Chapter 26 - Be Normal Pt. 1

Marshall's POV:

— Monday, September 26th, Detroit

It was Monday and I was back in my own space. I was at the studio, currently laying some bars for a feature on Nicki Minaj's song that we were collaborating on called "Majesty." She was actually in the studio with me as I speak. It was being produced by Labrinth & myself, who was also on the song and in the studio too. He gave me the thumbs up that the recording started and the beat started playing in my ears through the headphones. I began to rap:

"She invites me to the condoUh-oh, wifey's in Chicago (Oh, oh)My side piece, but she's alsoSomeone's wife, so time we spend is borrowedBut it's our moment right here, fuck tomorrow'Cause moments like these are to die forAnd she's clear, all nice and easyAs hair when I'm bleaching it blondeSo we got that lightning in a bottle (Oh)"

"She's tipsy, I'm soberSo she gets a chip on her shoulderSits on the sofa, I go to load aSlick Rick song or throw some Souls of Mischief onShe goes, "All that old school hip-hop is overThink that shit's got pneumonia"I told her, "Bitch, now, just hold up!"That's why rap needs a doctorOur genre's lymph nodes are swole upIt's time to check it for strep or some tonsillitis'Cause like what they swab you with when your throat hurtsThat's why Tribe is so vital: we need Q-Tip for the culture(Speed it up a little bit)You ain't dealin' with a fuckin' featherweightI used to medicate until I'd get a fuckin' bellyacheAnd now I'm finna step on the pedal, don't wanna ever brakeI want to accelerate to a level that I can elevateDemented with the pen, I'll make the mothafucker detonateI wanna make it acapella—wait, I gotta set a dateWith the devil and celebrate, together we can renovateAnd re-develop, Hell awaits, and I'ma get a special placeNow, take a ride with me, hop into my time machineI'ma take the driver's seat as I thrust into hyperspeedLike I'm a meteorite, and mothafuck the fucking mediaRight in the behind; I'm a human encyclopediaI must be like pie crust because I was bred to rise like I was yeastAnd you're never gonna reach these heightsThey're just too high to reach itI ain't even reached my fuckin' highestYou better pick another game, try hide-and-seekAnd you might wanna decide to cheat'Cause you gotta open your eyes to peekAm I indeed the last of a dying breed?Even if you fire-breathe, ain't shit you can say to inspire heatIf you wrapped your entire Mead pad up in a dryer sheetAnd I'm back to rule the kingdom of fuck itBetter not use me as your topicAnybody who brings me up, duck itLet me keep it 100Two things shouldn't be your themes of discussionThe queen and her husbandLast thing you're gonna wanna be is our subjects, yeah"

It was obvious that my verse was about Sadé if you knew about us, but to the public eye it was just about some random chick. So I wasn't worried about releasing it and possibly having people put two and two together. Plus, I couldn't get all soft on no record. I had to keep it at least a little bit player. And I won't lie, after spending some time with her back in her city, I caught some feelings. Not that I didn't already have some, but I caught real feelings. Like I wanna make her mines type shit. I don't even know what's up with me anymore. She just does something to me that I can't explain.

I walked out the booth once I finished a couple of times to get it just right. Labrinth had some headphones on, bobbing his head, when I walked out doing something to the recording I just did, but Nicki has an amused expression on her face as she watched me walk into the room. I took a seat on the couch next to her. She turned her body towards me, giving me her full attention.

"So who's the girl, Slim?" She giddily questioned.

"What girl?" I took a sip of my water, feeling the tips of my ears heat up.

"Oh come on. The one you wrote your entire verse about!" She said in her New York accent.

"I don't know what you're talking about, Nicki." I played it cool.

She gave me a "bitch please" glare. I needed up crumbling like a cookie.

"Ight so it's this girl. She lives in Chicago. And I'm feelin' her. That's all." I stated bashfully.

"Boooo, tell me something I don't know." She stuck her tongue out, rolling her eyes.

"Like what?"

"What's her name? What's she do for work? What's she look like? Show me a picture."

"Fine. But you better not tell anybody." I said grabbing my phone.

"You know I won't, slim baby."

"So her name is Sadé, and she's a social media influencer."

I pulled up her Instagram profile and handed her my phone. She scrolled through the pictures.

"Oh, she's gorgeous. She's sooooo pretty. I absolutely love her. Sadé; Cute name. You picked a nice one, Marshall!" She waved her hands around, looking at a few more pictures before handing me back my phone.

"Thanks. She is gorgeous, isn't she."

"So are you two official or just seeing each other?"

"We're just seeing each other for now. Nothing official just yet."

"Yet? Well why not? You two would make a great pair." She asked perplexed.

"Um." I contemplated on sharing the reason with her, knowing it's not just my business, but Sadé's business too, "She's not ready for a relationship, and I agreed that I wasn't neither. But if I'm going to be one hundred percent here, I think I might've changed my mind. I don't want to rush her though. I respect her wishes and her time frame. Ya know what I'm sayin'?"

"I know what you're sayin'. That's understandable. But how long are you willing to wait?" She challenged me.

I never thought about that. How long was I willing to wait for her to be ready? I want to say however long it takes, but realistically I don't know.

"I never thought of that. Maybe a few more months. You know how I get attached to women. If I want someone I'll wait, but I'm about to be 50. I ain't about to chase after nobody for too long." I explained.

I like Sadé. I really, really do. I like her a lot, but I'm yearning for more. We're already so close, but I can't be patient forever. I'm still willing to wait though until she's ready. So if that's what I have to do, I'll do it. A lady as genuine as her don't come around too often.

"I respect that. I'll be rooting for you guys. But I have to go now, unfortunately. I have a flight to New York to catch soon. Thank you for the feature and I enjoyed our conversation. Keep yourself safe, Slim!"

She gave me a side hug before her and Labrinth left the studio. I was left alone, as nobody else was scheduled to come in the studio today. I got back to work, deciding that today I'd knock out all of the features I had to do. So I got started on Ed Sheeran and I's collab. The song was going to be titled "One of Those Kinda Nights." I had already written the lyrics when I was back in Vegas so all I needed to do was lay some hooks, rap what I wrote, and make it all sound good. I went back into the booth, pressing record as I started rapping:

"Yes, this beat's takin' me back to my D12 daysWhen we hit the club to go and hell-raiseProbably end up baggin' the cocktail waitressAnd takin' her straight back to the Motel-8Yeah, Denaun's tryna get a lap danceOff a Xanax and Jack Dan' (Ayo)Stripper walk by, I'm like "Goddamn"She's like "That's harassment," I'm like "Yeah, and?" (Woo)Holy Toledo, it's Miss OhioThat's the best ass I've seen in a whileWe should be datin', she's from ChicagoBut she's a bengal, this chick is catty Is that a mini-skirt if it's a maxi?That's the shortest thing for a dress since an addy (Since an addy)She said "Fuck off" and threw her liquor at meIt's one of those kinda nightsThen I said, I said"

I continued to rap the other verses as well until it was to my liking. Once I finished recording that, I went back into the main area of the studio to send the cut to Ed and suggest some possible song lyrics that might sound dope on his part that he sings. He couldn't be here for obvious reasons, such as the fact that he has a family and lives all the way across the pond. After that I was tapped out for the day. I just wanted to go home and sleep. I was jet lagged, worked my ass off, and just wanted to spend some time with my kids, man.

Of course, I can never catch a break around here though. Skylar came barging in like a maniac into the studio. That reminded me, I needed to handle the whole "Sadé VS. Skylar" situation. I don't know what the fuck this bitches problem was with her, but she needs to cut it out. Sadé has done nothing to this woman at all. She didn't pounce on her when she caught us, hell she didn't even say anything to her. She walked out. Then she goes and starts targeting Sadé? For god knows what. Nah. That's not happening on my watch. I don't need this drama in my life.

"Sorry, I didn't know you were going to be here today. I thought the studio was going to be empty because Paul said you most likely weren't going to be in today." She rambled, trying to walk out the room.

I stopped her in her tracks when I found some nicer words to use.

"Sit." My voice boomed making her whole body freeze.

"I'll just go to another room. It's okay, really."

"It wasn't a suggestion. It was a command. Sit. Now." I said pointing from her to the chair across from me at the sound board.

She shuffled over, uneasily taking a seat.

"What did you want to talk about?" She smiled.

God this bitch is so fake.

"You know what. What the fuck was that shit you pulled out in Vegas, Yo?!" I seethed.

"I didn't pull anything. I just really needed to talk to you." She shrugged

"No? The hell you needed to talk to me about so badly that it couldn't wait until I got back? Huh? You just had to follow me out there as if you don't have a husband to cater to?"

"A: I don't have a husband. I'm not married anymore. We got divorced last week. B: I was trying to warn you!"

"Warn me about what?"

"About Sadé. She's not telling you the truth. She's damaged, Marshall." She whisper screamed.

The hell is this bitch talking about? Damaged? She ain't damaged. Yes she might've went through shit, but she ain't damaged.

"You don't know shit about Sadé to speak on her. You thought I didn't hear what you said to her outside the function? How you threatened her? She's not fucking damaged! If this is some pathetic excuse for you to try and get with me it's not happening. I don't care if you're divorced now. I don't want you." I told her.

"I didn't threaten her. She's the one who threatened me!" She whined.

"She didn't threaten you. She gave you a warning. A promise that the next time you disrespect her she'll beat your ass. That's not a threat Skylar. You better leave her alone before I take matters into my own hands. I mean it." I spoke gravely.

"You'll see sooner or later the type of woman she is. Don't come running back to me when your little slut can't pleasure you anymore, Marshall. She can't give you what you want out of life like a real woman can." She shook her head as if she felt sorry for me before leaving the studio completely.

I didn't even bother to say anything. I looked at her with disgust as she walked out that door. I got up and started pacing the room, all these thoughts running through my head. Skylar is full of shit. She wouldn't know shit about a real woman if one came in and smacked her in the face with their titts. And she doesn't know what the fuck I want out of life. I'm so sick of her shit.

I ran my hands over my face with frustration. I stopped pacing and punched the wall, screaming in frustration. Thank god this room is sound proof and I didn't leave a hole. Why the fuck do I always gotta be involved with crazy bitches? Why can't these bitches just be normal?

I can't go home and hang out with my kids like this. They don't need to see their father upset over some stupid shit. So I guess I'm just going to stay here and work some more. I sat on the couch, feet propped on the coffee table and began to write. I just needed to let all my anger out, and rap is the only way I can express my feelings without getting violent.

"I just want you to be normalWhy can't you bitches be normal?Always gotta be so extraWhy you always need a lecture?...

She thinks I'm bein' mean and nowShe starts to scream and shoutShe's about to let the demons outShe don't wanna see me with other females outI tell the bitch to beat it, take the scenic route...

Guess it comes with the territoryMy ex girl, she just declared warTherefore, I better prepare for itI guess bein' weird's normal...

I'm soulless, she's heartless...

But why is she so wicked?And how the fuck did I get so twistedUp with someone so unlikable and shifty?...

She's only mine for the time being...

How could I be so naive?Should I leave or turn this entire eveningTo a motherfucking crime scene?...

Now the argument immediately becomes heatedYou don't want me to flip, little conceited cuntEat a monkey dick wrapped in a stuffed pita fajitaSlut, treat it just like a drum, beat itComplete it, and once you've succeeded, repeat it!...

In our business your friends like to pry soYou've got 'em all under cover just like molesHopin' they'll come back with intel..."

I sloppily wrote lyrics, not bothering to fill in the blanks right now. I'll do that when I start spittin' these lyrics in the booth. And that's exactly what I did.

— Midnight

I checked my phone and realized I lost track of time because it was approaching midnight. I guess I'd literally been here all day burying my head in work. I had a missed call from Sadé and a few texts from my kids. Fuck, I didn't mean to ignore them. I told them I had to reschedule our movie night but never told them why. And I told Sadé I'd call her later tonight, but she's probably already gone to bed now.

I decided to just call it a night. I'd tell Paul to put an end to the hate account tomorrow and would call Sae first thing in the morning. I drove home and immediately hit the sack, wasting no time in struggling to find sleep.