Sitting in the five-star hibachi spot, Morgan’s leg bounced, impatiently. It had taken her a half hour to get to the restaurant, so Nish should have beaten her there. The tardiness added insult to injury. Nish was over an hour late and Morgan was beyond perturbed. Just as she reached for her handbag and arose from her seat, Nish came strolling into the restaurant with Messiah behind her. His head was down, as his fingers moved, swiftly, across his phone screen. Morgan’s heart sank like the Titanic. He was here with Nish, in all his Versace-wearing, freshly-twisted-locs-having glory, and Morgan was mortified. When he lifted his eyes, she saw surprise flash in them, briefly. Her presence was unexpected, she could tell. He quickly erased the emotion from his face and took a seat. Morgan only sat because her legs were no longer strong enough to hold her up.

“So sorry we’re late,” Nish signed. Nish was beaming. Messiah had bossed her all the way up. Her normal H&M threads were replaced with labels of her own. Her hair and makeup were professionally done, causing Morgan to wish she had taken the time to perfect herself before leaving the house. Nish had come to stunt on her and Morgan was burning with jealousy. She had no emotion about the things Messiah bought Nish. It was the time he gave her that made Morgan sick.

Morgan’s stomach was in turmoil, as she gave Nish a halfhearted smile. Her eyes stung with tears, as she avoided looking at Messiah altogether.

“I’m sorry too,” Morgan signed. “I actually have to go. I thought this was going to be a quick lunch. I promised Ethic I’d pick Eazy and Bella up from school.” She had no shame in lying, because if she sat there too long, the levee that contained her tears would break. The last thing she needed was to embarrass herself, yet again, in front of Messiah. She wouldn’t give either of them the satisfaction of seeing her cry. “I’ll text you later.” She got up and snatched her purse out of the seat next to her, before storming out the restaurant.