NOBODY

Chapter 1

Sajada

I woke up staring at the poster of NBA YoungBoy taped to my ceiling. His sharp gaze almost felt like it was calling me out. I groaned, grabbing my phone to check the time, only to notice two missed calls from my best friend, Danielle. Before I could even think about calling her back, my bedroom door flew open.

"I'm here already, hoe!" Danielle hollered, leaning casually on the doorframe, twirling her keys around her finger.

"Why you even call me if you were just gon' show up like this?" I grumbled, dragging myself out of bed, rubbing my eyes with a half-annoyed expression.

"Because I can. Now hurry up. We got stuff to talk about," she said, plopping onto my bed like she owned it.

I ignored her and trudged to the bathroom connected to my room. Flicking on the light, I caught a glimpse of my sleepy reflection. My hair was all over the place, but that was the least of my worries. I turned on the shower, plugged in my flat irons, and started undressing. The hot water was soothing against my skin, but my mind wandered, as always. Fifteen minutes later, I wrapped myself in a towel and brushed my teeth, my focus shifting to straightening my hair.

Danielle's voice broke through the buzz of my flat iron. "Best friend, you tryna go out this weekend?" she asked, not even looking up from her phone.

I sighed, meeting her eyes in the mirror. "Nah, I don't have any money, and I damn sure don't have anything to wear."

Danielle smirked. "Girl, you already know I got you. Stop playing."

I turned to face her. "Dani, I can't. I gotta stay here and make sure the house is straight. Plus, you know I gotta look after my mom."

Danielle's face softened, but before she could say anything, I finished my hair and walked back into my room. I started getting dressed in my all-white tee, ripped jeans, and my scuffed but spotless Air Force 1s. Danielle, already dressed in her white tee and her fresh pair of all-white 12s, smirked at me.

"Twins," she teased, snapping a quick picture of us.

We both laughed and headed out. The walk to school was as exhausting as ever, the humid summer air sticking to our skin.

"Damn, this walk to school killed me," Danielle said, fanning herself with her hand.

"Get a car, and we wouldn't have to walk," I shot back, laughing.

"You right," she admitted, laughing along with me.

Belmont High School loomed ahead of us. The building wasn't much to look at—faded bricks, graffiti on the back walls—but it was our second home. As we stepped inside, the usual chaos unfolded. Groups of students crowded the hallways, music blasting from someone's speaker. The air buzzed with excitement—it was the last day of school. We Finally Graduated!!

We spotted our other best friend, Aaliyah, near the lockers.

"Heyyyyy!" Danielle and I yelled in unison, running up to her.

"Heyyy, y'all," Aaliyah said, hugging us. Her long braids swung behind her as she pulled back.

Danielle wasted no time. "What's the move for this weekend?"