Diamonds in the Rough: VOL. I

fourteen

Kianna stumbled her way to the kitchen. It was the only light on in the house. She almost forgot where she was when she first woke up. Her throat was dry but she knew water would fix that. She made it to the kitchen and clutched her breast. Andre looked away from the bottle of water he was drinking.

"Shit you scared the hell out of me." Kianna whispered.

"You don't gotta whisper. We the only ones on this floor. Everybody else is gone though. They went to dinner and didn't want to wake us." He scoffed. "How's your ankle feeling?"

"Swollen." She sighed as she looked down at it. Her leg moved forward to show him the swelling still hadn't gone down. She probably had slept on it, but she didn't mention that to him.

"I forgot to put a cold press on it." He moved over to the freezer.

"I can do that." Kianna insisted as she moved toward him. He looked her over.

"You can barely put your weight on it. The pool might help with that. I'm about to take a swim if you want to come with me." He moved over to her and lifted her. Kianna tensed until her butt met with the counter. She looked into his eyes.

"Are you trying to get me undressed again?" She asked to his back. Andre laughed as he turned to face her holding the compress in his hand. He placed it against her ankle. A frown formed on his face as he removed her sock.

"Maybe I should have took your socks off." He spoke more concerned with her injury than she was. She smiled as he wrapped her ankle in the press. "Hold this. My mom got you a wrap for your ankle."

"That was sweet of her."

"Yeah. She always want to take care of somebody."

"So that's who you get that from."

He shrugged as he opened a drawer. Kianna watched as he pulled out the wrap inside. He placed it around her ankle keeping the press against it. "Yeah that's who I get it from. My dad don't fuck with nobody for real. Especially not my mom's side of the family. They just come around for money. He hate that shit."

"You hate it too." She noted. He looked into her eyes and smiled.

"Would you like it if your mom was disowned and then they come back when she get something she always dreamed of?"

"My mom was disowned. We talked about this before. But no I wouldn't like that either. She hasn't talked to her family in years. I'm sure if they realized how free she is. How much we put into her they would come for that as well. It would upset me a lot."

Andre nodded. "Motherfuckers always be about self. Only self. That shit is wack."

"It is." Kianna agreed with a nod. "But at the same time, people who never had anything. Normally they don't know how to act when they do get something. Even if it's not necessarily theirs. You get what I mean? If your mom isn't checking her family, then they don't think they're taking advantage. At least not all of them."

"She's never going to check them. My dad tried to once. She lost it. He couldn't understand how she was mad at him but not them. It was an ugly argument between them. One of the only ugly ones I've ever seen."

"Lucky. My mom and dad couldn't stand each other. They were together for us. That was really clear. I mean my mom got everything for being his wife, so they just did a small ceremony for us. But when he was away my mom was fun and free. When he was home she was quiet and distant."

"For real?"

"Mmhmm. She didn't become young, wild and free again until Kaila turned eighteen. That was only three years ago, and I wasn't even home. But she always kept me updated as much as possible about her adventures. I mean we're here because of one of her many adventures." Kianna laughed. Andre smiled.