collected themselves leaving him in the room, beaten and swollen. Faith, Morris and Alicia sped down the hallway and ran into Trey and then Carter.

“Yo what the hell happened up there?”

“I can’t explain it right now, we just need to get the hell out of here!” Faith replied.

“For once, I agree with your choices” Carter chimed in.

“Well if we bouncing then let’s get to it!” The group moved towards the front door and a girl screamed,

“OH MY GOD!!!!!!”

“What the hell was that?” Carter thought to himself leading the group out the door. Soon as he opened it, a body fell from the ground up, and blood splattered on his face.

“Aaaaaaaaaaaagh!!!!” Faith screamed in horror. Alicia, Morris and Trey gasped while Carter stood still, completely shook.

2:00 AM

Ahsha and Derek were in his bed, in each other’s arms, sound asleep. Derek shifted in his stance and he and his phone vibrating on the table.

“Who the fuck is calling me at this hour?”

He reached over Ahsha to retrieve his phone and put the receiver to his ear.

“Hello”

“Is this Derek Roman?”

“Yes, this is he. Who is this?”

“This is a detective from LAPD. We have your daughter Faith Roman and her friends here in custody. They attended a house party tonight. I need you and your wife to come down to the station”

“Sir I don’t understand, did something happen? Why do you have my daughter in your custody?”  He posed a question.

“It’s best if you and Mrs. Roman came down. We’ll explain everything once you’re here”

“Derek what’s going on?”

“We have to go” He reacted to her. They both hopped out of the bed, quickly dressed and drove silently to the police station.

They walked in, together searching for their daughter, and they walked up to the reception desk.

“Excuse me, were looking for our daughter”

“Name please”

“Faith Renee Angel Roman”

The lady examined her name in the database.

“She’s still in the back with the detectives. She should be out soon”

“Thank you ma’am” Derek spoke up for Ahsha after realizing she was shaking. He intertwined her fingers with his.

“Hey, she’s gonna be fine, don’t worry” She leaned into him and he kissed her forehead. Minutes later, they spotted Faith walking out coming their direction.

As she got closer, they saw she was crying and in a state of shock. She walked up to them slowly. Ahsha met her halfway and embraced her.

“Oh sweetheart we are so glad you’re okay”

“Mom..dad…something happened tonight”

“What do you mean cupcake, tell us what happened”

“There’s been an accident” Her voice quivered.

“Accident? What kind of accident?”

All clips belong to VH1,Viacom and Hit the Floor’s creator, James LaRosa. The song belongs to Atlantic Records