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Tyler Alexander Sims was born at five minutes after 7:00 on the fifth day of the seventh month. He only weighed five pounds, seven ounces, and although he was born premature, he was healthy. For that reason, his father felt he should be named Seven Cinque Sims, which would be a tight name should his son want to embark on a future career in hip-hop. His mother, who already had plans for her son to be either a biochemist or a heart surgeon, instinctively said no to such a ridiculous name. They did, however, agree that he was the most adorable baby they had ever seen.
Not only was Terrell present for the delivery, he even cut the cord. And when he looked into his son’s eyes for the first time, he wept like he had never done before. He looked over at Nicole, who was crying as well, and told her, “Thank you. You have always been a remarkable woman, but this is the most remarkable thing I have ever seen. Thank you for letting me be here with you.”
“You were there with me the entire time, Terrell. I love and appreciate everything you’ve done over the past few months. Now you’re ready to be a father and my husband.”
He took his son into his arms and carried him over to his mother. He had never felt so complete in all of his life. He was glad that he had made the changes he did, because having Nicole and his son in his life made it well worth it.
The nurse came in and said that she was going to take Tyler and let Nicole get some rest. Terrell kissed Nicole and told her he would be back by the time she woke up, then followed his son, making sure he got to the nursery safely.
“You did good, Terrell,” Arianna said as she walked up to him.
“You did good too, Ari. You held it down for my girl, and we have a healthy son. I don’t know how I can ever repay you.” He hugged her.
“Oh, I’m sure you’ll think of something. How about something big and expensive, like oh, let’s say a Benz?” she laughed.
“Sure. After my son’s first album goes platinum, I got you.” He nodded. “Where’s Gary? I’m surprised he hasn’t shown up yet to regulate.”
“Well, you know we’re not together since he can’t regulate what time to come home at night. He thought that just because I was staying with Nicole he could go out and do whatever.”
“Take it from someone that knows firsthand, that’s the easiest way to lose your woman,” Terrell told her.
She went inside to see Nicole and he went off to find Toby, who hadn’t shown up yet.
As he was headed to his car, Terrell found his brother sitting outside the front of the hospital.
“What are you doing out here, Toby? I thought you would’ve been up to check out your new nephew.”
Toby nodded. There was something about the way he looked that worried Terrell.
He walked over and sat beside Toby on the curb. “What’s going on?” he asked.
“Too much to tell. Where do I even begin?” Toby shrugged and looked down.
“You been here all day?”
“Yep.” Toby nodded. He picked up a pebble that was next to his foot and threw it.
“Come on. You can treat me to breakfast and tell me all about what happened.”
Terrell held his hand out. Toby looked at him then grabbed it, pulling himself up. They went into the hospital cafeteria and each got a cup of coffee. Finding a table in the far corner, they sat and Terrell listened as his brother recounted everything that happened after he left the cookout. At the end of his story, he reached into his beat up sneaker and pulled out the ring he took back from Roni. It was then that Terrell truly saw how hurt his brother was.
“I’m sorry about all of this, Toby. I’ll be the first one to tell you that what happened last night was messed up. I mean, I never would’ve thought that Roni would even cheat on you.”
“Join the club. But she did—not only once, but twice, and with the same guy, at that. I guess I must be real stupid, huh? I wonder what he had that I ain’t have.”
“Don’t be stupid. That’s Roni’s loss, not yours. You have a lot. She just threw it away. Just like I did with Nicole, but I was blessed enough to get it back, and I am not losing it again. I think when you lose it, it makes you appreciate it more, because then you realize how you really fucked up after it’s too late. And then, if you’re ever given that second chance, you’ll do whatever you can to make it even better than when you first got it, if it’s true love.”
“Terry, what the hell are you talking about?” Toby asked with a frown.
“Man, who cares? All I know is that I been up all night, my girl took me back, I got a new son, and life is good. Yesterday my life was at the worst possible point I thought it could be, but today it’s at its best. What a difference a day makes, huh? Come on. Let’s go buy some It’s a Boy stuff for little Seven.”
“You named him Seven?”
“No, Nicole made me name him Tyler Alexander Sims, but Seven would’ve been a tight name, huh?”
“You gave him my middle name?” Toby beamed.
“Yeah, I wanted the middle name to be Cinque, but let me explain why . . .” Terrell put his arm around his brother as they walked out of the cafeteria and he explained the method to his madness.