Love & Lowriders

The Key

I woke up to the loud sounds of every cell door opening and the officer's yelling for everyone to get up. I hop out of my bed and put on my jumpsuit. We all lined up like every morning and they walked us down to the dining hall for our so called breakfast. I grab my tray of this yellow puffy stuff that is supposed to be scrambled eggs, burned toast, a cup of grapes, and water. I found Carlos sitting near the back as usual. "What's up sleepin beauty?" he says as I sit down. I just nod at him, still trying to fully wake up. "Damn, you must have slept hella good ese. You were snoring like a damn lawn mower!" he said with a laugh. There was silence for a few minutes as we ate, but then Carlos asked "So you gonna finish telling me your story? What was in the box?" "well.. " I replied.

Inside of the box was a shiny key. I looked at it for a second, confused as to what it was for. My grandfather broke up the silence, "You're now at that age were you deserve some freedom and learn about responsibility. And what better gift to a seventeen year old than his own ride.". "YOU BOUGHT ME A CAR!" I shouted with excitement. "Haha no, not exactly mijo. Even better." he said with a wink. Now I looked about as confused as a moment ago. "I'm giving you one of my cars." he smirked. My eyes widened and my smile got huge. See my grandfather has about 6 or 7 cars, all of them Lowriders to be exact. "You're kidding me, this has to be a joke? You love your cars!" I said to him. "I do love my cars, but I love you more and I'm very proud of you. This is a big accomplishment that deserves a big reward!" he replied. "How about you go outside and see for yourself if you don't believe me.". I almost fell out my chair with how fast I got up. Practically running to the door I opened it up to find a flatbed tow truck with a car hooked and there she was. Rosa. Rosa was a rose gold 67 Chevy Impala with black leather interior. The top was down and the sun just shined right off the beautiful paint. The hydrolic switches were down so the car was basically sitting on its frame. This was my grandfather's first Lowrider. "You're giving me Rosa?" I asked him with confusion and excitement. "Might as well, I don't drive her like I used to. She just sits in the shop collecting dust mijo. A car like that needs to be seen! And a kid like you needs a car like that!" he replied with a huge smile. "Just think of all the ladies you can get in that ride!". "I have a girlfriend grandpa, I don't need any ladies." I said with a smile. "You're still with Sophia? How long have you two been together?" he asked. "Yea, I've been with her since freshman year." I reply. "Ahhh, highschool sweethearts! Say? How bout we unhook Rosa and you go pick up your girl. I bet she'll love that!" he said walking towards me with his keys. My whole face just brightened up and I couldn't stop smiling as we walked down to the truck. We got Rosa lowered to the road and flipped the switches to raise her back up. Damn this car sat so beautiful. I quickly got into the driver seat and a sudden rush of happiness hit me as I gripped the steering wheel. I put the key in the ignition and turned it over. Without hesitation the car came to life with a quite rumble. The radio was already playing some oldies, Duke of Earl by Gene Chandler, softly coming out the speakers. I adjusted the mirrors and looked all around at the car. I just couldn't believe that it was mine. Rosa was actually mine now. My grandfather looked at me and smiled, "get the hella outta here already, take her for a spin!" he said laughing. I put the car into gear and headed down the street. I turned the radio up and just cruised to the oldies. It was life. The wind blowing through my hair, the sun's heat felt good today. Not a worry in the world. Graduating soon, loving girlfriend, new car, I had it all set. Everything was going great in my life and I couldn't be any happier. I drove a few blocks away to get to Sophia's house, I knew she was going to be excited.

There was a loud buzz that interrupted me. Shit, it was time for us to go back to the cells. "Why they always gotta be fuckin something up man?" Carlos exclaimed. "Don't worry fool, I'll keep going when we get back to the cell." I replied to him as we got up and joined the lines. We all walked to our cells and got inside. There was a loud buzz again and all the doors began to close again. It would be a couple hours before they opened up again and let our cell block out. I guess now's the perfect time to keep talking to Carlos.