Her Bundles Of Joy

“Don’t be annoying,” he grinned.

“Okay then. I’ll call Brandi and tell her you’re turning down her invitation to meet her.”

“What?!” Dani jumped out of the couch. “Are you serious? What are you talking about?”

“Oh, now you’re interested?” Nicole rolled her eyes. “Brandi offered me an opportunity to shoot a music video with her in a couple of weeks and she told me to take you with me to the studio. She wants to meet you.”

“How does she even know about my existence?”

“She heard you screaming like a madwoman,” Nicole told her friend. “Somehow, it made her want to meet you instead of advising me to have you committed to a mental institution.”

“Holy crap!” Dani jumped around. “Brandi Harris wants to meet me, George! She wants to meet me!”

George stood up slowly—his prosthetic leg prevented him from making sharp movements such as standing up too fast—and embraced his wife. He might not be a fan of modern music, but the blonde man knew just how popular and loved Brandi was. Especially by his wife; Dani had even stated that one of the conditions for her to marry him would be that they’d have a poster of Brandi Harris up on their bedroom wall. Despite not understanding how people could love a stranger that much, he happily complied with his wife’s wishes and respected her admiration for Brandi. George could only imagine how happy Dani must have felt upon hearing Nicole’s words.

“I told you you’d meet her one day, baby.” He smiled before planting a chaste peck on her lips.

“Wow, Nikki, that’s amazing. I always knew you’d make it big!” Leon exclaimed and pulled Nicole into an awkward side hug. Nicole knew that friends hugged all the time, but she feared that Leon would get the wrong idea if she were to let him envelop her in a tight hug.

“This is not me making it big yet, but thanks anyway.” Nicole smiled. “I’m only temporarily replacing one of her dancers that went through a medical procedure. Hopefully, she’ll give me a spot in her crew after the dancer is back, though.”

“She’d be stupid not to. You’re the best dancer she could possibly have by her side,” he said.

Nicole blushed. Her skin always warmed up when someone complimented her dancing skills. “Thanks, Leon.” The young woman cleared her throat. “Anyways, I better head home now, Dani.”

“Already?” The Latina pouted. “We didn’t even have a chance to gossip.”

“And whose fault is that? You were too preoccupied watching your game to pay me any attention.”

Dani rolled her brown eyes. “Who’s being dramatic now?”

“We can catch up over lunch next week? We literally work at the same place.”

“Yeah, but I rarely see you there. You’re always in class,” Dani said.

“You know I have to put in a lot of work to make ends meet. It’s not like I don’t want to spend time with my best friend, I just can’t afford to not work this much.”

“Nicole, I told you on more than one occasion that I can totally help you if you’re struggling with money,” Leon butted in. Nicole rolled her eyes at his statement.

“Yeah, of course I’ll take money from you just like that. I can take care of myself, Leon, thank you very much,” she said in an annoyed tone. Nicole wouldn’t be caught dead accepting money from her friend. Leon was very well-off but the dancer wasn’t after his money, nor did she want to give Leon a reason to believe she owed him anything. “So, lunch this week?” Nicole turned to her best friend.

“Of course.” Dani smiled. “I’ll drag you out of class if I have to.”

Nicole chuckled. She hugged her friend and her husband. “It was good seeing you, George.”

The ride back to her apartment was silent. Leon always got upset whenever Nicole refused his offer to help her financially. She understood that his intentions were pure, but over the past few years Nicole had spared no effort to achieve her independence and she wasn’t about to give it up. Accepting money from Leon would mean she wasn’t strong enough to support herself financially and that’d only prove her father’s point.

Anthony Carter had made sure to let Nicole know how displeased he was with her choice of moving out and living her own life. He said it loud and clear that Nicole wouldn’t be able to support herself and would crawl back to the safety of his house in no time. You’re just a woman. You need a real man to provide for you, he used to say. Nicole refused to prove his point, which was why she never accepted Leon’s offer in spite of how difficult life could get sometimes. The poor guy wasn’t to blame, as he had no idea of the history between Nicole and her father, but she’d never be okay with accepting his offer anyway. She wanted to prove her father wrong, but most of all Nicole wanted to prove to herself that she was perfectly able to live a good life without needing to accept money from a man, or anyone else for that matter.

“Look.” Leon broke the tense silence once he parked his car in front of Nicole’s apartment building. “I’m sorry for offering my help back there.”

“It’s okay,” Nicole muttered while staring out the window of his car. “Just don’t do it again. Especially not in front of my friends. I don’t want anyone thinking I’m not able to provide for myself.”

“Nicole, nobody thinks that! We all know how hard-working you are, and I really admire that about you. You’re a strong, independent woman, but that doesn’t mean you can’t accept help. You don’t have to struggle alone. I’m here for you, I want to help you.”

“But I don’t want help! How difficult is it for you to understand that? I’ve been fending for myself since I moved to New York and not once did I ask anyone to help me. I won’t change that about myself for you, Leon.”