NELLY

Secret Lover: Chapter 13

Me: I got some more for ya.
Jake: Aight give me 30 minutes.
Me: Cool

Jake had been helping me out a lot. I would sell him the weed and bricks Uncle Larry gave me and would wait a couple of days before I gave it to Uncle Larry. He was helping me to stay out the streets. But as good as it was going, I was too scared to exhale.

" I love all of my babies. Yall my world. I really want the best for yall. Just don't know how to give it to yall Kaykay." said mama as she peeled mustard greens at the kitchen table. She had to be bipolar. She would be cursing our asses out and the next minute she would be telling us that she did it because she loved us. We didn't pay her any attention though. . . .well atleast I didn't.

"Yeh I know mama." I answered while mixing cornbread. I stared at mama as she continued her daytime confession of love for her children. She had started to age a little. Mama, though always having a little edge to her, or what some considered to be ghetto, had always been a beautiful woman. Alot prettier than I would consider myself to be. She once had soft, caramel, baby skin, but now it appeared darker and worn. Her hair, which was natural and thick, with gold in the middle, was now thinning and turning grey. She looked almost terrible.

"Larry is coming over for dinner today Kayla. I need you to just listen and to be on your best behavior. Don't piss him off. It will only add more fire to everything. Just keep your mouth close." she said to me, almost as if I were a kid. I looked at her in disgust as she attempted to school me on how to get along with Uncle Larry. I didn't understand how she could she allow someone who was suppose to be her brother to come into her house and control the life of her and her children. Mama was more afraid of Uncle Larry than I thought.

Mama, Megan, and I finished up Sunday dinner. My stomach seemed to drop down to my ass as Uncle Larry's big heavy feet rumbled off the floor like thunder as he made his way to the kitchen. He sat down at the head of the table with not even a hello and looked over at the three of us as if he were God.

"Well hello to you too Uncle Larry?" said Megan, as she placed a stack of plates on the table.

" Go get your brothers so I can talk to yall." he said pouring himself a glass of lemonade.

"Dman, Torrence, LJ, Uncle Larry want yall!!" yelled Megan to the top of her lungs. Uncle Larry looked at her as if he wanted too literally choke the shit out of her. I turned and began to remove the fried chicken from the grease, holding in my laugh. Mama should've been talking to Megan, because that couldn't have been her best behavior. We all sat down at the table and started to eat.

" Business been good lately and I'm starting to get more business than I thought. We branching out from Atlanta. I'm building a new dope house off Chesterfield. It's the old Brinkley House. It's ducked off and old, but a good fixer upper. I'm all about keeping business in this family. Torrence since you're the oldest boy and know most of my business, I'ma let you oversee the house. Keep up with sales. Handle everything that enters and leaves the house. Megan I need you to watch over all my workers in the processing room. Make sure they bagging everything and ain't stealing my shit. Dman and LJ yall watch over the Oakland house. Kaykay you continue to work all my territories." I could feel rage bowling through my body. I had enough of Uncle Larry.

"You know what I sick of this. I'm not your do-girl. You can't control me. I'm not selling anymore drugs for you Uncle Larry!!" I yelled in anger. Everyone stopped chewing, looking at me in pure fear, I didn't give a damn. "You can control them, but not me anymore. I'm going to college. Y'all can have this." He didn't look up. Not even once. He continued to stuff his mouth with spoon fulls of mustard greens and crumbled cornbread. "I gonna make it out of here. Go to college and get me an account degree.

"Good for you motha-fucka!! Then you'll still work for me counting my money. This is my family. All y'all do what I say." he yelled as he banged on the table. I jumped up from the table.

"Sit yo ass down Kayla before I sit you down." he yelled. I didn't care. I headed for the front door. As I turned the door knob, I could hear him jumping from the table and running behind me. I dashed out of the front door. Jake was waiting for me in his cousin Troy's car. I signaled for him to leave, and ran beside them as they sped off. I knew Uncle Larry's big ass wasn't running behind me, but I was so scared of what he would do to me if he would've caught me, so I continued to run. I ran until I felt my heart attempting to beat out of my chest and I could feel my pulse in my fingers. As I leaned forward, hands on my knees, a car pulled up behind me. I was too tired to run again, so I stood there waiting to see who would appear from the driver's seat. The door opened to the car and a familiar face walked slowly towards me. My heart dropped once more. I couldn't believe it. It was Victoria. Victoria was my first. My first girl that is. We were high school friends until we both got drunk one night, all in our feelings about these no good guys and ended up sleeping with each other. We were secretly messing around 4 years until I went to prison. We never told anyone. I never even told Nelly and Porsha. I taught myself to forget about Victoria. Love will make you go crazy when you locked up, so we both went our separate ways.

"Hey Kaykay!! Why you running from me?" she laughed leaning in to give me a hug.

"Nah boo how you been?" I answered still trying to catch my breath.

"Good I was heading over to your mom's house and saw you hauling ass up the road. I heard you were home."

"Yeh I been out a few weeks." As she continued to talk telling me about her life, I couldn't help but to check her out. Victoria wasn't as curvy as most of the females in the south. She stood almost straight up and down, but she would dress to kill. She never had a southern style. She kinda dressed like those girls from up north. She was pretty tho. Nice and dark with light brown eyes and a lot taller than I was. Just then I noticed a 911 text from Jake. Had Uncle Larry noticed him in the car? Had Uncle Larry sent his goons for Jake? Did he know I was selling to him?

"Let's ride Victoria. I want you to meet my friends Nelly and Porsha." As good as she looked, I really didn't have my ass on her. Uncle Larry had my nerves racing. I just wanted to dodge him for a while. But Victoria was good company though. Probably one of the only things from my past I didn't regret. She was someone who wanted me to succeed. A lot more supportive than my family. She was the last person I thought I would run into. But I was happy to see her. That was bay there.