Katoria Halim
I sat on my bed, watching Uncle Tahj and his son, Marlon paint my room. I chose a mint green color, since my bedding was mint green and white. They were on the last wall and then they started to talk.
"You don't talk much, do you?" Uncle Tahj asked glancing back at me.
"Sometimes, but not too much." I said. He nodded and turned back around. My mom peeked her head in the room and observed it.
"I hate the smell of paint, but this looks pretty Myri." She said giving me a smile and I nodded, not returning it. She sighed and turned towards Marlon and Uncle Tahj.
"I'm going to run to the store for groceries. I'll be back." She said and I hopped up as Uncle Tahj nodded.
"You're not leaving me with them. I don't know them." I told her. She shook her head.
"Get to know them, Katoria. They are your family and they will be around, so get used to them. I'll be back." She said and walked off. I sighed and went back into my room. They were finished now.
"Thank you." I said not looking at them. Marlon looked at me.
"It's nothing, family." He said. I didn't say anything, I just walked out and went into the kitchen. I'm glad I had got a bag of chips at the store because I'm hungry.
Marlon and Uncle Tahj came into the living room and sat on the opposite couch of me. I looked at them but then looked away and went back to eating my chips.
"So, what you like to do? C'mon, you gotta open up to us." Marlon said. I shook my head.
"She's stubborn like your uncle Kennon. It might be a while before she comes around Marlo." Uncle Tahj said. Marlo nodded and got on his phone.
"When is the last time you talked to my dad?" I asked him. I wanted to know if he was ignoring me or if he wasn't speaking to anyone. He and Marlon looked at me with some type of look in their eyes but neither said anything. I sighed and shrugged. I'm not going to beg them, but it'd be nice to know.
I heard a horn honk and I got up and looked out the window to see a car I've never saw before.
"Who is it?" Uncle Tahj asked and I shrugged. He got up and looked through the window and then opened the door. I followed him out and my mother got out of the car.
"Is this a new car, Ma?" I asked. It was black and nice. She smiled and nodded.
"Yes, it's mine. I bought it from someone on Craigslist, and it was cheap too! Help me get all these groceries, Myri." She said. I went back inside and found some of my slides and then went back out to help. She had bought a lot.
"Why do you call her that?" Marlo asked.
"Her middle name is Myriana, but I like calling her Myri. It's pretty." My mom said. I was kind of mad on the inside, but I didn't let it show.
I finished helping put the groceries up with Marlon or Marlo, whatever he wanted to be called, as my mom and uncle Tahj continued to talk.
"Where you going to school at, family?" Marlo asked me. I shrugged. I hadn't even thought about what school my mother was going to put me in.
"I don't know. What school you go to?" I asked.
"Strawberry Mansion." He replied.
"I heard about that school, all bad things." I said looking at him.
"Yeah, it's bad. Fights break out every other day and it's a D school." He said.
"Why is it like that?"
"It started being like a long time ago, so the story ain't clear. There's a bunch of different gangs in the neighborhoods around it so that's one reason." He said and I nodded.
"What grade are you in?"
"I'm a senior, you?"
"Junior."
He nodded. I'm not too sure of philly, but I guess I'll try to make the best of it.
