The Frequency Of Compulsion/GXG/ Grip The Series: Book One

FOUR

K E E Y A

The voice of DMX played from my car's speakers as I continued to pour the last of the oil in the bottle into my oil tank. The music was low enough not to prompt complaints from anybody in my apartment's shared garage, but high enough for me to hear each word clearly.

It was a hot day, and if I was back home I would be standing outside attending to my car, instead of being on the inside like I was now. That was something I never thought I would miss, standing and sweating in the sun for minutes at time, but I did. Even though this move was a necessary one, it was also one that was coming with a slow adjust.

I barely knew anybody here—all the friends I used to have on this side either moved, died, got locked up or we just fell out of touch and grew apart. I really only knew Jerome, and even though he was like brother and I trusted him with my life, we ain't really have much in common for me to be seeing him more than at work and at the gym.

That was also something I needed to get sorted.

I needed to find a gym, we had one in the apartment building, but the equipment was limited from my view. It was cool to hit the basic stuff, but I needed a change of scenery, I liked to drive to a workout and then come back home. The minute I found that, I knew it would be a bit easier settling in this big ass change. My car, the gym and weed, that was it.

Vibrations rang against my leg as I began to close the oil tank, and it had me pausing the turning motion to grab the device.

L

The name on the screen had a bit of joy flowing in me as I answered it and placed it on speaker, resuming my act of closing the oil tank.

"Keys?"

"Yeah,"

"The building on twenty fourth right?" I heard Loyal ask over the connected line.

"Yeah, that's it,"

"I'm outside then,"

"Aitte, I'm coming," I confirmed as I ended the call, returning my phone to my pocket and closing the hood of my car before making my way out of the parking lot.

After my brief meet with Loyal through Jerome, we agreed on sumn, and hopefully his shit was good and I could settle on a plug. I was still waiting on my furniture to arrive, still trying to sell my spot down south, and a bunch of other shit, I needed a bright side right now. Last I heard, since I left shit has only gotten worse on the southside, so bad even the spot I used to work at closed down.

It's like home was no longer home, it changed...

The sun fell on my skin and I instantly met the sight of Loyal standing by a mailbox some feet away from the building's entrance, which meant he was closer to where I was at the parking lot.

"I was expecting you to be coming from the other side," He called out as his eyes met me while I took my final steps to settle in front of him.

"I was changing my oil in there,"

"Yeah it looks like it," He said, looking at my clothes, and I didn't have to follow his gaze to know that he was referring to stains my shirt most likely had. "Jerome said you looking for a gym or sum,"

"Yeah I am," I confirmed as he handed me a plastic bag that I knew held the weed inside, and I took it happily, knowing I already paid him beforehand for the weed and delivery. It was a policy he and the people he worked for had, to be real, if Jerome didn't vouch for him I would've thought he was tryna rob me, but seemingly that's how they did things over here in the west, especially when you buying more than a few grams.