The Woes of a Wilted Flower

33- Cause It All Falls Down

I sat around the table in the backyard with Mrs. Carter and her cousin, Keisha. Th party was still going on and we been here for a couple of hours, I was so ready to go back to the hotel, but of course Nathan was still talking to everybody around here.

"So how that new apartment treating you?" Mrs. Carter asked while putting a red cup to her lips.

"It's cool, I like it... I just can't wait to move back into my old house when my dad come back." she nodded her head and looked at me then Nathan.

"Yeah so what you been up to lately? " she asked slyly.

"Nothing really, just taking care of Mani and myself." she smirked and turned back towards her cousin, whispering in her ear, and turning back towards me. I knew she was drunk after her fourth full glass of wine and she had to be speaking about me and Nathan. I love her... but she is messy.

"Well okay then baby, if that's all you up to these days." I would say some ignorant shit back, but I don't want to disrespect her drunk ass. I got up from the table and walked over to London who was sitting down on the grass playing with one of neighbors toddlers. 

"Hey girl" I said looking down at her.

"Mhm." she said looking up at me smirking.

"What?" I said laughing at her confused. 

"Girl where was you at for those whole 30 minutes?" I looked around and then back down at her. "Here where else?" I said giggling. 

"Girl, I ain't stupid. I went upstairs to get my purse from upstairs and I heard some commotion going on from a certain guest room." I tried to play it off as being dumb.

"Yeah still have an idea what you talking about... " I shrugged my shoulders "... but anyways Nathan about to blow me." I picked up somebody pool towel from the top of a cooler and sat it on the ground next to London.

"Why wassup?" she said moving over to make room for me. I turned the direction of the toddler and started playing with her.

"This nigga basically recruiting all the neighborhood boys to do his dirty work. I don't know, I just don't like it" I looked over at him, but I caught his eye so I quickly looked back at the baby.

"Girl, I ain't mad at him, it's about time some of these raggedy ass boys has some money in they pocket. You remember Ryan, the boy who dad got shot in the store robbery?" I nodded my head looking at her to finish.

"Girl he was homeless this whole time, living down by the overpass and shit. But he just got a little house and shit I was just talking to him at the mall. And he wouldn't tell me how he got into the money, but it make sense now he got him off the street." I did a fake smile, it good he got off the street but what about the fact now he work for this man in this dangerous ass career.

"And we been here forever I want to go home, shit I only fuck with three people here, and you one of them." London laughed and told me she was going to give Ms. Loretta her granddaughter, the little baby we been playing with. She came back and asked me to go sit with her in the car. I agreed to and walked back in the house with her. I saw Kimani knocked out on the couch in the living as I walked past. Sh been sleep for about an hour now with some other kids that she was playing with. I don't think she played with kids in so long that she finally got the opportunity and she went hard. We made our way to the front door where we saw some of the neighborhood niggas all smoking out in the front and Hasan was included in those niggas. He was sitting on the porch rail with the blunt in his mouth. He looked at London, and then me smiling.