Torn In Between the Two.

Prologue:

A’mina had been neglected by Hakeem since he started this new job. His career seemed more important than her at times, and she could no longer keep tabs on how often she’d been put on the back-burner due to his work addiction. He’d wake up talking about his prestigious position, then go to bed talking about it too. He wasn’t emotionally present when she needed him to be, but his physical companionship was nothing short of satisfaction. Hakeem’s perpetual habits and disappearing acts caused her to distance herself and branch out— searching to fill the void that he left empty. 

Monday-2:22 a.m.

The phone rang. “Hello?” A’mina answered in her raspy, sleepy voice. “Hellooo?” she repeated.

“What up?” said the voice on the other end.

“Chad?” asked A’mina.

“Yeah, it’s me. What are you up to? Did I wake you up?”

Amina pulled the phone away from her ear and looked at it with squinting eyes—wondering if this phone call was actually happening in the wee hours.

“Umm…you do know that it’s two o’clock in the morning, right?” A’mina inquired, trying her best not to sound rude.

“Yeah, but I wanted to hear your voice,” Chad responded.

A’mina quickly hung up the phone, in fear that the masculinity in his voice would be overheard if she continued talking to him. She activated the do not disturb feature and placed her phone face down on the nightstand. The comforter tugged as Hakeem turned his body towards her.

Hakeem’s lips parted, “Mina?”

“Huh?” she replied.

Hakeem, now looking up at the ceiling, called her name once again—and this time, more stern, “Mina?”

A’mina adjusted herself to lay parallel to him, now looking at his side profile.

“Yes, Hakeem?” she said in annoyance.

“Who were you on the phone with?” he asked.

A’mina sighed, “Nobody.”

Hakeem’s head turned slowly from the ceiling to A’mina. Streaks of the orange streetlights peaked through the blinds, exposing the seriousness on his face and breaking the darkness in the room. He could feel her lies, crawling through his veins in rage, yet in sorrow, knowing that her love was slipping away. Their bond had become abandoned and he took accountability for it, yet he never admitted it. He only knew one thing that would keep her under his wing and coming back for more—hoping she wouldn’t share what was once all his with any other man. On the other hand, he wasn’t sure how long that thing would suffice, but he gave it to her as often as his job would allow.

A’mina’s throat was embraced by Hakeem’s large hand as he placed his weight onto her and inserted himself into undeniable bliss. He stared into her eyes, trying to salvage what was left of their relationship, and she stared back. His jaw muscles flexed as he bit down on his teeth from the intensity of pleasure. Her lotus became more and more saturated as he grew inside of her. Their sounds of love-making caused the tenants beneath them to bang their ceiling, in hopes of quieting them down. That was a fail.

Orgasmic vibrations dominated A’mina’s entire being. She had no self-control and came all over Hakeem. Her warm fluids provoked him. He was always up for a challenge. He wanted more of her, and vice versa. Her head was faced down and buried between the pillows as Hakeem brought her lower torso upward, towards him. Both of her apertures were flaunted in his view, and so were her back dimples that he admired so much. He tapped her anus with the head of his manhood, then inserted into her womanly womb. Grabbing her waist with both hands, he began slowly and sensually stroking her. Removing one hand from her waist, he grabbed her butt cheek and started caressing it as he continued. Hakeem then placed his thumb over her unaccompanied hole, and began moving it in a circular motion. He got another rush out of her—inciting his. Hakeem sped as he got more and more excited. He interlocked his fingers behind his head and closed his eyes—savoring the moment. A’mina felt him tense up and prepared for his outpouring. Holding her down to receive all he could give, Hakeem exploded into A’mina’s canal for the first time throughout their two-year relationship. Love, resentment, and frustration clouded A’mina’s thoughts as Hakeem pulled her into his chest. Although Hakeem felt as though he might’ve trapped her, Amina was smarter than he thought.

5:17 a.m.

Hakeem’s alarm alerted after he snoozed it twice. He headed to the bathroom and closed the door in efforts not to wake A’mina, but she was never asleep. A’mina overheard him brushing his teeth, then turning on the shower. She picked up her phone and noticed three missed calls and seven messages from Chad.

A’mina got worried and considered it safe to call him back, so she did.

Chad answered, “Look. I’ve been calling you, messaging you, what’s up? Just be real and tell me what it is. If I’m a nuisance, tell me. If I’m not, tell me. Tell me something.”

Just the sound of his voice gave her butterflies, yet guilt filled her conscious when she recognized his sincerity.

“I mean, I was honestly offended and caught off guard when you hung up in my face. I found that to be very disrespectful, love. I would never do that shit to you, “Chad confessed.

“Chad, I didn’t mean anything by it. It was late and I was asleep,” A’mina explained.

Chad wasn’t buying her excuses. “A’mina, how many times have you woke up and stayed on the phone with me while I worked the graveyard shift over the past few months of us kicking it? What’s different now?”

A’mina was speechless because she knew it was true. What was different was the fact that Hakeem’s new position also came with new hours. She was used to him being out of the house and on the road by 1:45 a.m., being that he had an hour commute and liked showing up early.

The bathroom door opened and she laid on her side with the phone tucked between her ear and the pillow. She pretended as though she was still asleep, but observed Hakeem’s every move. He placed his uniform on, sprayed on a few pumps of cologne, and gave her a forehead kiss. She kept her eyes closed until she heard the front door close behind him and his car pullout from the driveway.

Adjusting the phone to her liking, A’mina continued with Chad, “Let me make it up to you.”

“Make it up to me? Hmm…aight. I get off at seven. Is that cool?”

“Cool,” A’mina said, smiling from ear to ear. Not even a man who she’s been with for years made her grin the way Chad did.

After resting her eyes for a while, A’mina cleaned herself up and locked Hakeem’s door behind her. She headed to her apartment and assembled her patio table for her and Chad to eat a home cooked breakfast on. She whipped up home fries, scrambled eggs, and a few slices of turkey bacon. As she began preparing the plates, Hakeem sent her an “I Love You” message, elaborating that his love for her was never lost and how he hoped she would find her love for him again. The message hit her like a ton of bricks. Neither Chad, nor Hakeem knew about one another. A’mina tried keeping things balanced, believing that what they didn’t know wouldn’t hurt them, and meanwhile she was hurting herself. She was in too deep, never thinking she could be in love with two men—but she was: Hakeem, the businessman who was financially stable and fulfilled her lustful desires, then Chad, who was more rough around the edges and knew what to say and how to say it, whom she shared undeniable chemistry with. She felt stuck in between a rock and a hard place, as she juggled between a man who stroked her physically and a man who stroked her emotions like no other.