Sandcastles | Completed

29 | wheel of fortune

Elijah Baker

Before my grandma Pat woke up dead, she had a favorite saying, 'Play stupid games, win stupid prizes.'

Coby had to be the stupidest nigga I knew.

And I knew a lotta stupid people.

"Ion think you understand the situation." I told him, checking to see if was listening, "That's not some I get into. If he find out, you on your own."

"How would he find out?"

"He know everywhere she go. He prolly got her eating schedule written down somewhere. You don't think he'll notice that?"

That was beside the fact that Jai was pregnant— besides the fact that he was supposed to be moving and shit. I was now wondering if that's why he couldn't pack boxes, 'cause he was doing this.

The prize he'd win from this game would likely be a funeral. Church hats for everybody.

He sighed and stood up, "I'm not doing nun wrong forreal. It's like, Jai gained hella weight. When she have the baby, shit'll go back to how it used to be."

"You ain't know pregnant women gained weight before you got her pregnant?"

"I knew, but Ian know it was gone be that bad."

This subject was sensitive to me for several reasons, the main one being that Coby was so casually cheating on his pregnant girlfriend 'cause of something so petty as weight gain, while it was people– me- who wouldn't care about shit like that.

Secondly, the person he chose to cheat with was too close to home. I didn't care at all if Lauren decided to cheat on Marc, but I did care about the fact that she picked Coby.

"You thinkin' too much into it." Coby decided, "Just go with the flow."

"Nah, you ain't thinking enough. That's fucked up no matter what way you try to put it."

He shrugged, "I'm cool with that. Like I said, it ain't no long-term shit– we having fun. She listen to my music, full songs, help me write and everything, and I can't even get Jailyn to listen to a beat. Lauren talk about how Marc be doing her dirty. We both going through some, we just helping each other get through it."

Whatever way he needed to flip it to help him sleep better at night.

"You not going through shit. Jai be sick as hell inna house and you mad 'cause she don't wanna listen to ya' Dr. Suess ass rapping?"

"Ian' asking you to understand, I'm asking you not to say nun to her about it.... Ken either."

It wouldn't have been my business, but they put me in a bad spot. Keeping secrets was nothing new to me– it was second nature at this point. However, if it did come out, I'd be expected to keep something from happening to both of them.

Coby seemed convinced there was nothing to worry about, though, so who I tried to make myself not worry about it.

• • •

Zi looked around the room in exasperation, "The air don't work innis bitch? I'm hot as hell."

"It say it's on." Coby huffed, "Ion understand why we couldn't just hire somebody to do this."

They were moving a bed that looked heavy. I wouldn't know 'cause I made no attempt to help.

I was sitting in a chair watching them try hard as fuck to get the headboard through the door when all they had to do was lean it and it'd go through.

"Tilt it a lil bit," I suggested.

"Don't say shit if you ain't finna help."

I stopped saying shit because I wasn't finna help.