Paths

SAY SOMETHING

"Come on y'all get up." Kaier urged Nairobi and Dakotah pulling them up to their feet.

"Oh my god, it's always something where the fuck is my dad." Dakotah groaned, as she rubbed her head from being thrown to the ground.

Nairobi let out a audible gasp as she walked out of the now bullet riddled back door, where she saw her cousin Tylil laid out beside his car. As she went to run over to him, she was pulled back. "GET OFF OF ME!" She screamed out, trying to wiggle herself out of Kaier's grasp.

"Come on Nai, you don't want to see that" He tried to plead with her. Dragging her in the opposite direction.

"TYLIL!" She screamed, still fighting back.

The twins looked up from where they stood over Tylil doing their best to apply pressure to his wounds and keep him awake while Diamond called 911. Both felt a pang in their heart as they watched their little sister who stood in the middle of the parking lot tears now pouring from her eyes. In the panic they'd forgotten that she would be subject to seeing the bloody scene.

Despite hearing gun shots sometimes every night in their neighborhood, Nairobi had never actually seen anyone get shot. Let alone someone who she was so close with on a day that was already extremely hard for her.

"Aye get her out of here!" Mook yelled to no one in particular still trying to focus on his cousin.

Kaier tried to oblige, still attempting to pull her in the opposite direction. "Nai you have to come on." He spoke into her ear.

Nairobi who was too distraught and focused on getting to her cousin didn't even hear his words. When she saw her brothers stand up from their crouching position over his body, she fell into a silence trying to understand what they were doing. "MOOK HELP HIM!" She screamed. As she saw her god dad approach her brothers she watched their interaction. The twins shook their head in response to whatever they were asked, hanging their heads in sadness.

"FUCK." Cade shouted.

Nairobi felt her knees go week, before she could hit the ground, Kaier scooped her into his arms. She let out a scream, that made everyone who heard it instantly tear up. Immediately he carried her to his car sliding her into the passenger side. Nairobi felt her world go numb again as she watched the ambulance pull in and rush over to her cousin. She couldn't stop her tears as watched them through the rear view mirror pulling a sheet over his body.

As Kaier pulled out of the parking lot he remembered this day three years ago when he found out that her dad passed.

Three Years Ago

"Aye wake up!" He felt someone shaking him awake. He sat up confused on why his mother was standing over him in the middle of the night.

"Whatt?" He groaned.

"Your little girlfriend outside, something wrong with her." His mother shrugged nonchalantly walking back out of his room. Kaier's eyebrows shot up in confusion, he threw his covers off, grabbing his phone to check the time. He saw that it was twelve in the morning and he had ten missed calls from Nairobi. His sense of urgency picked up as he threw on a pair of sweatpants, stumbling out of his room and down the stairs.

When he stepped outside, he saw Nairobi sitting on the stairs, head in her hands. His heart dropped when he realized that she was sobbing. He stepped off the porch standing in front of her. "What the fuck. Nai what's wrong?" He urged, trying to pry her hand from her face.

"He's gone." Nairobi finally mustered up her strength to mutter the words in between her cries.

He furrowed his eyebrows in confusion, "What who is gone?" He questioned.