No More Hiding
The sun wasn’t fully up yet, but the sky was already pinking at the edges when Lailah stepped out onto the porch with her mug clasped between both hands. The air carried that cool early-spring promise — soft enough to breathe easy, warm enough to hope again.
She closed her eyes.
“Father… thank You for waking me up today,” she whispered. “And thank You for letting things fall into place the way they have. I just need wisdom. Timing. Peace. All of it.”
Her voice felt steadier than it had in months. Maybe years.
She exhaled slowly, watching the breath curl in the air.
Her mind drifted — uninvited but gentle — to last night. The way Julian had opened doors for her without making her feel small. The way he listened. The way he watched her like he was studying her strength, not her flaws.
She swallowed.
“Lord… is this You?” she asked softly. “Or is this just me wanting something I’ve been afraid to want for a long time?”
A train horn echoed in the distance, low and steady. She didn’t need an answer. Just the quiet reassurance that she was being held.
And for the first time in years, she felt it.
When she stepped back inside, Elijah was already up, leaning against the counter pouring cereal into a bowl.
He glanced at her — then did a double take.
“You’re smiling,” he said, narrowing his eyes like she was a puzzle he couldn’t solve.
“I always smile,” she said.
“No you don’t,” he muttered, shaking the cereal box for emphasis. “But I like it.”
She ruffled his hair — or tried to. He had grown taller than her these past few months, shot up by Willie Mae’s cooking and this season of unexpected stability. He ducked away with a laugh.
“You ready for today?” she asked.
He nodded aggressively. “AJ and Jo-Jo said they’re gonna show me that hook shot again. And Uncle Ray said he’s gonna fix the net on the hoop before everybody comes over.”
The way he said it made her chest warm — their family. Their people. Like he had stepped into something that had room for him.
“You excited?” she asked.
He tried to hide it, but his grin betrayed him. “Kind of.”
Lailah leaned against the counter, studying her son’s face — looser, brighter, freer. “Me too,” she said quietly.
Her phone buzzed on the counter.
Selena.
Lailah braced herself.
“You going where?” Selena demanded before Lailah could say hello.
Lailah smiled. “To Julian’s parents’ anniversary celebration.”
“You got invited to the family function? The big one? Oh, honey, you’re in it now.”
Lailah rolled her eyes, though her smile stayed. “It’s not that serious.”
“Child, shut up before lightning strikes your phone. Julian practically took you home to meet the ancestors.”
“Goodbye, Selena.”
“No. No. You listen to me. Wear something nice. Like… nice nice. And do that soft thing you do with your hair. Men like that.”
“You don’t know what men like.”
“Exactly! That’s why you should listen to me — I’m objective.”
Lailah laughed, shaking her head. “I’ll talk to you later.”
“Girl, you better! And record something for me. I need updates.”
She hung up, still smiling as she slipped her phone into her bag.
Later that afternoon, she and Elijah stepped out of the car and onto the wide Carter family property — a spread of grass, towering oaks, tables already set up beneath strings of lights. The smell of barbecue drifted through the air. Willie Mae stood near the porch shouting instructions at grown men as if they were children.
“Ray! Don’t you burn that chicken! And Julian, Lord have mercy, lift with your knees, not your back. You ain’t twenty no more!”
Elijah ran off toward AJ and Jo-Jo before she even finished greeting him.
Julian turned at the sound of her voice — or maybe at the feeling of her presence — and walked toward her wearing a smile that felt like sunlight.
“Thanks for coming,” he said, voice low.
“Thanks for inviting me,” she answered.
“Inviting you?” Willie Mae cut in, appearing out of thin air. “Baby, you family. Now go fix yourself a plate before these grown boys eat up everything.”
Lailah laughed, warmth settling in her chest as the evening unfolded around her.
Hours passed in a whirl of food, laughter, and stories. Julian’s mom teased him about losing to one of his younger brothers in spades. His dad cracked jokes that made half the cousins groan. Elijah played basketball with the older boys, surprising them with his height and jump.
As the sun dipped low, the first round of music started — Al Green, Frankie Beverly, Luther — the kind of soundtrack that made everyone sway a little.
Lailah stepped back inside to help one of the cousins refresh the drinks, then carried two pitchers out toward the yard.
That’s when she saw Julian waiting under the lights.
He didn’t call her name.
He didn’t wave.
He just looked at her like he’d been waiting for the exact moment she’d turn toward him.
She approached slowly, a little breathless from something she couldn’t name.
“What?” she asked, smiling despite herself.
Julian shook his head a little. “Come here.” He reached out his hand.
Lailah chuckled as she put the pitcher down. Then she slid her hand into his.
They walked a few steps until they reached the open space under the lights. He stopped, turning fully toward her. The music swelled — something slow, familiar, timeless.
He searched her eyes for a long moment.
“Why not here?” he murmured. “As many times as we’ve watched other people dance… why not us?”
Her breath caught.
Before she could think, he pulled her gently into him, his hand warm at her waist. She rested her hand against his chest, the rhythm of the music blending with the steady beat beneath her palm.
They swayed — slow, unhurried, like the moment itself had decided not to rush.
After a few minutes, Julian leaned back just enough to look at her face fully, the lights flickering in his eyes.
He moved a stray curl from her cheek.
Lailah blinked. “What?”
He didn’t answer.
He just kissed her.
Soft at first. Testing. Then deeper when she curled her fingers into his shirt, pulling him in the way her heart had been threatening to for weeks.
And just as the world narrowed to the space between their mouths—
“I KNEW IT!”
They broke apart to see Elijah standing with both arms raised like he’d just won a trophy.
Willie Mae shouted from somewhere behind him, “Well, PRAISE GOD, it’s about TIME!”
Lailah hid her face in Julian’s chest while he laughed — loud and warm and sure — one arm circling her waist, the other rubbing her back gently.
More teasing followed. Cousins clapping. His mama waving a napkin in the air. Someone yelling, “Go on, nephew!”
Julian lowered his voice, leaning close to her ear.
“No more hiding,” he said softly.
And for the first time in a long time, Lailah didn’t want to.
Crystal Writes 