Fatal Attraction (Jamaican Novel)

•Chapter 6•

Tanoi Cunningham

Monday||Montego Bay, Jamaica||3:36 A.M

"So why yuh up so early?"

My little brother was up all night posting on his WhatsApp status, I thought he was sleeping until I posted something and he called me. I couldn't sleep either, today was the last day in Mobay, we didn't do much yesterday, Brielle went out with her friends while Beck and I think Nelson if that's his name, stayed with me and Chey.

Imani had something to do, something English asked him to do.

"Just a think" Dre replies in a meh tone.

"About me?" I joke, he makes a funny sound as if trying not to laugh.

"Yeah, a one whole year mi nuh see you," he says, he sounds depressed and tired, "wondering how you look now, suppose to big like hog".

"Ha!" I laugh out, "No, have on some weight but not like a hog yuh cuda renk".

"Yuh naah go tell me, see yuh post some recent pics on Instagram, think Chinna finally get fi breed yuh"

But hear him.

Yuh see all dem sumn yah.

"D'Andre, you and Chey come like twin, unu lowe offa mi nuh", I roll my eyes as I'm getting off the bed.

Chey stirs in her sleep but she doesn't wake up, thankfully.

I leave the room to go down to the kitchen, I need some water to drink and my bottle is empty now, Chey finish it and never full it back.

Dre laughs boisterously, reminding me of someone, he laughs almost identically to English only he wasn't the person he reminded me of.

"So unu naah deal again?" he inquires.

"We never did a deal from morning and yuh know that"

"Yes Tanoi Talissa Cunningham, gwaan trick yuh self"

"How grandma?", I have to break that conversation before it escalates.

"Old lady good, she just walk pass mi room a ask if a one a mi girlfriend mi a talk to, doh know why she nuh sleep har bed a night time"

Grandma nuh sleep none at all, from ever since we grow up with her she no sleep a night, she walk the house, watch TV, find everything fi do except sleep.

The reason she does this is because of our mother, she used to wait up until she came in from wherever she went, it gave her some form of insomnia, her case was rare with no cure, she's healthy and well taken care of besides the sleep deprivation she just sleeps through the day whenever she can.

She's our mother's mother, she was the only person we trusted to watch Dre, to keep him until he was out of high school.

He's eighteen now, just in sixth form at Holmwood Tech, he plays cricket there. He's very good at it, the captain of his team, his dream is to play cricket until he retired, only one outta we who actually have a dream.

"One of?" I ask in amusement, "how much yuh have?".

"One, a just so she love run her mouth", I smile softly hearing our grandmother in the back-ground telling him to go to bed, "den nuh me bed me deh Miss Gretel?".

She starts to argue back making us both laugh, "yaah go send up her blood pressure one day just watch" I tell him, still laughing.

"Mi a go in her room right now go lay down beside her and chat until she fall asleep, only way me get her fi sleep", him take care a her more than she take care of him.