Chereads / THE SIMP / Chapter 70 - CHAPTER 70: NOW

Chapter 70 - CHAPTER 70: NOW

"Come, let's go inside," Aaliyah whispered in my ear during the hug, making us create some distance between each other and enter her apartment.

Right inside, I went straight to the couch, helping myself to the juice left and some bread they were having for breakfast. Elvis always ate a heavy breakfast. That's one thing I always knew.

"Did you mean it?" Aaliyah questioned, after emptying the table that was full of empty cups and plates.

"Mmmh?" I questioned, wanting her to really dig deeper into what she was trying to communicate.

"Did you mean it? What you said to Elvis earlier about me?" she asked, and I sensed some nervousness in her voice. She was directly questioning me, and I was honestly feeling nervous. I scratched my hair a little bit, and then looked at her, her eyes still on me.

"Yeah, I—" I drank the juice to dilute the nervousness and then started again, "I did not want to tell you about it that way. My idea was to take you to some rooftop or some beautiful hotel," I cleared my throat. "I really do like you, in ways more than a friend. I feel bad when you are with that guy, that friend of yours."

"But we are not dating," Aaliyah cut in.

"I don't know, Aaliyah. He likes you more. In your head, you are holding onto the fact that 'we are not dating,' but he wants you to be more than just a friend. I see it in his eyes," I clarified, my voice becoming increasingly low with every word. This was how I got when I was feeling defeated—my voice would just become lower with every word of a sentence.

"You can't worry about him. You do not see him here. I told him we have something, so he just stopped looking for me," she stated, making me smile wholeheartedly at her words.

"I do not intend to have children right away—"

"Ooohhh," Aaliyah cut me off. I was thinking of clarifying Elvis's words. I did not want any children right away; I wanted children when she would be ready, accomplished, established, and a great lecturer, professor, or author somewhere. I did not intend to steal her desires.

"I just wanted to clarify Elvis's statement. I hope you don't see me as he does."

"Why is he so mad at you anyway? Your feud does not seem to have started with you and me having something."

"We gentlemen are funny. We are friends until a friend tries hitting on your sister. You just flip that coin. He sees me through another lens. I won't hurt you, I promise, and for that, I want to take you somewhere. But first, I need my phone and my car keys. He really got me yesterday." That made Aaliyah laugh, making me smile a little too. It was not funny, being invaded while trying to get intimate with your partner. The worst invasion was the person being your friend and your sister's brother.

Aaliyah came out with the phone and the car keys. The phone was well charged, and I took the keys, swinging them, as I led the way outside. Aaliyah's beige coat and sweats were cute. She did not need to change. I wanted to take her to Dr. Kingstone for approval and everything. He was the closest parent I had here, so I needed his blessing before starting something with Aaliyah. This time, I wanted to prove myself, and I knew I was ready and fully into it. I did not have anything holding me back, and every aspect of heartbreak that had broken me seemed to have just set into place right after Aaliyah crawled into my life.

Reaching the ground floor, I led my way opposite my car, making Aaliyah squint her eyes in confusion.

"Trust me," I whispered to her, holding her little hands, which were a little warm. The sun was out, but not that shiny. It was around eleven or twelve.

I entered the same bar next to Marine's apartment. It was a restaurant during the daytime. I was surprised too, but said nothing as I led the way up the stairs to one of the waiters.

"Can I see Dr. Kingstone?" I asked the waiter, and he went to one of the men in a black suit, who nodded.

"Come," the waiter said, and led the way towards a small room upstairs. On the second floor, there was lodging; I never saw that coming.

Anyway, he led me to one of the rooms, and in it was Dr. Kingstone, checking on his books. His eyes pierced at me and then at the girl next to me, making him lean a little onto his chair. I believe this was his office. I wonder what happened to him being a doctor; he maybe retired or something of that sort.

"Levin," he commanded, showing me the sofa. I let Aaliyah sit first and then me. "What brings you here?" he questioned, looking at Aaliyah, as the waiter left, closing the door behind him.

"This is Aaliyah," I started, and he instantly smiled, making an "ooh" with his mouth. "She..." I wanted to clarify, but he just shushed me with his hands.

"You have my blessing, boy. She is beautiful, and I know you can take care of her." Referring to Aaliyah now, "Did you know he stayed four years without a girl because he was heartbroken?" He laughed at that, as Aaliyah looked at me, and I shook my head, trying to make her see that it was not true.

"Haaa, he's really a lover boy, isn't he?" Dr. Kingstone added.

"Doctor, I just wanted to introduce you to her, and then we'll take our leave."

"Take care of her. And make sure she finishes school." I nodded, feeling a little disappointed. Why did everyone think that I would mess her up? I learned from my previous lessons.

Anyway, after introducing Aaliyah to Kingstone, we left the hotel and headed straight to the car, and I started the engine.

"He is like a father to me, so don't be surprised."

"What happened to your father?" she questioned, and I wondered why I never told her much about my family.

"I am mixed, as you can see. They call us men of color. Ha, anyway, my father left a long time ago. We live with my mom; she is in Chicago with my sister. But my sister is in college, at Harvard. She is in her third year," I stated, smiling. I never told anyone about it, other than my mom, who made everyone know the girl was accepted to one of the best universities, if not in the world, then in the country.

"That's beautiful. You never talk about her. I would be glad to meet her," she stated.

"You both are almost the same age; she is twenty, twenty-one. We have like a five-year age gap, aye." I suddenly felt too old, and yet we grew up together, and somehow, she looked older. "I mean, she even looks and has the brains that make anyone think she is actually older than me. We've always been a really good unit," I finished.

"MMMH, so where are we going?"

"I was thinking of us maybe going for some movies. Watching in some theater, what do you think?"

"I would love it. Anyway, Hayzen, don't you want to speak about yesterday?" she questioned, and I scanned her face, looked back to the road, and now let the car face the tarmac, and off we went.

"It's alright. I understand Elvis," I added, hoping she would not press on the matter. "I mean, it was good though, the Fifty Shades, and then us being clumsy and all that. But it was alright. I understand him. I would totally do the same thing if it happened to be my sister." The car was speeding up as it approached the San Francisco highway, and the thoughts of everything we have done with Aaliyah started flowing. From our first meeting at the party, our first sexual encounter that led to her restraining, my fear of being vulnerable with her. It all started flowing, and in one minute, the words I wanted to say the most came out, without caring if there were cars in front or behind. I looked at her and stated, "Will you be my girlfriend and marry me?" Suddenly, nervousness got to me as I looked back at the highway. "Of course, you don't have to answer. It was just a pure morbid question, pure morbid weird question, but I really... don't answer."

"I like seeing you this nervous," she stated, and I made a little chuckle, as my mind thought and thought.

"Do you... would you like to?" I questioned, breathing in hard and holding my breath there. I hoped she would not disappoint.

"Yes, Hayzen," she said, touching my hair slightly, "yes," she added again, and I hugged the steering wheel and screamed aloud, "Yeahhhh!"

"Yeahhhhh!" I screamed, as the cars behind me honked, realizing that I had somehow slowed down more than necessary on the highway.

"I love you," I stated, lending her my hand, and she placed it on her cheek, and I caressed it a little.

And from there, that's when my life changed. I became much more vulnerable under her watch. I suddenly wanted much more of her. Her sadness became my mood changer, her happiness was always my happiness, and her encouragement to write this piece became my encouragement to write it.

After five years, I got to marry her, in the white gown, and I, in a very beautiful black suit and a well-straightened white shirt. I remember crying on that wedding day. I never thought I would make a great husband, but now I know. In front of a great husband, there stands a woman who walks with him through the pains.