100. Men ⚔️

I woke up way too early. I can't believe my eyes saw seven in the morning. I tried to go back to sleep, but I was just lying in bed with my eyes closed. Instead of forcing myself back to sleep, I grabbed my phone and went to my Bible app. I'm gonna have to make this a routine. I said a prayer before going to the book of John and read the first chapter as Cha-Cha suggested.

"Wow! That was powerful. I didn't expect to hear so much about Jesus. I mean, duh, Jamie. What am I saying?" I thought before speaking aloud, "So... this chapter is really honing in the importance of Jesus as the Son of God. Let's read Matthew chapter one next."

I went to the book of Matthew, and I read the first chapter.

"An entire family tree from Abraham to Jesus. I wish I could trace back my family genealogy. I didn't know the Bible traced the bloodline like that. This is history."

Then, I went to the book of Mark and read the first chapter.

"That's so simple. Repent and believe in the gospel. Why have the preachers I heard made being saved sound so complicated?" I shook my head as I continued to read.

"What a time to have been alive to see Jesus and to see him healing people. I would've been following him everywhere if I could." My own words surprised me. "God, what are you doing to me? I'm talking to myself. No! I'm talking with You. That's right. I'm talking to God. God, this is really, really good. I wish I would've read it sooner."

Finally, I read the first chapter of Luke.

"Wait-a-minute, Elizabeth and Mary are cousins? That means that John the Baptist whose mama is Elizabeth and Jesus whose mom is Mary are second cousins. Right? That's so amazing. The man I read about who was baptizing people and talking about the coming Messiah was John who is related to Jesus. This was enlightening. I really learned a lot."

I was quiet as my thoughts turned flips and did acrobatics. Finally, I pointed to the ceiling. "This is just between me and you, God. I'm gonna do better by my cousin. I'm gonna have more patience with her, but I'm gonna need your help. You know how she is."

On that note, I closed my Bible app and got out of bed. Two hours had flown by, and it was time to get ready for the day. After a shower, I put on a black V-neck shirt, a long denim skirt, and black sneakers. I grabbed my phone to check the time. It was 10:45 a.m. I wonder if Cha-Cha is free today. I decided to call her.

She answered on the first ring. "Good morning, Jamie!"

I exclaimed, "Good morning, Cha-Cha! How are you?"

"I'm well. And you?"

"I'm up," I giggled. "I was calling because my friend A.B. is in L.A. today, and I remember the last time we talked that--"

Cha-Cha interrupted me, "No need to explain. What time are you coming over?"

"He's going to pick me up between 11:30 and noon, and then we'll be headed to your house."

"Okay. Just text or call me when you're about five minutes away. I'll meet you two downstairs when you get here."

"Sounds good. Thanks, Cha-Cha."

"Anytime. I'll see you soon."

We hung up.

Now, the only thing I was a little nervous about was A.B. and Deonte meeting. I might as well call Deonte and give him the heads up.

I stood in front of my bedroom window as I placed my phone to my ear. It rang twice before I heard Deonte's voice. There was loud music playing in the background. Then, I didn't hear it anymore.

"What's up, Jamie? What are you doing this morning?"

I just loved how enthusiastic he sounded. "Hey, Deonte! I was calling to let you know that I will be visiting Cha-Cha in a little bit..." Words don't fail me now.

Deonte chuckled, "Can't go too long without her cooking. I understand."

"Yeah. Also, my friend A.B. is here, and I wanted him to try her cooking, too."

"Oh," he responded.

I asked, "Will you be there?"

Deonte answered, "I'm at the studio, right now, but I'll try to make it. Do you know how long you'll be there?"

"No, but I'd like for you and A.B. to meet before we all get in the same car to go to the New Year's Eve party."

"I hear ya," Deonte stated, "I'll be on my best behavior to try not to judge your friend."

I rolled my eyes as I smiled. "Sir, be nice."

Deonte chuckled, "You've been adopted into the Denfield family. Cha-Cha may not tell you this, but she's gonna be checking your friend to see if he's good people."

"She told me, but she said it in a way to where..."

Deonte said, "She used one of her advanced vocabulary words, and you took it as kindness."

"Ummm..." I had no words.

We both laughed.

I finally said, "Sir, I better see you today."

"Ma'am, I'll be there."

"Good! I'll see you later."

"Bye, pretty lady."

"Bye!" I hung up the phone.

This is going to be interesting.

The time had come for me to meet A.B. downstairs. I should've known better than to try to sneak out. Monica was standing in front of A.B.

I closed my eyes and shook my head as I hid by the side of the house. I just know she is going to say or do something to embarrass me. No, Jamie! Remember, today is a new day. You just read the Bible, and you even said you're going to treat your cousin better. Right? Right!

I left the side of the house and walked towards the two.

A.B. nodded his head while Monica talked about nothing important.

"Good morning," I spoke to them.

Monica turned around. "Cousin! I was just telling A.B. that you were probably oversleeping, because you were dreaming about him."

I swallowed my words before glancing at A.B.

"Hey, beautiful," he greeted me.

"Hey, handsome."

Monica stared at us. "Y'all can at least hug. I already seen you kiss."

I looked up at the sky. This has to be a test.

"Will you and Zeke be hanging with us today?" A.B. asked her.

Monica replied, "No. We have our own plans. On that note, y'all have fun. Buh-bye, love birds!" Monica waved at us before going back inside the house.

A.B. smiled at me. "Seeing you now, I realize I've missed you more than I thought I did."

"Are you just saying that?" I joked.

He shook his head. "Not at all. So tell me... what are we doing today?"

I asked, "Have you ate anything?"

"No."

"Perfect. I have arranged for us to eat the best food in L.A. by the best chef to ever cook. Her name is Cha-Cha, and she is waiting for us."

"You hired a chef?" A.B. asked me.

"That's for me to know and for you to find out."

A.B. opened the passenger's door for me. I got in his rental Audi. He got in the driver's seat and followed the directions to Cha-Cha's condo.

"Catch me up," A.B. stated. "How's Jae A.B.'s life going?"

I glanced over at him. "You mean how's my career going?" I corrected him.

A.B. smirked, "Forgive me. Yes."

I sighed, "Truthfully, it could be better... I don't want to tell you this, but I've already told other people."

A.B. continued to listen to me as he drove.

"On Tuesday, this week, I had a meeting with my team about upcoming projects, my album, sponsorships - all that. Afterwards, I had a meeting with Ricky Santana. I didn't know what he wanted to talk about, but I didn't think it would be what it was." I looked down at my skirt and straightened out the wrinkles with my hands. "He, uh... He told me that I had to perform at his New Year's Eve party."

I looked at A.B. I clarified, "He threatened me. He said if I didn't perform at his party, he would make sure my album never gets released."

"Did he touch you?" A.B. asked me.

"No," I answered. "He just took off my sunglasses and hat."

"That's touching." A.B. was quiet for a few seconds. Then, he pulled into a nearby parking lot. He parked the car and looked at me. "This happened on Tuesday? The party is tomorrow night. And you're performing?"

I answered yes to all his questions.

"I understand that you have a contract, but that contract became null and void when he threatened and touched you. I'll call Rochelle in the morning to see what can be done."

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you before. My timing was off."

"I don't care if you told me next year. I care about you, Jamie. What happened to you was not right, and if we don't take action, I know he'll do it again. He was testing the waters to see how far he could go. You understand what I'm saying?"

I nodded my head. "Yes. I already talked to Rochelle. She said I would need evidence to sue him, but I can sue RiSe Records for buying my song, knowing that the person or company they bought it from stole it from me."

A.B. shook his head. "I'm glad that you talked to Rochelle. We'll talk about this later. Okay?"

"Okay."

A.B. got back on the road. When we were nearby, I sent a text to Cha-Cha. Minutes later, A.B. pulled up to the parking garage just as Cha-Cha walked out the door on the other side of the gate. She waved at me.

A.B. rolled down my window.

"Cha-Cha!" I waved back at her.

"Put in 407163428 pound or hashtag," she told us.

A.B. did as told. The gate opened. He drove in the garage.

Cha-Cha informed us, "Park in visitors. Anywhere on this floor."

A.B. found an empty spot and parked the car. Then, he rolled up my window. As I checked my face in the visor mirror, A.B. got out and walked over to my side of the car. He opened my door.

I didn't look sad, but I felt sad. I looked at A.B. and he whispered to me, "I would hug you, but you said I wasn't allowed to."

I immediately smiled. He remembered!

A.B. helped me out of the car. Together, we walked over to Cha-Cha.

"Ooh, I like your skirt. You make me want to pull out my skirts and dresses," she complimented me.

"Thank you and you should," I agreed. "Cha-Cha, this is A.B., my friend. A.B., this is Cha-Cha, my private chef. She just doesn't know it, yet."

They both lightly laughed before shaking hands.

"Nice to meet you, A.B."

"Likewise, Cha-Cha."

"Oh!" I covered my mouth. Then, I dropped my hands to my sides. "Why did I introduce y'all by your nicknames? My bad. Cha-Cha's real name is December Denfield. A.B.'s real name is Jace Bravos."

They looked at one another, enlightened by their names.

"I'm glad you cleared that up," A.B. admitted.

"Right!" Cha-Cha agreed, "Even though, I do know a few people who have two letters as their real name."

A.B. said, "My grandfather's name was LJ."

"Really?" I just learned something new.

"Yeah. I think his dad didn't know how to spell it, and just went with the letters L and J."

"Amazing," Cha-Cha spoke, "So, are you hungry? Because I just finished cooking."

"Yes!" A.B. and I said in unison.

"Follow me." Cha-Cha led us inside the building, onto the elevator, and finally inside her apartment.

My heart almost came out my chest when I saw a man sitting on the couch. He turned around, and I quickly looked at A.B.

"Oh, this is my brother Deandre. He's always over here eating my food."

Deandre waved at us. Why does he and Deonte look so much alike from the back?

"You remember Jae A.B. Well, this is her friend, A.B."

Deandre said, "I get it now. That's your man's name? Bro, that's loyalty."

"Ignore him," Cha-Cha told us before leading us to the kitchen. "Have a seat right here at the bar while I get your plates." Cha-Cha went over to the stove.

A.B. and I sat next to each other on the bar stools. He glanced at me. "Thanks for bringing me here."

"Don't start thanking me until after you've ate," I told him.

Cha-Cha sat two full plates in front of us. "Here you have two sliders on lightly buttered and toasted brioche buns, sweet potato fries lightly salted with ranch dipping sauce. Then, there's a kale salad coated in Balsamic Vinaigrette with boiled eggs, and..." She opened the refrigerator and grabbed two drinks. "...Mango Sweet Tea with ice." She put the drinks in front of us. "Enjoy!"

A.B. held his hands out. Automatically, Cha-Cha and I took his hands in ours. Then, Cha-Cha and I held hands. A.B. prayed over the food while the food preyed over me. What kind of food attacks the tastebuds of the person that's going to eat it? My nose kept flaring with every inhale. As soon as I heard Amen, I dug in.

The first bite went to the slider. The second bite went to a sweet potato fry, and the third bite went to the kale salad. My tongue tried to bathe in every crumb, but my intestines were a vacuum.

"I'll take that as you both like it," Cha-Cha stared at us.

A.B. nodded his head. "This is incredible."

"Can you pass me a napkin?" I asked Cha-Cha.

She handed one to me.

"I just have one wish... one wish, one wish, one wi-iiii-ish..."

"One wish, one wish, one wiiiisshhh..." Someone sang along.

I smiled at A.B., but he was looking behind me.

I continued to sing as I turned around to see Deonte. I stopped singing.

Deandre said, "For y'all to be playing, y'all sound good together. For real."

I narrowed my eyes at Deandre. The fifth wheel needs to roll along.

Deonte lightly grabbed my shoulders. "What's up, Jae?"

"Where's your manners?" Cha-Cha asked her brother.

Deonte removed his hands from my shoulders. "I'm Deonte - Jae's closest friend... in the industry." He held out his hand.

"I'm A.B." He stood up and shook Deonte's hand. "We're just as close as our names."

"I heard about that," Deonte admitted. "Jae told me when we were together."

I broke their firm handshake with my hands. "Umm... How 'bout them Cowboys?"

I can't even taste the food, anymore!