No. 99 (Joey Bada$$)

3• Where You Come From?

"Yo mama!" I looked up from my phone.

"Hi there." I said shyly

"Ain't no 'Hi there'! Where you come from? Haven't seen you before." He walked up to me.

Everyone was looking at me and I felt embarrassed and my face began to heat up.

"I just...moved uh here..." I put my phone away.

"From where?" A girl asked with a stank face

"From North Carolina."

They all laughed

"Then the hell you doing here in Flatbush? We ain't got no horses for y'all." Another boy said as he mocked the accent

"CJ shut up. Always sayin something." The dread head said "Lil ma, my name Joey Badass. Nothin more nothin less."

"You just gonna let her in like that?" I'm guessing Power said "You don't know what she here for."

He scoffed and sat on the bench next to Powers "I ain't letting her in."

"Actually I was just going to the corner store. So y'all can take ya crew back. Pro Era ain't got shit on me." I began to get angry because of their stereotype for me and where I come from "You don't know shit about me or where I came from so keep your ignorance to yourself and fuck off." The crowed oo'd

"Hold up, hold up, hold up. How you know about Pro Era?" Joey asked

"My aunt told me about y'all. I heard your rhymes not too long ago."

He laced up his adidas "What did your aunty say?"

"Yeah what she say?" CJ asked

"She said y'all would wake up every morning and rap. After school too and that you all reminded her of the early rap game." I said with confidence

"Ya aunt a real one for that." Someone said

"Hold up. We just gonna ignore the fact that she just cussed us out. You guys can but I can't and won't ignore it." The same girl with a stank face got in my face "I don't know where you from but what you not gonna do is come on our ground talking shit."

"I wouldn't have to talk shit if you ain't say shit." I growled back

"IT'S GETTING HEAVY!" A guy with an Afro said as he danced

"Oh you bad?" She said "You real bad sista. But you ain't 'bout that action though. Mm mm, so keep ya mouth shut unless you wanna throw."

"I ain't scared of no hood rat. I've seen plenty of your kind back home. You don't scare me, you can be as Brooklyn as you are. You don't phase me. Basic bitches don't phase me. That goes for all y'all!" With that I walked past the crowd.

Joey just sat on the bench with a straight face. The girl was still where she was probably heating up and the crowd was quiet

"You got competition, TT." The dude with the Afro said to the girl.

"Aite! Everyone go home. We do another battle later." I heard Power call out

I crossed the street to Michael's. They got me fucked up if they think Imma let them speak to me like that. It don't matter where you from or who you are, you don't disrespect people you don't know.
   I entered the store and was welcomed by a nice blast of cool air. I walked down the aisle where the room decor was. I need a new jewelry box. My old one broke on the bus ride here.
   I looked around for one but saw Joey run into the store

"Yo ma!" I heard him call out

"Shhhh!" The cashier hushed

"This ain't no library!" He shrugged the cashier off and walked up to me

"What are you doing?" He asked

"Minding my own business."

"I should do the same huh?"

"Mhm."

"Nah. Whatchu doin' wit a jewelry box?" He took it from my hands and examined it

"Buying it for my jewelry...?"

"Well no shit."

"You the one that asked an obvious question so you get an obvious answer."

"You got a little attitude." He wrinkled his nose and put the box back in my hand

"I don't have an attitude it's just that your girl back there pissed me off so I got a feeling 'bout you all."

"Oh TT? You let her get to you? Don't, she always talkin'"

"I had to defend myself.."

"But you didn't have to go so hard."

"I had to Bruh!" I turned and looked up at him being as tall as he is. "You just need to watch the shit you talking 'cause i don't play that 'talk about my city bullshit. Don't care if you Obama, you not gonna get away with that."

"I got you, mama." He smiled and laughed

"It ain't funny." I walked down a little more to look at jewelry it's self.

"You right, it's not." He stopped laughing and smiled, I found myself smiling too.