Family Lies

BLAZE

“Blaze!” My mom hollered from the kitchen. I got up to see her cussing and holding her stomach. She was slamming cabinets and drawers open all crazy all to pull out the only fucking knife we had. She looked around frantically, for what, in this house… I don't know. “Ma. What’s wrong?” She took the trash bag out of the can and dumped it out on the floor before wrapping it around the knife, tucking it in her bra, and tying her robe. 

“Bring yo ass. You wanna be grown so bad, out here running the streets and shit? Selling weed to these lil bitches out here? Fighting over those nut ass dice?!”

My mom tried to throw one like she ain't already called herself whooping my ass over all this shit. “Stick yo chin the fuck up and go get yo sister from your ain’t shit ass father! Now!” She stomped her foot and started haul assing to the door. I ran out locking it behind myself. “Why you send them over there anyway?” I watched her pull her smokes out her bra and pop em open before standing in the street. “Since your daddy got Tré the state give us money. He got that damn drive in theater, that skating rink. I keep her from him he’ll cut that shit off and take her lil ass.”

“Y’all still married?”

“Mind yo fuckin’ business, his ass owe me!”

BWOOOOOOOOOPPP!!!! A car stopped hard in front of my mom and she put her hand on the hood. The window rolled down to reveal Nyce. “Lil Dollie. Fuck you doing out here in this street?” He asked as he leaned back and propped his chin up in his hand.

“Buy a cigarette? I need to go get my daughter from her triflin’ ass daddy,” she explained while shoving the open box of cigarettes in his face. I scrunched my face up. “Ma! I got it. What the fuck you doing?” I grabbed her arm and she pushed me away. “Keep that lil chump change,” Nyce said as he dug a few loose twenties out the box and threw it to my mom’s feet. He grabbed her by the face to say, “You can keep that lil money now. But when I come back around here you better have my fuckin’ money. All of it,” I thought I saw him pulling back to slap her and I flew between them so fast you probably could see smoke coming off my sneakers.

Without a thought I stole off on him for even thinking I would let him slide for that shit. 

“Blaze stop! Stop!” I heard my Mama screaming and trying to pull me out of the car window but I ain't let go of that nigga until I saw him leaking. “Blaze let goooo!” She finally pulled me out the window. 

“How bout you don't come back round here bitch?!” He pulled a gun and clicked the safety lock off and pointed it right at my chest.

“Nyce! This my baby Nyce! Nyce this my baby! He don't know no better Nyce, this my baby!” My mom said while trying to stand in front of me but I kept pushing her behind me. 

“Do it, lil bitch,” I dared him as I threw my mom behind me once again. Nyce laughed and spit blood on my sneaks before lowering his gun. He sat it in his lap and kept his finger on the trigger like I had one more chance to try him before he was to decide if he had any bullets with my name on them. “They might call me Nyce… nigga I promise I ain't. If I was you I’d go put your mom on that bus lil nigga,” Nyce said like his punk ass was supposed to be scaring something. 

“If I was you I’d put that lil shit down and get out the car and get my ass whooped like a man,” I said with a nonchalant shrug of the shoulders. He laughed, lowering the gun and I opened his door while pulling him through the window.

Nyce had the wrong idea thinking he could ever get away with touching my mother— let alone in my presence? I punched down on his ass so hard his eye started getting big. 

“BLAZE!” My mom yelled and I saw them boys flashing they lights as they bent the corner. I dropped Nyce ass right there and ran for my fucking life. I ran and ran and ran until I got to Aunt Donna’s house. That was the longest nine blocks I'd ever run. I lost twelve like two blocks ago though.

I banged on the door as hard as my heart was beating on my chest. Aunt Donna came to the door with a frying pan in her hand looking like she could smack me. “Boy! Don't be banging on my got damn door like you lost your got damn mind. Hell wrong witchu?”

I scooted past her so fast while she was talking. “So what? Who you runnin’ from?” She asked while walking in the kitchen and picking up her drink along the way. I followed and watched her pour me a cup of lemonade.

“Nyce was finna put his hands on my Mama. I checked that shit,” Aunt Donna rolled her eyes and mushed my face. “I knocked his jaw back. Then the cops pulled up.” Aunt Donna just shook her head as she went to look at something sweet smelling in the oven.

“She was trynna give him money,” I told her and she just stood up and put her hands on her hips like I just ruined her day. “You betta leave that alone Blaze,” she said as a knock came to the kitchen door and she opened it. “Hey sugar,” she greeted the tall guy who stood on the other side with a smile and a hug. “Hey. How you doing?” He held on to her and I folded my arms and sat back on this bar stool. 

“I’m good. Blaze, baby this is my friend. Oscar. Oscar this is my nephew. Blaze.”

“Hey Blaze, how are you? You Dollie’s boy?”

“Yeah, what up?”

“Oscar went to high school with me and your Mama. We go way back. We did a lil baby shower for her at lunch time when she was pregnant witchu. Oscar got you the cutest pair of sneakers. Said he saved up for weeks to get them.”

“Thanks.”

“Stay a while Blaze. I’ll make you a plate. Oscar yours is on the bottom rack of the oven I was just waiting on them yams to get a lil softer.” Oscar laughed while looking down at Aunt Donna and I could just throw up. “Have a seat baby. I just poured you a drink,” she said as she pushed him further inside the house after a kiss on his cheek. Aunt Donna turned to pull a pan of candy yams out the oven along with a nearly full plate of food. She rushed to dish this man out a serving and ran that plate to him before coming back to make my plate. Aunt Donna paused to look over her shoulder before saying. “I mean it Blaze. You stay out yo Mama business. She grown ain't no need in you getting hurt cuz she wanna ruin her life. Don't let her ruin yours too. And I heard about you sellin’ drugs. Yo Mama might be scared to whoop yo big ass but I promise I ain't. Keep dickin’ around ” she said as she dropped a big plate of food in front of me on the counter.

“Go eat in the living room. And change yo clothes before you leave. You know where everything at.”

I thanked her and took my food and the phone to sit in front of the tv to eat and call up my shorty Italy.