Monique's Thug

• Monique's P.O.V •

"Monique Renee Rodriguez get up!"

"What the hell are you waking me up for. In case you didn't notice, it's summer Jasmine."

"We're going house hunting, I wanna get outta the projects."

"And go where? You know damn well we got no money."

"I've been stripping."

"Jasmine why, you're fucking seventeen!"

"It was a couple times, I'm done! And who are you to tell me my age, girl you fifteen. Stay in ya lane."

"Good, lemme find out. And whatever," I roll my eyes.

I'm Monique, but most people call me Mo. I just turned fifteen and I'm going into my freshman year of high school. I'm not looking forward to it, mainly because I don't really have friends. Lets just say in middle school I was the quiet one and wasn't all that pretty. After school was out, I got my braces and glasses off and dyed my hair, now its curly and black. My wardrobe changed, and I even got a lil bit thicker.

***

Since Jasmine got me up I decide to get out of bed and get dressed. She wants us to act rich and fake, which is just annoying. I pull out a strapless blue sweetheart neckline dress from wet seal. It stopped at about midthigh and was tight until my waistline, then flowed out.

I get my white sandals and hear screaming outside. I look through the blinds and see some hoe is yelling at a nigga. I hate the ghetto. Someday I'm finna get out, trust and believe. I go to see if my brother Chris is awake, and he is. Chris' sixteen but has like every hoe on tha block, no lie.

"Chrissy?"

"Yee baby sister?"

"Jas told me she been stripping to get money to get out the ghetto."

"Are you serious?"

"If only you would tell her your in the game..."

"Would you shutup with that?!"

I back up because I hate when he yells. I guess he notices because he comes closer and reaches for a hug.

"I'm sorry. Love you."

"Love you too."

I walk out of his room and head into the kitchen. Our house isn't big, it's extremely tiny. It only has two bedrooms, meaning I share one with Jasmine. Before, when we lived in a nice house, we were really close.

That was about 5 years ago. We lived in a gated neighborhood with a big ass house. Of course that was before my aunt got diagnosed with cancer, and my parents moved to be with her. Me, only being ten I thought it would only be temporary, but two years after they stopped calling and sending money to pay the bills so we had to leave.

I was about 12, Chris was 13 and Jasmine was 14; we had no help. She basically raised us, but before that hell happend Jas and I were super close, we told each other absolutely everything. That all changed when she had so many more responsibilities, but I'm proud of her being so young and stepping up.

Nowadays, its a miracale if we have only one or two fights a day. My brother and I are a lot closer, hes my protecter. When he told me he was in the game I got scared but it eventually sunk in, he makes a lot of money.

As I walk in the kitchen I hear Chris and Jasmine talking. I'm assuming it's about the stripper and thug thing, but neither of them can get mad. They both kept secrets. The conversation stops and I can't hear anything, it was just whispers. After like a minute they walk into the kitchen and we sit down at the little table we have.