Hear Our Cry

We're All Crying

South Central, May 2015

"And I also believe life could be fulfilled through happiness, it's what is important... and ..so..phis..ticated!" Terrence stumbled through the ending of his speech as everybody groaned. Mrs T thanked him and we clapped.

"Arnani, your turn." She said, I sunk into my  seat as all eyes were on me.

"Didn't finish." I lied. Mani smacked his lips.

"Yes you did Nan." He said, I turned and glared at him. Asshole  I thought to myself.  The bell rung and everybody jumped up, I begin to get up.

"Arnani, I need to speak to you." Mrs. Thompson said.  I sighed and rolled my eyes walking to her desk.

"Yes?"

"Give me your paper and I'll take points off for not presenting, or you can present it to me privately and I'll give you the points." I sighed and pulled out my paper from my bag, I stood in front of her desk and looked down rereading things through my head.

"We all know South Central isn't the best place to live, for a young girl it's not good at all, she may seem better on the outside but on the inside she's hurting." I started, I took a pause and looked at Mrs. Thompson who was watching me intently. "She's hurting Mrs. Thompson." I said close to tears, she stood up and came to me hugging me and I broke down. I'm she, I'm hurting. Mrs. Thompson hear my cry before it's too late. I pleaded to myself.

I was walking home as my phone begun ringing, I grabbed it out of my pocket and answered it.

"Hello?"

"Pick up bread, milk, curry and bell peppers from the corner store." My mother said then she hung up, I frowned and repeated those items in my head turning around making my way back towards the common area of the city.

"Aye Nani." A boy said, it was a group of them and I looked. "Oh you can't speak now shorty?" He said jogging up to me, I sighed and looked at him.

"Didn't hear you."

"Yes you did."

"Nah." I mumbled walking. I saw the store in view and continued walking speeding up a bit.

"Forget you then shorty!" He said, I rolled my eyes walking inside. I grabbed a cart and walked to the back aisle looking around.

"Totally forgot what she just told me to get." I mumbled as I face palmed my head. I sighed and dialed her number.

"What."

"Mama, I forgot." I said quietly, she dramatically sighed.

"Getta note gyal, Curry. Bread. Milk and Bell Peppers." She said slowly, I nodded typing it in my notes. "Ya get it now gyal?"

"Yes."  She hung up and I grabbed a produce bag grabbing a pepper of each color, putting it in the cart I made my way to the seasonings as I turned the corner my cart bumped into somebody else's.

"Oops I'm sorry ma'am." She just stared at me. She was a tall thin dark woman with a long gray ponytail she wore a animal tooth around her neck, from her graying hair I could tell she was a bit old but she still looked very young.

"It's you." She said. I looked at her confused. She tilted her head back and her body begin to shake. "Tottie." She said in a little girls voice, I looked at her scared backing up as she let out a high scream as people turned and looked at her some nervous others freaked and walked away fast, but I couldn't, it's like my feet were stuck. She begin speaking a different language that made no sense. A big tall man with gray dreads came behind her.