Janice pushed the crib back against the wall and hung "NOVA" over up in pink letters. She unwrapped the changing table mattress and placed it on the empty space of the table. Then went over to the closet, hanging up onesies, nightgowns, coats and sweaters.
The sun creeped through the window and Janice checked the time, 5:30am. Her insomnia seemed to run the show the last two weeks but she invested the time into putting Nova's room together, alone. Her small belly seemed bigger in her senior shirt than ever before or it just could've been she had on her glasses instead of her contacts and it was magnified.
She heard the front door open, the smell of weed down the hallway and Damien's voice echo through the house.
"Stupid ass." She whispered to herself.
"Ayo Jay." He shouted.
Janice rolled her eyes, "Why'd you come home?"
"Because it's my house too." He rolled his eyes back, "You need to stop this smart ass attitude."
"It's your house too but you haven't been here in almost three weeks, you're not helping around the house and you've only slept here once." She pulled out another bag of baby clothes and hangers, "Get the fuck out Damien. I'm tired of the bullshit now." She snapped.
He jacked Janice up by her shirt and pinned her up against the wall, "I'm tired of your bullshit too, bitch."
"But remember this bitch is carrying your baby so think twice before you lay a finger on me." Janice yanked Damien loose from her shirt, "Don't act tough because you got a tiny high going with your daughter in the next room, asleep. You been gone for two weeks, you should've stayed where you were."
"Oh why? So you have another nigga in here taking care of my children?" He semi yelled.
She rolled her eyes and laughed, "You haven't been taking care of anyone but yourself. We've just been playing HOUSE honestly, nothing is serious to you."
Janice put the outfits back in the bag and collected the empty ones laying around the room and pushed Damien out her way.
"Whose dick did you have to suck for the money to get all this baby shit?" He snapped.
"Chase's dick. Anymore questions?" Janice laughed.
He rolled his eyes and followed behind her, "Who the hell is Chase and why is he buying my daughter all this shit?"
Naomi emerged from her bedroom rubbing her eyes and carrying her stuffed bunny in her arms, "Mommy, what time is it?"
Damien picked Naomi up and kissed her forehead as she laid her head on his shoulder, "How's daddy's baby doing?"
"Put her down." Janice whispered, "Stop giving my child false hopes already."
"Don't tell me what to do Janice. You might be able to get away with that with your boy Chase but not me." He held Naomi and she raised her head off his shoulder.
"Daddy, Chase isn't a boy." Naomi mumbled.
Damien frozen, clinching his jaw and locking his eyes back on Janice, "You fucking bitches around our daughter?"
"Why must you assume that I'm having sex with her?" She groaned.
"Because that's what hoes do and you're a hoe so you get the picture from there man." He walked into the master bedroom, and made a weak attempt to slam the door on Janice, only leading to her kicking it and swinging it back on him.
"Don't ever try to slam doors on me in MY house fuckboy." Janice pushed his head and he crashed into the dresser.
Damien shut and locked the door behind Janice after regaining his balance. He mushed her face, sending her into the closed door and with no thought put into his actions, his rage boiling over the top, Damien raised his open hand, heavily whipping across her face like a bullwhip to someone's back. The sting of skin to skin shaking the walls and vibrations of pain shooting through his palm to his fingers.
Janice held her face with wet eyes and Damien's handprint glowing on her face.
"What the hell is wrong with you?" Janice forced Damien into the mirror hanging on the closet door, swinging her fists and legs. as it shattered on the floor.
Naomi banged on the bedroom door, "MOMMY!" She screamed.
Damien pushed Janice into the bed post, she bounced back with her fist sticking to his face this time. He hit the tall dresser and the TV fell off to the side, cracking. But the fight continued along with Naomi screaming.
BANG! BANG! BANG! "POLICE, OPEN UP!"
Naomi ran to the front door, in tears, unlocked it and the police rushed in.
"HANDS UP!" The officer turned to Naomi, "It's only a little girl."
"My mommy and daddy are fighting." Naomi ran back to the bedroom door with officers following behind her.
They listened to the screams and crying coming from behind the door, "Take the little girl outside." He said to his fellow officers. He stepped back and proceeded to kick down the bedroom door, cracking it open to Janice laying across the floor in tears and Damien in the corner, wiping the blood from the corner of his mouth.
"Handcuffs on both of them, now. Different cars and put the little girl in my car."
Doing as told, Janice was cuffed and picked up off the floor followed by Damien being pushed out.
Put in separate cars from one another, the entire neighborhood stood on sidewalks and balconies, watching it all unwind.
"Do we not get medical attention first over here? My face is bleeding and I'm pregnant." Janice snapped at the officers.
"How far along are you ma'am?" The female officer holding Janice rolled her eyes.
"That shouldn't matter. My face is bleeding. I have opened wounds, I need medical attention. So go get me some!" She yelled.
The officer waved over a paramedic and the male jogged over.
"She's needs medical care, claiming to be pregnant too." She rolled her eyes.
The paramedic read the officer's name tag, "Officer Bullock, I'm pretty sure nobody would just claim that they're pregnant just to get medical attention."
Officer Bullock laughed, "In this career, these young girls that get in to fights with their little thugged out boyfriends, will lie to you about anything just to get some sympathy from you and most the time it's about being pregnant."
Janice eyed Officer Bullock, "That's a nasty attitude to have. You're suppose to be a sense of security for these people, not judging them. And the last thing I would ever do is lie about being pregnant by someone who just hit me. So ma'am, officer, whatever, assumption will get you nowhere. Every BLACK female, if that's what you truly wanted to say, isn't the same. Some of us have great aspirations for yourself."
The officer laughed and jiggled away, "Aspirations of laying on your back?"
"Aspirations of being the nurse that you'll be depending on when you get shot one of these days." Janice yelled across the parking lot.
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*Next Day: Court*
Janice explained the fight to the judge as he chewed his bottom lip in boredom, Naomi sat next to a social worker in the back of the room and Damien directly behind the defendants stand.
"So ma'am, what you're telling me is this was all just self defense, correct? And despite you being pregnant by him, he still remained to hit you?" Judge Shorter asked.
Janice swallowed the heavy lump in her throat "Yes, your honor."
"I see so many young girls, tricked out and strung out on drugs that lie in these good men. I honestly don't believe a word you've said. That black eye could've been self inflicted so you'd have this case, your so called baby bump may just be you getting fat. I'm ruling that you let this man see his daughter and allow him into her life without you lying on him like this. She's going to need a father so she doesn't end up like you, ma'am. Case closed and so is the next one against him." his gavel sound and pierced Janice's ears in shock.
What has my life come to.
The lump Janice previously swallowed, choked her full of tears.