1st Love, 2nd Chance...3 Hearts Pt 3

The night Natalie and Hassan shared that moment in the truck...Vaughn's "spidey senses" were tingling. Natalie had come home and hour later than she'd asked him to meet her. He'd let himself in and was good and pissed when Natalie came in the house, rushed past him and took a shower. He thought it was weird behavior, but figured she'd probably just wanted to freshen up for him. He asked her questions, but she simply said that she'd had a nice night planned for them that didn't go as she'd hoped. She'd had someone bump into her, destroying the fruit and getting her sticky in the process...hence the shower. Vaughn had offered to shower her...she declined. She knew he'd want to have sex. She loved Vaughn and the sex with him was AMAZING, but she didn't like the idea of sleeping with two men in the same night. The romantic night she'd made a big fuss over, melted in the backseat of her truck with Hassan. Vaughn didn't feel right...but, Natalie had never lied. So, he left it alone.

Beryl came home that night after having been out shopping for her new job. She started the following week and felt it was very important to dress the part. By the time she'd come home, Hassan was cooking dinner for the two of them. He too started his job the following week, but was using the free time to get the house together. He couldn't get Nat off his mind. Every time he closed his eyes, he tasted her...all of her. His mind was so far off that he didn't hear Beryl come in or even speak his name twice. The third was loudest. "HASSAN! What the HELL?" Beryl shouted. Hassan dropped the spoon in his hand. "Oh, damn...I didn't hear you come in, baby." Hassan said, bending over to kiss her. Beryl's look was of confusion and worry. He seemed far off and distant for the past few days. Even the kiss he'd given her seemed lackluster. "Are you okay, Hassan? You feeling alright?" she asked, placing the back of her hand on his forehead. Hassan laughed. "Nah, I'm okay, ma. I just had a lot on my mind." Beryl wondered what was keeping him preoccupied...but, she didn't want to nitpick so no mention was made of it. Hassan on the other hand could tell that Beryl was catching on to his behavior. Since first seeing Natalie, his head had been in the clouds. Now that he'd made love to her...he wondered how he would EVER stop thinking of Natalie DaCosta.

A week or so afterward, Natalie and Layla were shopping. Layla's daughter was having a birthday and the sisters wanted to find some cute clothes. If Natalie had known that her sister wasn't trustworthy, she would’ve never spoken the words she did. "I saw Hassan again...and I think I fucked up." Layla's heart jumped and her stomach flipped. "What? What do you mean 'fucked up'?" By this time, Layla had quit walking at the same pace as Natalie and had come to a complete stop in the mall. Natalie stopped and turned around to walk back towards her sister. "Can we walk and talk?" Natalie asked. Layla picked her pace back up, but was taken off guard so badly that she had jitters. "...so, I go to the fruit stand to get fruit for me and Vaughn's night...cause I'm planning to take all my frustrations out on HIS ass in the bed..." Layla nods to affirm she's listening. "...so, I literally BUMP into Hassan's ass. Next thing I know, we're in the back of my truck fucking for old time's sake. I don't know what the hell I was thinking, but I know that NO ONE has ever made me feel the way he has. Sex with him is on some transcendental shit!" Natalie's going on and on about how good the sex was and how badly she felt...but, all Layla could hear was white noise. Nat's confession was making her nauseous. Finally she opened her mouth. "Wait, so are you gonna be FUCKING him on the side? While Vaughn plays the innocent idiot?" Layla blurted. "Lala...what the hell is wrong with you? Why are you talking to me like I'm some hoe? This is HASSAN we're talking about. You act like I do this shit all the time!" Natalie said, pissed. Layla caught the way she came off...but, by then...Natalie had too. Natalie had quit walking. "Is there a problem, Lala? Do you have something to say?" Layla began rattling off, "You're a grown woman, Nat...I can’t tell you how to live. But, you're doing to Vaughn what Hassan did to you. On top of that...you have NO clue about Hassan's intentions or whether he's even got your best interest at heart. Like I said before, I don't want to see you get hurt." Natalie was thrown off, but she knew her sister loved her. "I know, Lala...I guess it just took over us. I have no clue what to do next. Funny thing is we didn't even trade numbers or anything. It's like we both knew it couldn't go any further." Layla thought about it and said, "Or MAYBE, he's got someone at home just like you." The light bulb lit over Natalie's head. "Shit, Lala...you might be right."

Layla dropped Natalie off...dropped off her own bags...and began driving. She needed to breathe. In the years since she'd slept with Hassan, Layla couldn't stop thinking of the man that had such the effect on her that she'd willingly and purposely betrayed her sister. Layla began to wonder what she could do to put a stop to it. She didn't want Natalie and Hassan finding their way back to each other. Layla couldn't put her finger on when her obsession with Hassan started...or then maybe she could:

Hassan and Layla were 17...Natalie, 14. Natalie may have been the youngest, but she developed the fastest. Already wearing a B cup and sporting a sizable onion, Hassan had lusted for the pretty young Natalie. He and his brothers had known the DaCosta sisters, Layla, Natalie and Ariella (who was 19 and in college at the time) since Natalie was about 9. They lived right across the street and from time to time, the Lawrence brothers Hassan, Dennis, and Marcus walked the ladies to school. Dennis and Ariella were the same age, but never dated...while, Marcus had a crush on Layla and never told her. He was a year older than Natalie and knew that Layla would probably laugh at him. The kids played a lot in the park on their block...the park where Hassan first saw Natalie. Layla remembered the day she'd gotten cute to go to the park knowing the Lawrence boys would be there. Dressed in a tight jean skirt, a tank and pure white tennis shoes, Layla bounced into the park with her curly ponytail swaying with her movements. "Hey, Hassan what y'all doing?" "Nothing, just chilling. Bout to play ball." Hassan said, leaned against the swings. Just then, Natalie strutted past her sister and the boys on her way to the slide where she and her friends would take turns sliding down. Being too old for the slides didn’t keep the flirtatious girls from hanging there while the boys in the neighborhood hung around the swings. "HEY, Natalie...what’s up girl?" Hassan said cheesing from ear to ear. Natalie and her best friends, India and Toni giggled and Natalie responded. "Hey Hassan!" Layla spotted the eye contact and tried to ax the two teen’s exchange. "Take ya fast ass back home before I tell mommy you wearing Ariella's skirt!" Natalie rolled her eyes and said, “Why you gotta be telling all my business!" Hassan shook his head at Layla and said, "You probably look better in that skirt than Ariella's skinny butt ANY way!" Everyone laughed and left Layla standing in front of the swings while the boys met the girls at the slide. Layla got pissed and went home. She cried and never told anyone of her crush. Not long after Natalie graduated high school, she and Hassan began dating and Layla's hopes for love with him were dashed. Layla secretly hated Natalie for the entire three years the two were a couple.

It was unreal to her how much she longed for Hassan even after all those years. She and her children's father were married when she and Hassan had their one night stand. They'd been having problems since the beginning and finally divorced this year. Now, Hassan was back and there was a glimmer of hope for Natalie and Hassan to reunite. Unless of course, Natalie ended up finding out that her SISTER was the woman in her bed that weekend. But, was Layla willing to lose her sister? All for unrequited love?

Layla didn't remember how she got there...or even how she knew where he lived...but there she sat outside of Hassan and Beryl's apartment building. NOW what?