ONE.

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"I can't do this anymore, Sadè," her boyfriend of two years finally confessed.

"D-do what? What are you talking about, Jerrell..." Sadé spoke, mind running a mile a minute trying to figure out any outcome besides the glaringly obvious one.

"This, us. I can't. I don't think we're gonna work, Dae," he sighed, visibly watching her heart breaking before his eyes.

"Wha-why? What? D-did I do something wrong? Can-can we fix it?" she rambled, her brain not wanting to accept what he was saying at all.

"It's not you, Sadé. I love you—I just...I can't be the man to live up to your expectations for your life. I'm not ready for marriage or to have a family—I'm not ready to be committed to just one person for my whole life and honestly, Dae. I'm just...I'm not in love with you anymore,"

Those words bounced around in her head like a never ending echo ever since he uttered them.

She was silent, at a complete loss for words. She didn't know what to say or how to explain what she was feeling. She'd experienced a break up before but this was so unexpected, if didn't make any sense to her. This was supposed to be the last time, he was supposed to be the man she'd grow old with. She was in love with him, and now she had to watch him walk through the door, there was nothing she could do to stop it.

He hated seeing her cry, but this was something he had to do. "Hey hey, don't cry Sadé. I'm not just gonna abandon you, I got love for you, if you ever need me just call me, you know I'll be there," he wiped the tears from her face. She looked up at him and he smiled reassuringly. "I promise," he said, wiping another tear.

For some reason, that broke her heart further. An empty promise, a 'let's be friends'. As she looked up at the smile of the man she'd hopelessly fallen for, the tears fell more rapidly, because she knew, even if he meant well that promise was hollow. It was over now, and there wasn't a thing she could do to change his mind.

"Kash! Fat fat! Hello?!" her brother, Khyren's voice snapped her out of her sad memories as he repeatedly yelled her name.

"What, Khy?" she sighed, wiping her eyes. It had been about two months since that day, and as badly as Sadé wanted to say she was over him and moving on, it wasn't true. She still found herself crying listening to certain songs, her mind constantly drifted back to the day he broke her heart. She scrolled through pictures, she watched his instagram posts, she was sad all over.

"What you in here doin?! I gotta go to work man," he grumbled and she remembered she was washing her face and her mind carried her away somewhere completely different.

"I'm sorry," she mumbled as she opened the door, avoiding her brother's glare. "I got distracted," she sighed.

"Kash look at me," he said. She shook her head and was about to walk away until he held his arm out. "Sadé. You was in there cryin'?" he asked and she hesitated before nodding. She heard him sigh a little before he pulled her into a hug, instantly making her sadder, and she started to cry again. He rocked her side to side gently, wishing he could take his sister's pain away.

"You gon be aight, Kash. We got you, it's gon be aight," he sighed, rubbing her back.

"Hey daddy," Sadé smiled, walking into his barbershop. It was customary for her when she was staying at his house to come bring him lunch at the shop during the week.

"Hey babygirl," Donovan grinned seeing his youngest stroll in. "And what did you bring your old man today?" he wondered, leaning against his station.

"I made that nasty meatloaf you and Khy like," she chuckled and waved to some of her father's employees.

Donovan Bryant had owned his barbershop since Sadé was a little girl. She always remembered men—and sometimes women, coming in and out of her father's house to get their haircut when she was younger. Until he was able to save up enough for his own store front, that is.

"It's not nasty," he laughed. "How you been today?" he asked knowingly. He and his daughter were extremely close and knew all about her breakup.

"Oh I been alright, don't worry about me," she waved him off. Her parents both had the tendency to worry a lot about her when she was upset or sad, since Kash was typically such a happy and bright girl, her sadness seemed to be overwhelming. "How's your day been daddy?" she tilted her head.

"It's been good, sweetheart. Your brother is coming in later, that boy been overdue for one for weeks, walkin' around lookin' crazy," he shook his head.

"Khy? He was just here yesterday," she chuckled.

"No, Prince,"

"Oh! Yeah he looks a hot mess," she laughed. "That's because all Prince does is work," she pointed. She spent some more time with her dad while he ate his lunch and decided to head out, and visit her mom at work next.

Since Kash was done with all her classes and simply awaiting her graduation day, she didn't have much to do during the day, so she decided she's make herself busy by riding around Atlanta to bother her family members at their jobs.

She needed it especially now, because sometimes without Jerrell, she felt so alone. She felt abandoned, she knew that promise he made held no weight but a small part of her was still holding on to hope that he'd come through for her this last time. The bigger part of her knew better.

"Hey mama!" Kash grinned, entering the salon. Her parents met in high school, in their cosmetology courses. Bianca—her mother, was to be an all around beautician and her father, a barber. "You look pretty today," she kissed her cheek, saying hello to her mom's employees as well.

"Thank you, Dae. How are you?" she asked, just like her dad. Sadé repeated the same answer so she wouldn't cause any worries and asked her mom if she needed any help around the salon for the day.

"You need anything? Receptionist is off or something?" she wondered and her mom rolled her eyes. "Oop, what happened?"

"You know she steady callin' out, I got half a mind ta' fire ha' ass but she got a baby at home," Bianca shook her head. "If you could cover fa' me today I would appreciate it, mommy," she smiled and Kash giggled hearing one of her childhood nicknames.

Her parents told her they called her 'mommy' because she liked to boss her brother around. Her brother and any other small child in her vicinity. It started when she was a baby, and her dad called her fat mommy, and her nature as a toddler made it stick.

"Your step mom has an appointment today, I think she's coming at 1," Bianca said and Kash nodded, checking to see if her appointment was booked correctly. After many summers working at the salon, Kash knew how to work the register and the system better than the current receptionist.

She saw her step mother—Anaya in the system and her appointment was indeed at 1pm, so if her mom didn't need her she'd probably leave with Anaya.

Her parents were never actually married. They were barely dating when her mom fell pregnant at 19. She already knew Donovan had another son. Khyren and Sadé were only a year apart, Donovan and his baby mother had Khy when they were seniors in high school, and he began pursuing Bianca, and she got pregnant too.

Her parents relationship didn't work out but they remained friends and co-parents to Sadé, and did it well. She never saw her parents fight, she spent equal amounts of time with both sides of her family and when it came time to come together, for birthdays or celebrations—like her graduation party, they were more than happy to do it for their daughter.

Both of her parents got into separate relationships and she loved her step parents as well. Her step father, Lamarr, had a son who she was raised with and she considered him her brother as well—Prince. Her family was big, but she liked it that way.

"Fat fat! Get the door for me!" Khyren yelled from upstairs while she sat in the living room. She immediately rolled her eyes because she wasn't presentable in the slightest. "Kash!"

"Khyren please, I heard you," she sighed, shuffling toward the door. She was wearing a long fuzzy hooded robe and a satin scarf over her lace front until her appointment with her mom to get a new one installed for graduation. She also wore very big teddy bear slippers and and her glasses—she didn't want to see anyone at the moment.

She opened the door to see Khy's longtime best friends, Kasiah and Adonis, or Siah and Donny.

"Wassup, you look hit," Donny laughed and Kash punched his shoulder immediately. "You so damn heavy handed," he huffed.

"Shut the hell up, Adonis. Hello, Kasiah," she said.

"Hello, Sadé," he said. He rarely ever called her Kash, she didn't know why. "Where yo' brother at? What the hell you got on this tv?"

"Kasiah mind your damn business! This is my house," she fussed, snatching the remote from him. "I'm watching something," she grumbled, resuming 'Love Jones'.

"Man—KB! Where you at?" Donny yelled.

"Adonis you can leave, you know that right?" she whipped her head over to look at him. "You don't have to be here," she squinted her eyes.

"I'm just fuckin' wit' you lil sis! Come gimme a hug," he laughed and she shook her head when he stood up, actively trying to hug her while she sat down.

"Donny, please," she whined, slapping his arms away.

Eventually he left her alone, and Khy came downstairs to entertain his guests, so she excused herself to her bedroom, wanting some peace and quiet.

"She straight?" Donny asked KB. They all knew about Sadé's breakup, they hadn't seen her that sad probably ever.

"I'on know bruh, she be havin' her days, it's been weird as hell. She don't wanna go do nothin', she'on wanna eat shit, this not like her at all," KB shook his head with a sigh.

Kasiah knew what he meant, in the eleven years he'd known Kash and KB, she was never one to sulk. She was always ready to go somewhere and do something despite whatever was going on. In fact, most times when he and Adonis would come over, they'd see Kash dressed, and ready to leave. Whether she was going out with her best friends or she was just taking the family dog on a walk, Kash loved to move.

"Shit not cool that she feel like this man," Donny shook his head. "I hope she feelin' better soon," he said and Siah nodded in agreement. "What we finna get into?" he wondered.

"Me too. But we finna go out and eat, Ave and them wanna go to top golf," he shook his head, referring to his girlfriend of two years, Ava. "Been told shawty I'd take her, but—"

"But you a damn lie," Donny chuckled. Kasiah simply shook his head at his friends and stood up with them to get ready to go.

He wasn't the most talkative out of the group, he typically stayed quiet, unless he was directly spoken to or asked something. His friends claimed he looked mean all the time, but he just thought that was his face. He couldn't change his face.

"Siah you straight?" KB asked, snapping him out of his thoughts, and he nodded, grabbing his phone from his pocket as they headed to the garage door, but noise at the steps stopped them all.

"Bubs, you leaving?" Kash's voice sounded. Kasiah turned his attention to her, and looked her up and down briefly, still shocked at just how much her appearance alone was different.

"Yeah we gone. You wanna go?" he asked hopefully and she shook her head with a small, almost apologetic smile. "Pops gon' be home soon. Text me if you need me. I'a bring you back some wings, Brat," he called her by one of her million nicknames.

"Okay, thank you. Have fun you guys," she waved at them and they waved back before leaving the house.

"Man, Ava," Kasiah smacked his teeth. "I keep tellin' you I'on want her ass! Why you keep bringing her around," he gritted as Ava smiled innocently.

"She really likes you, Siah!" she protested, in reference to her friend—Camille. She had a crush on Kasiah and he didn't feel the same. He told Ava this, respectfully of course, but neither of them seemed to get the hint and now he was trapped on what felt like a triple date.

"Ava what the hell that got to do wit' me?" he straight faced her. "You know I'on do all this lovey dovey date shit," he sighed. He hadn't had a real girlfriend in a long time.

The last relationship he had wasn't bad—and it didn't end badly, they just knew they weren't for each other. He had yet to find someone who was 'for him', so at the moment he wasn't really looking or trying to find her.

Ava wasn't really helpful.

"Kasiah please just be nice. For tonight, can you manage that?" she pleased, hands together in a prayer motion. He groaned audibly and turned to walk back to where everyone was, and he heard Ava clap her hands in the distance.

"We're back with food!" Ava announced, causing the group to look over at them in anticipation. Kasiah's eyes shifted to Camille, who was grinning in his direction. He tried his best to keep his face from looking disinterested while going back to his place besides her.

The group chatted for a while while they ate and Kasiah was attentive, laughing when he found something funny, and adding his two cents when asked. He was trying his best to 'be nice' like he was asked, and so far he was doing well. At least in his own opinion.

"So Kasiah," Camille started, and he could immediately feel the hard work wearing off.

"Wassup?" he responded, turning slightly to face her. She wasn't an ugly girl, not in the slightest, but from the times he hung out with her he hadn't really been drawn to her at all. She was a nice person—just maybe not his nice person.

"I was just wondering," she began, tucking her long straight hair behind her ear. "If you wanted to go out again, maybe just us two?" she looked up at him through her lashes and he sort of felt bad.

"Listen," he tried to remain quiet so he wouldn't draw any attention. "I think you cool, real cool. But I'on really wanna waste yo' time, I'm not lookin' for nothin' serious, and I'on wanna confuse you or nun,'" he explained to her.

"W-well I'm not either, really," she quickly recovered with a slight shrug, but Kasiah had seen that before and he knew the line well.

"Well lemme get back to you onnat, aight?" he said, and she nodded, turning back to face Ava and KB. He softly exhaled, glad he dodged that bullet ane continued eating his food, watching Donny and the other girl—who's name he could not remember, play golf.

"You hell, Siah," KB chuckled once they were driving back to his house. They were pressing him to figure out what happened with Camille and immediately laughed when he told them.

"I'an do shit," he replied simply. "What, y'all wanted me to hurt the girl damn feelings?" he wondered. "Then it'd be 'Siah you mean as fuck,'"

"Well for one, you is mean as fuck," Donny prefaced, and he smacked his lips. "For two, you ain't did nun' wrong. It's just funny as hell, nigga got girls throwing they ass at his feet and he just ignore that shit?"

"I'm not ignoring nothing nigga I get mine," he shook his head. "I just don't need to get it from everybody in Atlanta," he said. "Y'all need to mind yo' business. Ain' we 'posed to be getting Sadé sum to eat," he pulled his phone out to avoid anymore conversation.

"Aw damn, you right lemme call her," KB spoke, dialing her number, everyone listening to it ringing through his bluetooth speakers. "Hey Fat fat," he said when she picked up.

"Hey," she replied in a raspy voice. From that, Siah could tell she was sleeping and just woke up, or she was crying again.

"You was sleep, mamas?" he wondered, trying to slow down as they approached a strip mall full of food.

"U-um no," she sniffed and a distant look crossed KB's face. "You okay?"

"I'm fine, you wanna eat? Dad brought you food?"

"No, I'm not that hungry, Khy," she sighed. Kasiah honestly felt bad for her, he didn't know every detail but he knew Kash really loved that man. She talked about him constantly, he put a smile on her face and it was sad to see her so broken up.

"You ain't eat all day, Sadé. I'm bringing you sum, you want popeyes or wings?" he asked and she sighed again before telling him she wanted popeyes and they hung up after that. "I wanna beat that nigga ass. She ain't cried this much since Pawpaw died

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