Part 2 of this story will be on that account ]

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𝙷𝚘𝚞𝚜𝚝𝚘𝚗 𝚃𝚇 ; A&A Studio

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"You can pay at the front desk." Mari told her client as she stood up. "Thank you!" She smiled before walking out the room. Mari started cleaning and sanitizing her lash room since that happened to be her last client for the day.

She'd been taking a lot more walk-ins for the past few days just to keep her mind busy with something other than Samiron. She can't lie and say that she wasn't hurt by the way he treated her a few nights ago but it was obvious they both needed some time to themselves. Mari was especially hurt by the fact that he wouldn't even give her a chance to explain herself before throwing her into the same category as

Lyric who plays a huge role in his trust issues.

Time and time again Mari proved to him that she wasn't like her, yet a misunderstanding occurs and she's instantly being compared to his ex who set him up and got pregnant by his best friend.

Mari couldn't help but feel a little alone at this point. She feels disconnected from her friends because they're constantly asking about her and Samiron, and now she's carrying a baby that no one knows about. So she decided she was gonna tell the one person she knew she could always confide in.

After cleaning up her lash room, Mari walked out to the main area of the studio. There were still three hours left until closing so the studio was packed. People were coming in and out of the lash booths and all the vanities were full. All you could hear throughout the studio were the conversations coming from all different directions, the front door opening and closing, and Bora Bora by Lil Durk playing through the surround sound speakers that were hooked on the ceiling.

Mari spotted Aijah talking to the receptionist so once they made eye contact she motioned her over to their office. Aijah recognized the same look on her best friend's face from when she came back from New Orleans with the weight of the world on her shoulders and that instantly worried her. So she quickly ended her conversation with the receptionist and went to her and Mari's joint office where Mari was already sitting on one of the white leather couches.

Aijah closed the frosted glass door and took a seat on the couch across from Mari, "What's wrong girl?"

Mari lifted her head up and sighed. "So much shit Aijah. There's literally so much shit."

"Okay talk to me. What's going on?" Aijah had a feeling it had something to do with her and Samiron because that's literally all the group has been talking about.

Mari had previously told Aijah and Tasia the real story of what happened with TK the morning after it all went down. Samiron on the other hand briefly gave the boys a run down of what he saw and kept it at that. He wouldn't even let them discuss it around him or give their input. He just didn't wanna hear about it and part of him already knew he was fucked

up for treating Mari the way he did. He just didn't want people telling him that.

"Shit, where do I start?" Mari shook her head. "So I had my appointment at the hospital the other day." She started.

"Okay, did you tell them about how you were sick and all that nasty shit?"

Mari looked at Aijah and pursed her lips to the side to avoid laughing while Aijah just stared at her confused.

"I'm not sick sis. I'm 4 weeks pregnant." She muttered. Aijah's eyes damn near fell out of her head and her jaw dropped. Mari was the last person she'd expect to get pregnant.

"WHAT?" Aijah screamed, not caring about the 30 people that were right outside of the office door.

Mari laughed and nodded prompting Aijah to get up and embrace her in a tight hug. "I'm so happy for you! Oh my god, I can't believe this." She coo'd and smiled as she held onto Mari.

Aijah's reaction reminded her of Samiron's initial response when she gave him the blood test result and suddenly she felt like crying all over again.

Aijah heard Mari start to sniff. "Wai- hold on, so what's wrong? It's definitely unexpected and kinda earlier than you wanted but it's a good thing right? After them saying you couldn't get pregnant?" She questioned.

Mari pulled away from the hug and wiped her eyes, "That's the thing, Samiron thinks it's TK's baby."

Aijah's eyed widened again and her body filled with frustration."What the fuck? Is he fucking dumb?" She snapped.

Aijah did not play about her best friend. She was already irritated about what happened between Mari and Samiron the other night but to see that he made her cry struck a different nerve.

"That's not even the full story, it's worse." Mari sniffed, prompting Aijah to take a deep breath and lean back on the couch.

"After I left the hospital I went to Walgreens to pick up my prescription and this bitch Milan comes up to me on some "i'm coming to you as a woman" type shit. She airdrops me a picture of Samiron and some girl on that same day and they're walking out of a building together. So after I got my shit I headed over there and seen a Tesla in his driveway and Samiro—"

"—thinks Teslas are ugly." Aijah added, shaking her head.

"Exactly! So I go into the house, he answers the door on some bullshit and I push passed him. The same girl from thepicture is standing there trynna force a

smile talking 'bout, "hi I'm Shani, his realtor, and you are?" So I told Samiron we needed talk and the bitch is gonna say "we're kinda in the middle of something" like oookay? Fuck that gotta do with me?

Samiron tells her to get to steppin' and the bitch literally says "it's cool, i'll wait" The fucking audacity bro!"

"And he let her?" Aijah furrowed her eyebrows making Mari nod. "That nigga barely likes US in his crib what the fuck? She don't got an office or something?"

"That's what I was saying! But me and Samiron go in the guest room and I TRY to explain myself but he immediately cut me off saying he doesn't wanna hear about my ex having his tongue down my throat. Like nigga maybe if you let me EXPLAIN you would know that that wasn't the fucking case! So at this point my patience is literally gone so I just slap the blood test result paper on his chest."

"He reads it and the first thing he asks is if i'm trynna pin a baby on him, basically insinuating that it's TK's baby." Mari's voice cracked and Aijah scooted over to rub her back. "Like he didn't even hesitate to assume I was fucking around with TK. I'm with Samiron 7 days a week, 24/7, and when we're not together I'm working— when the fuck would I find the time to cheat?"

"So at this rate I was just ready to get the fuck out so I storm out the guest room while we're still going back and forth. He's comparing me to Lyric and some other foul shit. Miss Realtor takes it upon herself to put her two cents in saying, "don't get mad at me cause you're trynna pin a baby on him" so Samiron FINALLY decides to put the bitch in check and tells her she should leave. You know what this mosquito-bites as titties ass hoe said? She literally replied, "you said after we were done working you were gonna show me what that mouth do"."

Aijah threw her head back and huffed in frustration. She didn't like to meddle in other people's relationships but she couldn't stand seeing her friend so broken down.

"What do I do Aijah? I tried." Mari wiped her face. "I tried explaining it to him, even showed him the pregnancy result and hoped that it would give him the slightest bit of empathy to hear me out but it didn't. I didn't even do shit but he won't fuckin' hear me out!" Mari stressed.

"I'm gonna tell you what you need to do." Aijah removed Mari's hands from her face and wiped her tears. "First off you need to stop crying and stressing yourself out. You have a whole other human inside of you that you need to think about now. And especially after your surgery, you and your baby need to be your main priorities." Aijah explained and Mari nodded.

"As for Samiron, he's hurt. And the saying is true; hurt people, hurt people and that's what he's doing. Don't get it twisted though, he's definitely wrong for assuming the worst of you even though you've shown

him nothing but love. But what he needs to do is open his eyes and realize that not everyone is gonna play him like Lyric, or betray him like Dru. He needs to know that his lack of trust is pushing the people that care about him away."

"He's gonna feel like the biggest fucking idiot when he finds out that what he saw that night isn't really what happened. The reason he reacted the way he did is because he's experienced the same exact thing before. So once he saw you and TK, his mind went straight to assuming that this was season 2 of Lyric and Dru. He's probably somewhere sulking and telling himself that relationships aren't for him and some other bullshit."

Mari nodded and sniffed. "I see how he might've felt from his point of view but all I needed was five seconds to explain and he couldn't even give me that?" She shook her head.

"I know sis, and I'm really sorry that you have to deal with this especially when you just found out you're pregnant. But I got something for Samiron's long neck, giraffe built ass, just wait." Aijah mumbled and

stood up.

"Wait Aj! Don't talk to him about it."

"Mari, if he's not gonna hear you out he's gonna listen to me. You know why? Cause I'm going to fucking make him! He's somewhere in a pissy ass attitude when he should be here with his babymomma instead of stressing her the fuck out." Aijah snapped as she collected her stuff from around the office.

Upsetting her bestfriend was one thing but upsetting her knowing she's pregnant is a whole different story for her. Aijah definitely didn't appreciate Samiron immediately assuming Mari had been sleeping with TK behind his back like she's a hoe or something.

"I guess you're right. But do me a favor and please don't tell the others about me being pregnant."

"I got you. But do me a favor and don't let Samiron off the hook easily. He needs to trust you and understand that you aren't that Lyric bitch and he can't assume the worst of you every time shit goes left because you're always giving him the benefit of the doubt. He should be doing the same." Mari nodded and got up to hug Aijah.

"Thank you sis. Please don't kill my baby daddy." She mumbled into the hug. Aijah laughed. "You're welcome love, and no promises." She winked and walked out of the office doors.

Mari plopped back down on the couch and sighed. A part of her was extremely irritated that Samiron thought so low of her that he'd believe she was pregnant with TK's baby without any proof. But a small part of her understood why Samiron assumes the worst in people.

When your trust is betrayed continuously, you can't help but feel like everyone you attempt to trust after that is gonna use it to their advantage.

minutes later Aijah had already made it across Houston to the hood where Rell, Duck, Eli, and Samiron's trap is. She hated coming here cause she always passed by the house she got raped in a few years ago but she would do whatever she had to do

for Mari.

She knew which house was the trap since Rell had brought her over there a few times and made her stay in the car but she still knew her way around the house.

She parked her car on the side of the crammed, narrow street and got out, ignoring the stares and catcalls she got from some of the corner boys who were leaning against their cars. She didn't expect anything less from the hood niggas, especially today since she was wearing a bodysuit with no bra and Gucci slides.

She walked up the steps of the porch and just barged in like she owned the place. There were boys bagging weed, counting money, and a few just sitting around smoking. All of their heads snapped towards Aijah when she walked in loudly and a few clutched their guns.

"Hold up lil' mama, don't get shot na!" A nigga in the back yelled.

"On god. Thought I was goin' back to jail and shit." Another added, tucking his gun back in his pants.

"Shit, she could shoot me any day of the week. She's finer than a muthafucka." A lightskin nigga walked up to her and licked his lips.

"That's Rell's lady." Jaiden said warningly from the couch making the lightskin boy's eyes go wide.

"Oh my bad shorty, i'm uh legally blind." He scratched the back of his neck and walked back to the rest of the boys while Aijah rolled her eyes.

"Where y'all bosses at?" She ignored the stares she was getting.

All the boys either stayed silent or averted their eyes. They knew better than to talk about their bosses' whereabouts, even if she was Rell's girl.

"Hm. Now y'all mute." She shook her head and walked down the hall.

"Ass sittin' right in that bodysuit too." She heard a nigga mumble but she ignored it once again.

She walked down the hall and stopped at a door where she heard familiar voices coming from. "Eli probably got an STD by now." She heard Rell say.

"God give me strength." Aijah mumbled to herself.

She opened the door to be met with Samiron, Rell, Duck, and Eli sitting on a couch with their back's facing her, smoking and talking. She cleared her throat to make her presence known and they all snapped their heads behind them to look at the door.

Rell damn near choked on his blunt, "Gir-" He coughed and patted his chest. "Fuck you doing here?" He narrowed his eyes and stepped around the couch closer to her. Aijah stood there with her arms crossed and an unbothered look plastered on her

face.

"And what are you wearing this for?" Rell frowned looking her up and down.

"None of that is important, I came here for Mir." She announced.

Samiron turned around and looked at her through his red, hooded eyes. "Ma'am?"

"Yes you. So I'm gonna need the rest of you fuckers to exit, please and thank you."

"Ain't no way shorty ordering us around in OUR trap!" Eli threw his hands up dramatically.

"If I were you I would just leave. I think she be beating on Rell that's why he flinches every time she get close to him." Duck mumbled, picking up his phone and walking out the room in front of Rell and Eli who bussed out laughing.

"And don't stand near the door either. I know y'all are nosy." Aijah warned.

"Mhm, we know baby." Rell closed the door behind them. She could hear their voices fading down the hallway so she knew they actually left she took a seat on the couch across from Samiron.

"What do you need sis?" Samiron asked as he opened up another swisher and started rolling his second blunt.

"I'm going to need you to stop acting like a bitch." Aijah said bluntly. Samiron snapped his head up at her with his eyebrows raised.

"Excu-"

"No, excuse ME because last time I checked you're the one in love with my best friend so treating her like some random hoe off the street who's trying to pin a baby on you is uncalled for. She deserves respect and the chance to explain herself."

"But since you can't shut your mouth and open yo damn ears, ima make you listen to me and ima explain what the fuck happened that night since for some reason you're so quick to assume the worst in a woman that has shown you more love and care than a lot of your blood family members— and by the way YOU'RE the one who told me that." She snapped. Samiron stared at her in silence since the only people in his life who really tell him off are Zion, his dad, and Mari. Occasionally Rell too, but never Aijah.

Samiron leaned back onto the couch and sighed. He had already felt bad for the way he'd been treating Mari for the past few days but Aijah bringing up the fact that she's pregnant made him feel worse.

"I do love her." He truthfully said.

Aijah scoffed. "I know you do. But you don't treat people you love like that."

"I don't know man. As soon as I seen TK's mouth on her I wanted to put him through a wall. It was like deja vu with Lyric when I walked in on her and Dru fucking in my house. But this is different, I actually love Mari." He sighed and ran his hands over his head.

He knew he had no right to treat Mari the way he did, especially when he didn't bother to hear her out, but his mind automatically assumed that the same situation that happened a few years ago with his ex was occurring again. It wasn't his intention to assume the worst of Mari. But all the guards that he previously had up with Lyric forced him to.

"Well what you walked in on was nothing like what Lyric did. TK had her hands pinned up and he was kissing her but she wasn't kissing back. That jacket you saw on the floor? That wasn't them getting ready to do something. TK got mad and threw it when Mari kept telling him she didn't miss him." Aijah explained.

"You see? You see how I just explained that in five seconds? All Mari needed the other day was five seconds but you didn't even give her that! Instead you told her she was probably cheating on you with TK for weeks and that she went and got pregnant by him. That shit is unbelievable. Mari isn't a hoe and you and I both know that." Samiron held his head down and listened to Aijah.

He'd already been feeling like shit but now he felt even worse knowing the situation could've been over days ago if he had just shut up and let Mari explain herself. But his anger took over him when he saw her allegedly cheating.

He was going through the same emotions he'd felt years ago with his ex and his best friend and he didn't wanna hear anyone out. His trust issues forced him to assume the worst of the situation instead of stopping to think logically.