Free You Can't Help Who You Love by Tierra Hopkins

would you like to see her?” she asked me. I was in a trance, so all I could do was nod. The moment I laid eyes on my daughter, I fell in love and I completely understood what Elaine was talking about. Our daughter was the spitting image of her.
    “Miracle,” I whispered to the doctor.
    “Sir?” she asked, not knowing what I said.
    “Miracle,” I repeated. “We are going to name her miracle,” I said. Since that day, I was a single father of three kids and might I add, I was doing damn good at it. I missed my wife terribly, but I knew I couldn’t bring her back, so I would cherish my kids because that’s the only real thing she left me. From that day forward, I was the best father I could be to all three of my children and I let them know every day that their mother loved them, no matter what.
    I was deep in my thoughts when I felt a hand touch my shoulder. I instantly cringed because it was Missy. I didn’t want her. I was just using her to keep my mind off Elaine. I could be feeling her one day and the next, not. I wanted my wife back in the worst way. I would give it all up just to have her back with me.

Miracle
    It took Halee and I damn near hours to get ready to go chill with the guys. I was in my feelings, but I brushed it off as I strutted into the condo Dallas owned, behind Quis and Halee. I was fucked up about seeing Dallas and Danielle in the bathroom together, but I wouldn’t let that shit get me down. I had to bounce back right quick. I’m too pretty to be hurt. I’d just shake back and show you what you’re missing and be done with it. Though that’s what I was thinking, all that shit went out the window when I saw him sitting on the couch with a small, tight fitting white tank top and some gym shorts. I pretended not to be looking as I watched him and Quis dap one another up. Like I figured they would, Halee and Quis walked off, leaving me in there with him looking stupid.
    “What’s your problem M?” he asked me.
    Like I was waiting on him to say something to me, I nutted up on his ass. “WHATS MY PROBLEM? Nigga, you are my muthafucking problem. I thought we were bonding? How could you fuck me and fall off the face of the earth, no texts no calls, not a thing!” I rambled off at him. That shit really bothered me because I had been feeling his ass for him to pull a Houdini on my ass.
    He didn’t say a word; he just stared at me like I was crazy. “Can’t talk now though, huh?” I asked him.
    “Man, M. Go on somewhere with that shit man. You tripping; you in here fussing about bonding but look at how you acting ma. We aren’t even in a relationship, so you mean to tell me if we dated, this is how you will act too, if I’m at work or some shit?” he asked, glaring me down. He was right. I was way in over my head right now. This wasn’t me at all and I wasn’t liking it.
    “Ok,” I simply said, sitting down.
    “Ma, if this is gone happen, it’s going to happen. Don’t force it. It’s cool because I like your little ass too! We’re just taking it slow. I didn’t hit you up because I needed to reevaluate everything. You liable to have me out here fucked up. I haven’t been like that with a female since I was with Danielle’s ass. And yes, before you started talking over me and shit, yeah, we were fucking with one another tough. Shit had to end because she was the hood hoe. No, we don’t date now, shit, we don’t even fuck. She just sucked me up from here to there. We broke shit off three years ago and I don’t plan on making shit work nowhere near soon. If I had to choose, it would be you. But let’s just let this shit happen on its own, if it’s meant to,” he told me.
    I respected everything he had said because most niggas ain’t gone tell you nothing like that. So, he was right. “Well, I’m just letting you know, I won’t wait on you. I’m sure that you’ll be doing you, so I’ll be doing me too. Time doesn’t wait on any man, and it won’t start with