Magic

Chapter 14

Kirshnik 'takeoff' Ball

i have to tell her about him, but i dont want to seem like im desperate or that im chasing her but that kid i no good. it's not just the fact that him and his friends do more drugs than our entire neighborhood put together and it's only about five of them. it's the fact that he called her entertainment. he said it like she was a toy or something.

"what you stressin for. that girl dont belong to you." quavo laid out on my bed and looked up at the ceiling.

"She could get hurt messing with him." i said.

"like i said she dont belong to you. you tell her something bad about her little boyfriend and she gone hate you." he said

"we're supposed to be friends. wouldnt you wanna know if it was you."

"if i was dating a girl that was a druggie that was probably cheating on me...would i want to know....yes, but girls are different. they dont like to be told things like this just leave it alone." quavo replied.

"whatever," he said.

i spent the rest of the day making drops. i brought the money to Lavell and he gave me yet another bag of drug but this one came with special instructions.

"that isnt for you to break down. it's a special made shipment that you need to drop off to a friend of mine for me. i'll give you a name and an address to bring it to and you better make sure it gets there." he said sternly.

"yeah, i got you." he said.

"youve been a little short some other times but only by a couple dollars so it aint a big thang, but you fuck this up and i will kill you and everything you love." he warned.

"i understand." i siad to him.

i threw the bag into the backseat of my car and got in. i wasnt scheduled to drop it off for another two days so i'll leave it back there instead of taking it inside the house and hiding it in my room. on my way home i passed maggie sitting at the bus stop. i dont know it she misses the bus on purpose or she knows when i'm going to pass by.

"do you miss the bus on purpose?" i shouted out the window. she looked up at me and laughed.

"i havent missed it. i'm early today." she said.

"so you dont want a ride home?" i asked.

she shrugged and hopped up off the bench. she threw her bag into the backseat and got in the passenger seat. She was reading something. i dont know what she called it but the book was as thick as a dictionary.

"so what's that called again?" i asked.

"the count of monte cristo?" she replied. "it's a good book you should read it."

"i think i might skip that, but you can tell me about it." i said.

"it's about a man who went to jail for a crime he didnt commit and he spends years getting revenge on the people who framed him." she said.

"yeah....the book still looks too long to read." i replied.

"whatever," she replied.

"hey,"

maggie looked away from her book and i could feel her looking at me. "how close is you and that dude?"

"why are you askin?" she said to me.

"i was...thinkin about the other night." i lied.

"What about the other night?" i aksed him.

"why do we try..." i stopped and looked over at her. she looked confused but i know that she knew exactly what i was getting at.

"try what? being together?" she replied. i nodded.

my heart was beating in my chest so hard i thought it wa about to bust right through my chest and fall in my lap. she closed the book and placed it down in her lap but didnt say anything for a long time. i wasnt gonna do this. i was gonna keep my distance and just protect her as her friend but i cant do that. im not gonna sit back and let that kid hurt her. i'll kill him before i let him do anything to her.

"what makes you wanna be with me now all of a sudden?" she asked finally.

"like you said some crushes never go away." i replied.

Magdalyn 'magic' James

i just sat there looking at him. he's so hard to read sometimes. the way he just stares off into the distance emotionlessly makes it hard to tell what he's thinking.

"you know, it took a lot of convincing for me to get my mama to let me come back to stay with her. she kept asking why i wanted to come back and i told her that i missed her and my brother and sister and i just wanted to be home again, but in the back of my mind i knew it was about you." he said.

"What about me?" i asked.

"when i left, you remember that?" he asked. i nodded. "it was right before Valentine's day and i was out there with those guys because i was trying to scrape up some money for a gift. i would run and get them things from the store, like sandwich bags and baking soda. i dont know what they was doin with it but they would give me a couple dollars every time i did it. i was gonna use that money to buy i gift and tell you that i liked you but i never got the chance to."

"you....you're making this up." i said shaking my head. "you gotta be."

he jerked the car off to the right and stopped on the ide of the road. he put the hazard lights on then turned his whole body to me.

"Why?" he asked.

"What-"

"Why do you think im not good enough?" he was screaming now. "i get it, i'm not some rich white kid so i'm not worth your time?"

"up until recently i wasnt worth yours!" i shouted back. "you treated me like shit and made me and my family miserable for no damn reason. now you want me to turn around and be your girlfriend?"

"i told you i was sorry about that. i was a kid. we both were." he said.

"no,"

"what?" he asked.

"i...i dont want to be your girlfriend. i just want to be friends." i said.

he sat back in his seat and looked out his window. i'm so stupid. so, so, stupid. i just blurted out no when i didnt mean it, and i hurt him. i could tell by the way that he was chewing on his bottom lip and avoiding eye contact with me. there's probably no way we'll be able to be friends.

"i should have listened?" he said finally.

"to what?"

"to my uncle...he said you would be too in love with him to even give me a chance but i took the leap anyway." he shook his head.

"i-"

"it's probably better like this. if we just stay friends....we wouldnt work anyway." he said. "we're both to dominant"

"you mean your stubborn," i said.

he laughed. "see, that's exactly what i mean."

he didnt say much else the rest of the ride back to my house. i think i really did mess this up. when he dropped me off all he said was bye. i grabbed my things from the backseat and went into the house without another word.