"Santana get out my baby face boy." Bria bit into another Christmas tree shaped sugar cookie, watching him blow raspberries at Isis while holding her up in the air.

"Nah, she like it. Ain't that right fat mama? Tell her get out yo' business." He blew light bubbles against her cheek as she pulled at his face.

Bria shook her head at him with a smile, leaning forward to grab what had to be her sixth cookie off of the glass plate on the coffee table. She followed a TikTok tutorial to make cookies for Christmas this year instead of buying them from the grocery store like she usually did, and these were the best cookies she'd ever tasted.

Today was Christmas Day, but she'd made them last night with Isis, Israel, and Santana for 'Santa' on Christmas Eve. They took pictures on her Polaroid camera during the process and put the printed photos in her scrapbook that she'd had since she was a young teenager.

Fast forward to the next morning, Christmas Day, and the cookies still tasted fresh. She kept dipping them in her cold milk to soften them which made them taste ten times better.

"Stop eating all the cookies, fat ass." Israel shook his head at Bria, twisting a wheel on the bottom of the stroller he was building while she waved him off.

As a Christmas gift to Bria-but was really for Isis and he and Bria's unborn son-Santana bought an all black double seated stroller that could also be turned into a wagon. Israel was currently building it because-well, he did own a construction company so that was kind of his forte.

Santana also bought two brand new Grow&Go car seats which were typically popular for being made to keep up with a child's growth spurt from the time they're an infant up until a few years from the preteen stage.

Although they already had two at home, between the three adults-Santana had two cars, Bria had two, and Israel had seven. So, they were definitely going to need more than just two car seats. They'd probably be buying two more in just a few months.

Israel really appreciated the gifts from Santana, mostly because Santana was including his daughter whenever he thought about stuff for his own son. Originally, Israel thought that only Bria would be helping him raise Isis, but Santana had been a big help too. He was thankful for his support system.

"You shut up and focus on being bob the builder, punk. Here." She reached over to feed him one of the cookies, which he bit into after laughing.

Bria put her legs across Santana's lap when he sat down on the couch with her, and he sat Isis on top of her ankles, fixing the cute little hat that was on top of her head.

"She look just like you nigga. My son better look identical to me too or I'ma be pissed." Santana said, using his phone to take a picture of Isis.

"Why? You not carrying his fat ass for nine months, are you? You didn't put in no work for him, just a few lil' ass strokes." Bria replied, and Israel laughed again while Santana frowned.

"Little? Don't piss me off." He rolled his eyes at her, being as sassy as usual.

"You got a lil' sugar in yo' t-,"

"And you fat as fuck. I'm talm 'bout big as a bus, I should've got you a treadmill for Christmas." He cut her off before she could finish, and her mouth fell open in shock.

"What's funny Israel? You gon' let him talk about me like that?" She directed her frown to him, causing him to almost choke on his laughter.

"To be honest, I barely heard him mama. I'll handle some shit if you want me to though." He tried not to laugh again, making her roll her eyes.

"I can't stand y'all. Yo' mama big as fuck anyway. That lady built like a refrigerator with her box booty ass." Bria told Santana, listening to him and Israel laugh again.

"You lucky I ain't on good terms with her right now or I would call her and tell on you." He laid Isis on his chest, slouching back against the couch.

"I ain't scared of her anyway." She grabbed another cookie but pulling her feet out of Santana's lap, holding the couch cushion to aid her in standing up.

"Thank you baby zaddy." Bria kissed Israel's cheek after he helped her stand up, and he grabbed a handful of her ass before stepping back.

"I was gon' help you but I'm with child." Santana pointed to Isis after Bria bucked at him, making her roll her eyes again.

"Where you goin' fat ma? You gotta pee?" Israel asked her, taking the last cookie off of the plate.

"Mhm. Real bad." She chuckled since she could feel herself waddling as she rushed towards the bathroom in the hall.

It seemed like she had to pee a lot more often as she approached her last trimester of her pregnancy. She was just two days shy of being six months and would use the restroom more than ten times a day, even if she didn't drink anything-which was rare since she was literally always thirsty.

Luckily she made it to the toilet just in time, blowing out a slow breath as she relieved her bladder. She felt her back pop once she used the counter to help her stand back up, and she groaned at the feeling that hurt but felt good at the same time. Her back was always sore now.

If it wasn't her back, it was her feet. Her OB/GYN told her it was because of the unfamiliar additional weight caused by her baby-she'd gained twenty two pounds so far. That was highly unusual for her; her weight had been stayed practically the same since she was in high school.

She almost passed out when she was told she'd probably gain over thirty pounds during the full course of her pregnancy. She could only imagine the amount of back pain she'd have near the end of it.

"You look so pretty girl." Santana kept his eyes on her as she walked back in the living room, putting a smile on her face.

She was wearing the pajamas that she'd slept in; a pair of cartoon boxers and a tank top that could no longer fit over her belly, plus she didn't have a bra on and had a bonnet pulled over her knotless braids.

Even if she woke up looking like a caveman with dried up slob on her mouth, Santana and Israel would both find a way to compliment her.

"Thank you pooh." She was about to sit back down, but changed direction after hearing her door bell and security system go off at the same time.

Figuring it was another Amazon package, Bria pulled her shirt down as much as she could before pulling the front door open. She was definitely surprised to see a man that resembled Israel at her door, and not any mail carrier. How many twins did this man have?

"You're a stalker. Just because you have the resources to find people, doesn't mean you can just show up at their house unannounced." She leaned against her doorframe with her eyebrows furrowed.

"That mouth. You gotta watch it. Especially on Christmas." He chuckled, and his voice made both Israel and Santana approach the door.

"She ain't gotta do a bitch ass thing. Ain't nobody gon' do her nothin'." Santana moved her to be behind him, his frown becoming deeper as Israel moved him back too.

He didn't say anything to Santana or Bria as he closed the door, now standing outside with his brother. The mug on his face was so strong, he could probably scare a bear away. Unfortunately, Kordae wasn't a bear.

"Merry Christmas. I brought something for the kids." He gestured behind him to two UPS workers who were unloading boxes that somehow had Christmas wrapping around them.

"You didn't come over here to drop off gifts." Israel folded his arms across his chest, holding a questionable expression.

"I did. I would've gave 'em to you at the house, but you ain't show up. Ma told me to see why." He shrugged, referring to their parents house.

"Why you ain't told her 'bout the baby? Can I see her?" He then asked, and Israel stared at him for a few seconds longer before turning to go back inside of the house.

He thought that Bria would be trying to be nosy and stand by the door, but she was actually in the kitchen working on breakfast while Santana 'stood guard' against the wall, still holding Isis in his arms.

"You good?" Santana asked him, and he nodded in response at the same time that he reached for Isis.

Israel stepped outside again, pulling Isis's hat down even though it was cloudy. He turned her around in his arms, showing her tiny face that scrunched up from the wind.

An immediate smile spread across Kordae's face as he carefully grabbed her from his little brother, holding her up in the air to get a better look at his niece.

"Did you have somebody at the hospital?" Israel asked.

"Yeah. I wasn't gon' let nobody touch the Princess. Look at her. She so beautiful." Kordae let her grab his finger, squeezing it so softly.

"Do you have somebody here?" He followed up with another question.

"It's been somebody here since the day you started taking Ms. Bria serious. I ain't gon' let no harm come to her. I take care of what's mine."

Israel looked around at his surroundings, which he seemed to do more often since he moved in with Bria because it always felt like someone was watching him. He figured it was security from his older brother, but he never got around to asking.

Ever since Israel was a teenager, Kordae had been appointing men that reminded Israel of the CIA to 'watch' over him and the people on his close knit circle. He'd never actually seen them before though. Kordae always said that was the whole point, but seriously, they were damn good at their jobs.

He remembered one instance where he was walking through a dark alley one night after a basketball game at school, and he was approached by two men who tried to threaten him over the whereabouts of Kordae. Those same two men were shot directly in their foreheads by a sniper-one of Kordae's men-without Israel ever muttering a word that he was in danger.

That wasn't the only time something like that had happened either. Still, he'd never actually seen any of the men that were watching over him on a daily basis-even now, where he was an adult who could handle himself.

He always wondered how much Kordae paid them because it seemed like they were on guard 24/7.

"You ain't gon' let no harm come to her but you just threatened her at her house?" Israel's frown returned.

"That wasn't a threat. It was-a suggestion. I was joking. Couldn't tell? I even laughed." He grinned, and Israel rolled his eyes at him while trying to fight off a smile at his ignorance.

"So, you knew about Isis when Jada was giving birth and you ain't think to call me?" He switched the subject, now curious.

"I only interfere when it's necessary. Who you think told Kemi to bring her to you? I know you ain't think her money hungry ass just dropped her off for free."

"You paid her?" Israel's posture straightened at that information, raising one of his eyebrows.

"Somethin' like that." Kordae shrugged, causing Israel to roll his eyes. Oh, the irony of that statement. They were alike in many ways.

"But, you right, I did come to do something else other than drop off the gifts. I need to talk to Santana." He shifted the way he was holding Isis as his arm cramped up, trailing his eyes to lock on his little brother's.

"What? For what?"

"Business that you ain't apart of. That's one of the perks of living legal."

"I don't give a fuck about that. You showed up to Bria house so now whatever the fuck y'all got going, y'all brought it here. So what is it?"

"It ain't nothing to worry about. I'm just looking to expand my operation.. Nothing serious." He shrugged again. Israel couldn't tell if that was the truth or not, and he didn't like that.

"So why you ain't just call him?"

"He don't answer his phone unless the call is from people he know. I didn't want to show up to his place of business either 'cause I don't want him to think it's a problem between us."

"Is there?" Israel asked yet another question, watching Kordae shake his head in a negative response.

"Aight. No funny shit. Me and him cool and I don't want you pulling nothing stupid to make him think I ain't on his side." Israel told him, and Kordae didn't say anything in response, only nodding.

Israel took his daughter from Kordae before gesturing for him to follow him back inside of the house, grabbing the attention of both Santana and Bria.

"It's aight if he stay for a few minutes mama?" He asked Bria first, in case she wasn't comfortable with him being here.

"I brought gifts." Kordae opened the door wider to show Bria all of the packages being brought to her front door, causing her eyebrows to raise with surprise.

"Well how can I say no to that?" She held underneath her belly while walking in their direction, being stopped by Santana before she could get past him.

"It's cool." Israel assured Santana, seeing the confused frown on his face.

Santana looked down at Bria, who was seemingly waiting on his approval. He moved his arm out of the way and gave her a head nod, causing a smile to spread across her face as she continued on the path to her front door.

He watched her grab Isis before walking outside, closing the door behind her because it was obvious the three men needed a moment alone. She didn't want to hear them talking about drugs anyway, and plus, she had gifts to check out.

When the door shut, Santana directed his attention towards Israel and Kordae, but stood near the window so that he could still keep an eye on Bria. It was clear as day that he was overprotective of her, but he really didn't play about her now that she was carrying his son.

"I'm not dealin' nothin' through you if that's what you wanna talk about." He stated, shifting his gaze over to Kordae.

"I ain't even looking for no business like that. I was tryna see what you thought about selling. Not all of it, just East Harlem, Manhattan, some of Jersey maybe.."

"You shitting me? Why would I sell the places that bring me the most money?" He folded his arms across his chest while his confused frown remained on his face.

"I can give you more. One hundred million dollars-all cash." Kordae offered, causing the room to momentarily go silent. There was no way he could turn that down.

Santana only made around ten million a year from dealing drugs-and only half of that revenue was profit since the other half went towards buying more product. The three clubs that he owned made triple that on a slow year, with upwards of six times that on a highly booked year.

Hearing Kordae's offer actually made him solidify selling, especially since he had plans to sell by this time next year anyway due to him becoming a father. The first time Bria got pregnant with his kid, he promised her and himself that he would leave the drug industry as soon as his kid was born. He planned to still go through with that.

One hundred million dollars-and even half of that-would have him, his kids, and his grandkids set for life. That wasn't even including the millions he made annually from his legal business endeavors.

He felt it would be stupid to decline Kordae's offer because he highly doubted that anyone would bid even ten percent of that amount when he did eventually put his drug operation up for grabs. This seemed like an easy way out.

"Look, before you say no, just come check out what I got in the truck." Kordae walked out the front door without saying anything else, and Santana hesitantly followed.

"I know he yo' brother, but do you trust him?" Santana stopped at the door next to Israel, analyzing his expression.

"No. But, I know that he wouldn't fuck me over. And fucking you over is fucking with me. He know that." Israel's voice rasped, and Santana stared at him for a few seconds longer before nodding his head in agreement.

After dapping him up, Santana followed behind him out of the door, walking to meet Kordae and Bria at the back of the brown UPS truck.

"No way. Y'all ass going to jail." Bria stared in shock at three large pallets with cash stacked on top of them. She had never seen so much money in her life.

"Nah. This straight from the bank." Kordae climbed in the truck while chuckling, grabbing a random stack of cash to give to Santana. "Check the serial number. It's clean."

He thumbed through the stack of hundreds, making sure the 3D strip moved. He checked for a security thread and a few other visual cues of counterfeit money, but all of the ones he checked came back clean.

"I got the deed to a ten room mansion and some land in LA right here. Think of it as collateral damage." Kordae sat down near the edge of the truck, holding a stack of papers out for Santana to grab.

"Oh my god. How do you know about that?" Bria sunk further into disbelief-both at all of the money and the fact that he knew about the plans she'd been discussing with her sister-as well as Santana and Israel-about moving to Los Angeles.

"You are such a stalker." Her eyebrows came together in a frown at the look on his face, and his genuine laughter made Israel smile.

"I don't get it though. The shit I own won't make half of this in the next decade. So why you offering so high?" Santana tilted his head to the side with curiosity.

"With the right connections, you could make double that in five years." He shrugged, pausing for a moment.

"I came to talk to you in person to offer what I know it's worth-and not what you think it's worth. But, if you do happen to turn me down, I'ma be completely honest with you and let you know that I will take it anyway. I offered payment out of respect for my brother, but I don't owe nobody nothin'."

"So, if I have to take it, I will. And I can guarantee you the money you normally make from selling gon' go straight towards funerals for the niggas you got working on the streets. I'm sure you know me enough to know that I make promises, not threats."

To tell the truth, Santana wouldn't go against Kordae even if he was paid to do it. Now, he definitely wasn't afraid of him, he just wasn't dumb. You would have to have literal shit for brains to get on Kordae's bad side, especially knowing the rep he had in the streets.

He was like that one person in the city that everybody feared in the movies-too scared to even do something as simple as look him in the eye in fear that he'd kill your family. The only difference between Kordae and movie villains was reality. He was that evil character in real life.

"Nah, that won't be necessary."

I love Kordae. I love everybody fr. Time jump coming 🫶🏼