my little life

the pain beneath the lie's

After the morning's events, I got ready to head out. I slipped on my oversized shirt, batty rider shorts, and comfortable Crocs. I grabbed my bag, packing essentials like my phone, $2000, lipstick, face rag, and a small snack - a packet of St. Mary's banana chips. With everything in place, I set out to meet my friend at the clock in Ochi.

I arrived at Ochi and waited for a bit before I heard a male voice call out mi name. 'Alex!' it said. I looked around, trying to locate the source, and that's when I saw him - a guy as tall as a giraffe, standing at around 6'11" compared to mi 5'1". 'Oh, hey,' I replied, trying to sound casual, but mi face gave away mi confusion. Who was this guy and how did he know my name?

He spoke again, 'Wait, you forgot me? I'm Kahjay, Rakael's cousin.' I was taken aback. The last time I saw Kahjay, he was much shorter and, well, a bit chubby. Now, he looked like a completely different person - tall, lean, and quite attractive.

Just then, I heard a familiar voice. 'Lex!' Rakael exclaimed, and we shared a warm hug. 'Oh, Jay, you reached before me? You've been hitting the gym, I see!' Rakael teased Kahjay, and they continued chatting. But I tuned out, too busy staring at Kahjay - or Jay, as I now thought of him.

"Oh, Lex, where you want to go first?" Kel asked.

"Mmm, oh, me ahh... let's go to Top Pink first," I replied, breaking my stare from Jay.

"Okay, let's go," Jay said, and we headed to Top Pink.

~At Top Pink~

"This earring looks good, what you think, Kel?" I asked.

"Yeah, it looks good. Wi fi buy it and wear matching earrings, girl," she replied.

"Yeah, a true," I said.

"Wait!" Jay exclaimed. "A wha?" I asked.

"Look over there, you see that girl with the guy?" he asked.

"Yeah, mi see them. A wah yo know the boy?" I replied.

"No, mi know the girl. A mi girlfriend," he said.

My heart stopped. Girlfriend? After I just planned all my wedding with this guy in my head? No girl can come in my way, I thought to myself, knowing I was being delusional.

"Ee, yo girlfriend? So why she in another man's arms?" I asked, trying to comfort him. "Maybe a she brother?"

"No, a no her brother. Mi know her family well. She is the oldest," Jay replied.

"So wah yo ago do?" I asked.

"Tell Kel say mi soon come," he said, then walked over to the girl.

I turned and walked back to Kel, explaining what was going on. We then went over to hear the conversation up close.

"Who him?" Jay asked.

"A mi friend," the girl replied.

The guy then asked, "Wait, what you mean 'friend'? Who you?"

"Mi a ask you, who him?" Jay repeated.

The guy then replied, "Her man."

"WTF ago on here?" Jay said, looking surprised.

Jay shook his head, rolled his eyes, and kissed his teeth in disgust. "Yo know what, yo can have her, man. Mi no have time fi no whore."

Kel and I burst out laughing at the scene unfolding before us. We pulled Jay out of the store, still chuckling.

"Look how mi nay get mi earrings," I teased, grinning at Kel.

"We can go down to MK," Kel suggested, already heading in that direction.

"Ahh, let's go cheer up Jay, no stress out over gal, a waste man thing," I said, following close behind.

We continued our walk until we reached MK, and looked around for a bit. After what felt like hours, we were finally ready to leave, but didn't find anything we wanted to buy. I still purchased a lip gloss, because it felt illegal to not buy something after spending so much time there.

"Okay, girls, where are we going now?" Jay asked, falling into step beside us.

"Mi hungry, let's go get something to eat," Kel replied, her stomach growling loudly.

"Ahh, mi want pizza," Jay said, a sly grin spreading across his face.

"Little Caesars," I suggested, already knowing the debate that would ensue.

"What, why Little Caesars?" Jay asked, curious.

"Because it's cheap, and it's no wet," I explained, trying to reason with him.

"That's the whole point, it's dry and oily," Jay countered, shaking his head.

"Mi no like nothing wet and slippery going down mi throat," I said, making a face.

Jay smirked, "How yo ago know if you never try new things? You might like it this time."

"I say back because if mi no like it the first time, mi not going to like it the second time, plus it hurt mi belly," I replied, firm in my resolve.

"Maybe you swallow it too fast," Jay said, chuckling.

"No, mi take mi time and try enjoy it," I answered, laughing.

"You sure a pizza you guys a talk about?" Kel asked, breaking the tension with her question.

We looked at her and smiled, knowing that it wasn't pizza we were discussing.

"Okay, Little Caesars it is. It's cheaper, and mi no have money to waste," Kel said, teasing Jay.

"See that, my best friend?" I said to tease Jay, grinning at him.

We went to Little Caesars and ordered a 4-N-1 Deluxe Combo and a Crazy Combo. We ate and enjoyed our meal, and when it was time to go home, Jay asked for my number. I gave it to him, and we went our separate ways.

As I reached home, I felt happy and content, like I was on cloud nine. But as soon as I walked in, I felt like I had just gotten off a roller coaster. My mom and dad were arguing, my sister was eating and watching TV, and my brother was crying because my dad had just hit him.

"Little girl, where have you been? Why do you have a phone if you're not going to answer it?" my father shouted at me.

I looked at my mom, trying to get her to help me, but she just looked away. "You should have come home early or answered your phone," she said.

"But daddy, I didn't hear my phone ring," I replied.

"Give me the phone and go to your room. You won't get it back until I feel like giving it back," my father said.

I wanted to scream and shout, but I knew that would be like giving up my right to live. With tears streaming down my face, I handed him my phone.

"And another thing, look at what you're wearing! You look like a slut. Go change and don't go back out on the road looking like that again. You hear me?" my father added.

I walked away slowly, then went to my room. Why? What have I done? Did I do something wrong in my past life to deserve this? I felt like I was the only one who had to deal with this. I screamed silently, but no words came out. If I spoke up, they would think I just wanted attention, and my dad would punish me physically. That night, I cried myself to sleep.

Remember Because you think you only have yourself doesn't mean you're alone.
🙌 You make it till the end of this chapter keep going for chapter three 💋💓😁