Another Hood Story

Meeting Jasmine

As I looked at him flirting with this minimum wage paid waitress i began to build animosity towards the man I wanted to spend the rest of my life with. How can my life get any worse? I'm suppose to be someone's queen but, I'm just another booty call to a rich flirting hustler. Yes I get the fame, money, and cars but, I also get the problems, and abuse. Last week, I was released from the hospital with a pierced lung and a broken nose. Yes, I'm fed up with this shit but who am I to go to the police they will just see me as another loud ghetto chick from the projects. Compared to a well known Harvard graduate name Hakeem that is what I look like in everybody eyes. Let me tell you from the beginning.

"Kendra wake your ass up and make me a hot plate of breakfast and tell Jasmine to clean my damn house company coming over y'all know it's NBA playoffs today" my dad Derek said. My mom name is Kendra who is 32 years old and I'm Jasmine who is 11 years old. My dad never told me his age and I never asked. "Uhhh mom why do you stay?" I can see that your not happy" I question and stated to my mother. "Baby I'm in love with your father we vowed to be together through good or worse". My mom always plead the same nonsense to me.

Boom! "Derek how many times do I have to have that door replace before you get the program?" My mom whined rather then yell. This caused me to roll my eyes wow mom way to show some real emotion. "Kendra who do you think your talking to? I recall me paying the bills, putting clothes on your fucking back and your daughter's." my dad never let's my mom get the last word. "Derek you pay what bills? I bet you don't even know how much the rent is rather alone the water bill. I have a job to support my family that includes you. Oh and that is not just my daughter but she is your's to because I recall your sperm getting me pregnant in the first place". My mom finally retaliated to my father's bull. Wow now I'm shocked to even hear my mom speak such such... Smack! My father just slapped my mother dead in the face all I can do is back up in a small corner in sit there in a fatally position because I know where this is going to lead to. "Bitch do not tell me what I own and what I know I'm done talking now clean my house and fuck the breakfast I told you to make me I'm out. Oh and I'm taking the car so don't think your going any damn where. This was my dad daily routine since I was six years old so I'm kind of use to just observing not participating.

"Jasmine" my mom said in a half whisper half whimper "please go clean the house before he comes back please!" Without hesitation I got up and did my daily chores which I was easy to do my family and I only had a one bedroom, one bath, a small living room barely, a tiny kitchen, and a tiny backyard not even longer than a foot. My dad slept on the couch in the living room I slept with my mom upstairs. For only one reason if there was any burglary the culprits will get my dad first. Finishing my chores with ease I went upstairs to my mother with a plate of premade but heated pancakes, two cups of juice one filled with coffee for my mom and one filled with orange juice for me yes I was the housewife in this household. "Mommy are you ok? I made us breakfast". I always have a soft spot for my mother. Looking at her with a new layer of makeup, an outfit made just for queens, and her hair down for the first time in years. I guess she took a shower while I was cleaning. Without doubt no one can ever tell my mom she is weak or ugly. My mom can withstand a beating and still have a strong spirit. She has a body like Beyonce but breast and ass like Black China. Men literally threw themselves at her when she walked the streets. Girls begged her just to be her friend but one thing about my mom is that she doesn't deny anyone. My mom is a church woman with a gigantic heart that is why one day I want to be just like her.

"Thanks sweetie" my mom always made me smile when she calls me sweetie. Taking the plate full of my breakfast she told me to take a shower, brush my teeth, and get dressed. Looking at her then scoping her one last time I saw her wedding ring off her finger and on the dresser next to a note she was standing by. "Mommy I yelled in joy we're finally leaving" I wasn't even trying to hide my smile or joy. " Yes sweetie I'm fed up I'm done putting you no us through this behavior. Now hurry before the devil comes back!" She rushed me into the bathroom. Looking at her I said "I love you!" without a second passing she said "I love you to now hurry!" Without thinking I went into the shower with my clothes on but I took it off before I gently lather the soap on myself.

Rushing out the shower I took no time to get dressed and to do my hair. Finally, just like my mom I let my hair hang loose in my tiny curls. Without paying attention my mom walked up behind me and told me it's time to go. Turning to face her I see my grandma behind her with a colossal smile on her wrinkle face. Which made me cried real tears. "Come here Jasmine I finally get my granddaughter and daughter to myself. Let's go home!" Without looking back I ran to the truck to see my bags and my mom bags in the back I'm finally leaving this hell hole.

I'm going miss my friend Tasha, my favorite teacher Mrs. Val, and my hood. I'm not scared to tell any body I came from Brooklyn, New York but now I'm headed to South Florida to suck in the sun. My mom doesn't know that I know all of these curse words but I learned them from my own father and his friends. Coming home after school is like going to after school the hood edition. My own father had me pop bottles from Ciroc to Henessey and I even know how to roll a blunt but I never put one of those close to my mouth. Even through all the drama at home I still am able to maintain an 4.0 GPA at school. I'm suppose to be in 3rd grade but I was skipped to 5th because of my high GPA and behavior. Most of the kids that go to my school are future drop outs, dealers, baby mommas, baby daddies, and jail birds. All of these names are what my dad presented to me.

My mom looked at me and smiled that almost made me cry I really can't even tell you when I last saw all her pearly whites smiling at me. "Mommy?"I asked. "Yes sweetie" she answered. "did grandma know to come get us?" I asked in wonderment. "Well she explained gladly that I finally asked during my lunch break at the courthouse I wasted my time getting passport for you and me but I almost messed up when I had them delivered to the house. I know your dad likes to check the mail so I checked it almost everyday to see if they had arrived. The day it did your dad pulled in the driveway with his friends just as I pulled it out of the mailbox. Luckily they were too drunk and high that he thought I was the next door neighbor looking for are food stamp card again. So I got back in my car to go back to work. Using one of the courthouse phones I called grandma and explained are dilemma in no time she agreed to take us in without hesitation. To pay for her plane ticket to and back I used my paycheck for this week and this rental truck. Grandpa will be waiting for us when we arrive". She was happy to finally say that to someone. "But mom what about your credit?" I asked worried. "Baby you are really smarter than I thought you were they must be teaching you a lot in your school look at you talking about credit I'm proud. Anyways, don't you worry I lived there long in enough for the lease to be straighten out so all I did was take my name off the lease so now your dad is paying for the house weather he knows it or not that is not my problem. Now is there anymore questions?" She was really eager to let it all out. "Yes, what was in that note next to your wedding ring? and if you worked in the courthouse up here how are you going to work from all the way down in Florida?" I asked impatiently. "Good questions the first one, the one about the note it was not a note it was divorce papers and a court date schedule for next week I want all the money your father has been keeping in a secret bank account and custody of my baby and about the second one I'm not working in the courthouse up here anymore I'm working at a courthouse down in Florida. I had a talk with my boss who pulled a few strings and now I'm relocated to a new courthouse down in Florida." My mom never took her eyes off me as she spoke these words.

After sucking all in all of that information I just knew there was more my mom wasn't telling me but I was eleven what more can I really do.