Butterfly 2

by Ashley Antoinette

“Alani is my meal. She fills me, nourishes me. I had to hunt her because a real woman knows how to evade you. They know how to maintain some control in their lives. It’s a must they retain some governance over themselves. So, I had to figure out how to get her to think that submitting to me was a choice and not dominance. If she thought I was trying to conquer her she would buck. She would go against what I wanted and the role I needed her to fill. So I hunted that. I caught that. Her heart you know? Hit every target with precision. Her heart. Her body. Her mind. Showed her a nigga could be her suitor. I proved to her over and over again that I could keep her safe, not just physically, but mentally and emotionally. By the time she even realized the game she was mine. Now she can’t live without a nigga, can’t breathe without me, don’t sleep right without me, body don’t react to nobody but me. I caught my meal. She fed me. Put everything in my belly that was needed to make me feel like a man and that pussy my nigga…”

“You got to lay bait for Mo that’s so tempting she can’t do shit else but bite,” Ethic said. “You got to feel good to her Messiah. You got to feel safe for her. You got to look nourishing. You want her to submit and open every part of her. You got to secure her. Throw out your bait to catch a queen. A queen is gon’ pick the safest kingdom. Your bait is the kingdom you build. The last name you’re offering. The history behind it…”

“Throw it back, man. Sometimes you catch something just to let it go. When it’s for you, you’ll know it. That ain’t our catch.”

Size the opposition up from a distance to determine if you’re going to allow access.

“The one who’s going to fuck shit up for every woman after this moment. You’re never going to be mine love, but I’ma always be yours. Whenever you need a nigga, you come find me. I don’t give a fuck about what happens between us. Good, bad. If you stay near, far. If we talk every day or if we haven’t talked for years. If you ever need to hit my line, don’t think twice, don’t talk yourself out of it. You call me and I’m pulling up dumping over you. Every time.”

“A Poem of Friendship” by Nikki Giovanni. We are not lovers because of the love we make, but the love we have.

“Love is a weapon if you don’t use it right,” Alani said. “Disarm yourself, Messiah.”

“And you should want to be that, Mo. You don’t know who you are. Are you his Shorty? My love? Your fiancé’s future wife? Who are you? Without niggas telling you who they want to turn you into?” Ahmeek asked. “You’re going to find somebody else,” she whispered. Worry laced every word. “I’m going to lose you.” Ahmeek tilted her chin, pinching it between his fingertips. “You’re going to find you, Mo. That’s worth losing anybody.”