Flashback

Tayler had been crying for the past two days since her mother had left her. She wouldn't eat and she barely slept, her reasoning was if she slept she might've missed her mom coming to get her. She was used to her leaving for a few hours but never days.

She always came back for her.

She laid upstairs in the foreign bed and balled loudly in the fetal position. Although she had a bed, a clean house, air conditioner, and food; she didn't have her mama.

"Rod, you have to do something about that little girl. She's been fucking cryin' for days, I'm sick of the shit" Peaches had her hands on her hip.

Patrice or Peaches was only 15 when she ran away from home. She got caught up in the lifestyle of prostitution and drugs very quickly as a former boyfriend attempted to turn her out. When she was 18 she ran away from her pimp and she jumped into the arms of 25 year old local drug dealer Rodrick. He took care of her and watched out for her. He didn't let anyone try his Peaches.

In return for his protection, she gave him her loyalty. Peaches was the definition of a down bitch. She recruited girls for Rod, she hid his packs for him, she set niggas up for him, and a number of other things he asked of her. Seeing how he could trust her unlike everyone around him, he made Peaches his number one girl and he swore his loyalty to her but similar to the familiar love in the hood, they were never married. Now nearly 17 years later, he finally fulfilled her wishes of giving her a child of her own.

"Peach what do you want me to do?" He asked puffing a cigar.

"I don't fucking know, but you need to give that little bitch back" she crossed her arms.

"Look you asked me for a kid, and I delivered" he chuckled. "You've only been a mom for a few days and you're cracking"

"She's not my damn child! I asked for a baby and you brought me a grown ass child, it's not the same Rod" Peaches protested.

Rod ran a hand down his face, he was growing frustrated with the little girl too but he understood all this was new to her. " I'll go and talk with her" He said.

"But Peach kill that noise, we are her parents now. Like it or not she's ours and ain't no way I'm giving her back to her crackhead mammie" He put out his cigar in the ashtray.

Peaches just sucked her teeth and plopped down on the couch. Rodrick proceeded to go upstairs to the crying child. He seen her body under the blanket, trembling a bit as she rocked back and forth.

"You ain't run out of water yet" He sat on the edge of the bed.

She peeked from under the blanket at him and turned her head away. She was terrified of him.

"Still scared huh? Come from under the covers and sit with me"

She sat still. She wasn't sure what to do, men have tried to do horrible things to her on the account of her mother being too high to function.

"One thing you need to understand is I don't ask twice baby girl" He pulled the blanket back.

She drew her legs closer to her body and sat up immediately, but she was sure to keep distance between them. She focused on a spot on the bed as she was scared to even make eye contact with him.

"Look I don't know what you've seen but I'm going to be real with you, I'm not no fucking creep or nothing. I'm not going to touch you or harm you, that's sick as fuck" He started.

"Matter of fact, if anybody touch you or hurt you in anyway, you come to me. You are my responsibility now and I'll never let anything harm you, i gotchu now little one. I don't play that shit" he said in all seriousness.

Rodrick may run a prostitution ring and he may rule with an iron fist, but he isn't brutal. He doesn't hit women, unless you push him which peaches has pushed him several times. He doesn't make them take any drugs nor does he allow customers to push drugs on his girls. The johns cannot be alone with the women, he always make sure someone is outside the door, protecting the girls. He pays for extra expenses if they need it, rent, hair, nails, clothes for the kids, and food. He even allows them to set their hours but he doesn't play about the money. He doesn't care what or how they do it, just get the money in his hand every Sunday.

Mess up the money and shit will get hectic.

He might sound sweet on the girls, but that's how he has managed to stay in business. All the girls, like Peaches swear their loyalty to Rod and will never turn their backs on him because he has always looked out for them.

"Now I'm not used to this daddy shit, and judging by your mama I know you aren't either"

Tayler shook her head still staring into space.

"You'll get used to being here after a while. Your mama is not coming back for you and the sooner you accept that the better. Where we from, people rarely ever come back but people don't have what you are fortunate to have. You have me and Peaches to watch over you and give you what you never had. I swear to protect you and take care of you like you were my own. Do not be afraid of me"

"I didn't have a mama, the streets raised me. I don't want to see another young black life especially no girl's wasted like mine was. That's why you're here. I'm here to finish raising you" He went on.

"Like a daddy?" She perked up.

She never had a father before. She was often jealous of her friends that she had in the neighborhood and at school, when she did go. They would often make fun of her for not having a dad or brag about their daddies to make her feel bad.

"No baby girl" he chuckled. "I don't want to feel like an old man, I don't like the term daddy and I'm not your daddy"

The girl put her head down in disappointment, she was truly hurt that nobody wanted to parent her.

"Look little one if you're going to be mine, you have to be tough. Quit this crying shit. You know when you cry nothing gets solved and even when you cry, guess what happens when you're done? Shit is still fucked up. But I'm here to show you how to get shit done"

He finished. The girl looked his way for the first time. She wasn't scared of him as much. He seemed like the only person to care because he's the only one she knew that sat down and spoke with her.

"Now your new mama Peaches, can't cook for shit. That girl could burn ice"

The two laughed.

"I'm serious, so I'm going to go downstairs and make you a little somethin' and I hope you join me"

"Ok" she nodded quietly. She took his advice and wiped her eyes and nose with her sleeve.

Rodrick proceeded to get up and head downstairs.

"If you're not my real daddy, what-what do I call you?, what's your name?" She quirked.

He laughed at her soft voice. He leaned on the door and thought hard before speaking. He hated the word daddy for some reason, it didn't sit right with him.

"Just call me big daddy" he suggested.

He walked out without another word. The little girl laid back down on the bed and stared at the ceiling.

"Big daddy?" She questioned with a grin.

~

Present day

"So to conclude this presentation, we must implement a strong social media presence to attract more awareness to increase sales. As we know social media is the new newspaper, radio, and even television. It is the perfect way to raise awareness and increase attraction. Once we attract the core audience, we can try to design or create more products that cater to the desired audience. Once we do this we can increase the sales and change the direction of the company" Tayler finished.

Everyone sitting in the meeting including sales & marketing and those from the accounting department clapped their hands at the ending of the proposal. The representative from the Morris account which is the biggest transportation company sat back and eyed her proposal.

"Now I spoke with the accounting department and we have drawn up some possible figures for future sales, if you implement the slight suggestions that I've made" She passes around the copies.

Being only 25 at the prestigious Levine firm was a major accomplishment. Not only was she the youngest but she was one of the few black people working there. She was the only black specialist to be exact. She knew that she had no choice but to hire her not only for affirmative action reasons but she was young, she had fresh new ideas and they could use a vision like that to turn the luck of their company around. So far she has helped them land at least one of their biggest accounts and she couldn't have been more proud.

That's one thing about herself she admired. She was truly a boss, thanks to Big daddy and Peaches but she truly worked her ass off for everything she had. She managed to land this job and she was traveling up the ladder to be the most sought out specialist there was. But with hard work comes sacrifice, she often sacrificed her time, energy, and sleep. Now she was sacrificing her life as she remotely had none outside of work.

She finished answering any questions about the project she spent weeks working on. As she answered the questions,  she saw the male dominated board room had their full attention on her. She wasn't stupid, some of them lusted after her. They looked forward to her wearing her tight pant suits, and short dresses and skirts that hugged her body like a glove. Their eyes wondered over her curves as she walked down the halls and they couldn't help but take a peek at her breast as she leaned over the table. She hated that she had all this negative attention, but she used what she got to her advantage.

Just like Peaches taught her to.

Once she was finished, she gathered everything and headed to her office to finalize the paper work for the partnership as well as begin to meet with various others today.

As soon as she sat down in her chair, her cell phone lit up with a FaceTime call from her partner in crime, Natalie. She exhaled slowly as she debated taking the call. She knew all Nat wanted to do was talk to her about the other night, which she tried hard to forget. Tayler was pissed that Michael had even spoke to her like that and even more angry that she couldn't even find her voice to speak back.

She was confused, that has never happened to her before and she didn't like it. As much as she never wanted to see him again, she knew it was inevitable as they lived next door to each other. But she hasn't seen him in two days. She wanted to kick down his door and tear him a new one, but she just wanted to stay clear from him.

Although she hasn't seen him, she knew it would be a matter of time before she seen him.

"What's up chick" she finally picked up the call.

"You already know I was going to keep calling if you didn't pick up my damn call" Natalie stated.

"Oh I know, that's why you would go on the block list"

"Then I'll show up to your house or job and get it poppin'" Natalie snapped.

"Then I'll get a restraining order on your but"

"Chile' please, when has that ever stopped me before?" Natalie said.

"Anyways, what are you up to?" Natalie asked.

"Working, what you need to be doing" she typed away on her computer.

"Uh uh! I am working, I am actually doing some personal shopping for my client. Just loud and wrong" Natalie shook her head.

"Yeah yeah yeah" Tayler dismissed.

"So what happened today, did you get that account?" Natalie oozed excitement.

"You know it" Tayler confirmed.

Natalie squealed into the phone, she was genuinely happy for her friend. This is exactly why Natalie was the only home girl she had because it was no animosity, no drama. They supported each other and always had each other's back. Although Tayler could be immature and rub Natalie and others the wrong way, Natalie always brings her back to reality and is always honest with her.

This is an attribute that she loves and hates about her friend.

"Girl you know we have to celebrate" Natalie suggested.

"You know what? I could go for that" Tayler replied.

"What?!" Natalie gasped.

"You want to go out?"

"Yes, I think I need to start getting out there" Tayler replied.

She sighed. She was growing tired and frustrated of the same routine of work and home, and a few meet ups with Natalie and others in between. Her life has become a merry-go-round. It revolves around the same things every day.

Maybe that's why she was intrigued by Michael, he was a breath of fresh air.

"Damn girl, I don't know what you been sippin' but pass me some. Ok, so we'll can go shopping and then me, you, and Santana can hang out at your house for the weekend and go out to eat and maybe we can go out this weekend" she suggested.

She rolled her eyes playfully "you already know Santana is going to let me have it! I don't know why you want to invite that crazy child"

"Because Santana knows how to bring out your fun side. We need that, I'm tired of you being so uptight and so serious. Plus you know a gworls weekend is nothing without Santana" Natalie giggled.

"You're so right" she kept typing away on her computer.

"So speaking of letting the gworls have it, have you spoke to Michael?"

Tayler rolled her eyes at the mention of his name. His name was like nails on a chalkboard right about now and she hated that her friend even brought him up.

"Nat now why the hell would I talk to him? Don't you think if I talked to him, I would be speaking to you from a jail cell?" She spoke in seriousness.

"Oh so you mad mad?" Natalie stifled a laugh.

"Hell yeah I'm mad. He had no right to even say those things to me! He thinks he's such a man talking to a woman like that, he's a whole man. I've never been insulted like that in my whole entire life"

"You sound like a whole white woman" Natalie laughed.

"Nat seriously, not now" Tayler said.

"Ok ok, Tayler I agree. Michael should not have spoken to you that way and let alone embarrassed you in public, but you have to ask yourself what did I do to deserve to be called a bitch?" Natalie reasoned.

Tayler sucked her teeth.

"I mean think about it Tay from what I see Michael is a gentleman and he seems super nice and genuine and based on what Keith told me, Michael is always respectful towards women so you really rubbed him the wrong way"

"I rubbed him the wrong way?"she picked up the phone. "Come on Nat, he practically was being rude to me first! I didn't deserve to be humiliated in public like that"

"And I agree Tay, but he was right. And as a friend I wouldn't be your friend if I wasn't honest with you. You were acting like your boujie self. I mean come on, I asked you to come out with me and you practically spend the whole night on the phone. Then you scoff at the man being a mechanic, I mean at least he was honest and even has a job then you were just being snappy. I mean damn girl all you had to do was bite the man head off and it would've made the night better"

Tayler sighed. She just listened to her friend's explanation, she knew she was right but the pride got in the way of her judgement.

"I honestly think you two need to both apologize to each other"

"Oh no! Not gone happen, I'm sick of talking to that man and apologizing. I'm telling you the next time he'll be on a t-shirt cause I'm tired of him."

"Tay you're being a child-you like him don't you?" Natalie switched the subject.

"What?"

"You're pressed about Michael, cause I never seen you so upset with someone"

"Girl please can't no man with a 1980's jheri curl make me pressed. He need to press that damn hair all that juice dripping from it"

Natalie obnoxiously laughed. "You're lying! And stop playing with that man, he don't have a jheri curl"

"Whatever" Tayler leaned back.

She absentmindedly thought about his lake of black curls. His hair smelled amazing as she got a whiff from when he was so close to her, she was almost tempted to run her fingers through it.

'It looks so soft' she thought.

"Look I'm not trying to beat a dead horse cause I know you, but I think you have a thing for him and I truly think y'all would be cute together if y'all would put aside y'all differences. You should really apologize Tay, you were wrong and you know it. You wouldn't want no one to talk to you like that so give respect"

"It's bad enough I live next to the man, I don't want to keep talking about it anymore so drop it please"

"Ok it's dropped" Natalie finished.

But the conversation would not be dropped, she and Keith were just getting started to push the two together.

~
Meanwhile

Like Natalie, Keith decided to check on his friend. He had pulled up on him at his job at the auto body shop. The two currently stood in the parking lot speaking about the incident.

"Man I'm sorry but that bitch is crazy" Michael said.

"Mike man-" Keith started.

"No don't 'Mike man' me, she started it. You telling me to apologize to her but the damn girl was gaslighting me all night. I mean who comes to a date to sit on the phone? Then she makes a comment about my profession? Little does she know when those white people get tired of her at that job, she'll be one pink slip away from collecting unemployment" Michael threw shade.

Keith laughed. He too was trying to get Michael to apologize to her, but just like Natalie he was having a hard time convincing his friend.

"Look man I agree, she was doing and saying a lot of out of pocket shit, but from what Natalie told me about her that girl has been through a lot and she normally pushes people away"

"Man, we all go through shit but we don't have to put people down to be make ourselves feel better" Michael scrunched up his brows.

"And you're right man, but you know as well as I know when you go through a lot of shit it can change you for the better or for the worse. You don't know what that girl has gone through that made her like that, she tries to be hard but that girl got some hurt in her. I can see it in her face"

"Damn you caping for the girl now? You her biggest fan?" Michael smirked.

"No bruh, I'm just saying. You need to apologize-"

"Look that girl need to see Oprah, Dr. Phil or Dr. Seuss I don't care who but she won't keep trying me. It ain't gone happen. I need to protect my energy from her man"

"Now you being dramatic" Keith chuckled.

"Keith were we at the same table? That girl is crazy! All she need to do is reveal her true self, that girl is the exorcist. I bet her head can spin around and everything" Michael joked.

"You know what they say about the crazy ones, they always fine and got the best sex" Keith laughed.

"Man, she ight" Michael put his hands in his pockets.

"You lying like shit! You know that girl was fine. I mean next to my girl she can't hold a candle but you know she was looking fine, I saw you breaking your neck man! That girl looks good" Keith gushed.

"Damn nigga, you like her so much then you be with her"

"Nahh not my type, she's crazy" Keith explained.

The two shared a laugh.

"So why you trying to hook me up then fool?" Michael chuckled.

"Cause man I just want you to be happy bruh. Based on what I know of her y'all seem like a good match, she's hardworking, she has her own stuff going on, she can match your fly, she's smart, and she can be sweet based on what Nat says"

"Sweet where? Once again, were we at the same table?" Michael exaggerated.

"Yes man and from what I saw, you feeling that girl"

"Bull" Michael simply said.

"Nahh bruh, admit it. You feeling baby girl" Keith pushed.

"Ok, ok. That girl is fine man. Her ass and those legs were looking right, and she has a mouth on her, but I know what to do with that"

Keith laughed.

"But she too damn uptight, ain't no way in hell I can deal with that" Michael dismissed.

"I understand man, but I still think you should apologize to her"

Michael sucked his teeth.

"Just hear me out man" Keith continued.

"If a man were to try any of your sisters like that, wouldn't you want them to be apologized to" Keith reasoned.

"But if they were being a bitch, he was just calling it how he sees it"

"Man that's not the point. You 're the one always telling me women should be respected, despite what they do. Imagine if that was your mama man, you wouldn't want no man calling her out like that, especially in public. We grown men, we rise above all that shit, fuck what she got going on that ain't in us bruh" Keith finished.

Michael sat in deep thought. His friend was right, he did respect women no matter what. He has sisters and he is very close with his mother. His heart would break if anybody spoke to them that way and his fist would crack any jaw over his family. His mother raised him up to respect women and she would be disgusted if she saw him behaving that way, he immediately felt guilty.

"Man you're right" he sighed. "I am sorry bro for fucking up what was left of the date and please send my apologizes to Natalie as well. I didn't mean to disrespect her friend or embarrass her in public. That's not me man" Michael finished.

The two men clapped each other up and chuckled.

"Damn man I don't know what Natalie doing to you bruh but you growing up scrub" Michael joked.

"Man watch out, but I ain't gone lie" he looks around. "That girl putting that whip appeal on a nigga"

The two continued to share laughs as Keith spoke about his feelings for Natalie. Michael was truly happy for his friend.

However, in the mist of the conversation Michael's smile turned into a frown. Someone from his past was approaching the two men. It left Michael stunned and angry.

No matter what he tries to do, his past always catches up to him.

"What's up man?" Keith asked.

His eyes followed Michael's gaze and he turned around to come face to face with someone from his best friend's previous life.

~
UGH! Over 4000 words.

You're welcome!

Who do you think it is?