Exiled

August 85

Unfortunately or thankfully depending on how you feel about her, it wasn't Naz's mom that my auntie was dragging across the club but some random thot that looked almost identical to her. Apparently, the girl was pushing up on my Uncle James hard as fuck, following him around to the point of almost stalking him, if you know anything about Cunningham women then you know how they get about their men so it was a surprise to almost no one that my Aunt Sonja went off. Semaj couldn't believe it but he'd be shocked at how crazy his mom really is, when he was locked up........ Damn that shyt hit me like a fuckin truck, all this time I had been trying to figure out where the fuck I had seen that nigga Loyalty at and the answer was right there in front of me and Semaj, he was at Semaj's trial, he kept staring at Semaj like he wanted to jump over there partition and kill him but why? Before I could tell Semaj about this revelation, however, Jacobi walked into the backyard looking like he had been through war; his shirt was ripped and there were ice cream stains on his shoes which I knew infuriated him.

"Check this... if we ever decide to do the whole donor thing and have kids we're using my nut because I refuse to have my kids running around like that." Jacobi said pointing back towards the house. "Is everyone in your family crazy?" He asked and I honestly had to think about it for a second.

"Quite possibly.... nah it's more like a fifty/fifty split. You got the chill laid back Cunninghams like me and my bros then you got the Cunninghams who will fuck shyt up if you look at them wrong. So what made you come back? I figured after our conversation earlier you'd be in your feelings." I said looking at him because after our very intense conversation I was sure I wouldn't be seeing him anytime soon.

"I had to get out the house.... Quran was spending time with his mom and my folks kept looking at me like they were ready for me to have a mental breakdown. And that got me thinking about what you said.... Maybe this whole Teague thing really fucked me up, that's not something you can just get over in a few weeks, I keep waiting for that nigga to pop up and take his revenge on me..... I know I sound crazy but I can't help how I feel." Jacobi said unable to meet my eyes.

"Ayy Cobi... if you didn't feel scared that's when I know that something was seriously wrong. What happened to you was.... horrible, one of the worst things that can ever happen to a person and it went on for years. It's only natural for you to need time to heal, which is what I'm here for, to be that shoulder you lean on for everything, you don't gotta be so damn hard all the time." I said getting up and walking over to him. "Come on.... let's take a walk." I said reaching for his hand, and then... it came outta nowhere, I didn't even have time to react before one of them little Cunnighams ran out the house and punched Jacobi dead in the dick.

"AHHH WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH HIM!!!!" Jacobi said doubling over with tears in his eyes, he looked like he was about to kill the curly-headed little boy, until Noah walked out and grabbed the little boy who couldn't have been more than seven or eight.

"My bad.... Cori is always on ten and he said you kicked his soccer ball." Noah said yoking up his little brother.... cousin.... I'm not sure, but what I was sure of was Jacobi was on ten and given the way he was staring at Noah I had a pretty good idea of what Jacobi was thinking.

"Come on....." I said pulling him away and we took the long way around the house because it sounded like a warzone in there. "Let me apologize again for my fam.... as you pointed out my family is crazy."

"I feel like I'm about to throw up, that little dude hits hard as fuck." Jacobi said still limping a little. "Which further emphasizes why I gotta be the donor to the surrogate in about seven years.... if I can still have kids after that." Jacobi said as we made it to the street. "I'm not ready to go back to school." Jacobi said quietly.

"Why not, you were always mister popular and even though we go to different schools, I'm always hearing about the legendary Jacobi Westbrook. That shyt is a boost to my ego to hear about my baby so you should be good plus we're seniors so that means half-days, which means....." Before I could finish two cars came flying down the street, stopping a couple of feet away from us, as a group of colorful queens jumped out.

"WAZ POPPIN!!!" One of the dudes said and it was clear what they were here for, then I noticed who was standing in the very back of the group and I didn't know whether to be pissed or start laughing. I recognized a few of them from Torique's party that happened earlier this summer, some of them I knew for sure like Torique's cousin Ghonni and Jacobi's ex Jerell. "Jerell is this that nigga that played you?" The loudest and most colorful one said.

"Yeah, that's his bitch ass." Jerell said like he had an attitude, I glanced at Jacobi who was already in a bad mood so this was quite possibly the worst time to be fuckin with him... or the best considering that one of the best ways to release anger was fighting.

"Jacobi... go back to Semaj's house and tell them to come out here." I said keeping my eyes on the six dudes who had jumped out of that small ass Honda. "Don't worry I'll be fine..." I said and I knew Jacobi hadn't moved but I saw him pull out his phone which worked just as well. "Now look y'all seem like reasonable peo...."

"AHT AHT.... We didn't come here to talk to the side ho, we came to get answers from Jacobi himself, so stay in your place and don't speak unless spoken to." The leader said and it took me all of a half-second before I swung on him, not because I was mad about being called a side-ho but because he was just entirely too disrespectful by telling me to 'stay in my place'.

At the moment it was two on six, I'm not going to lie them niggas could fight or maybe it had something to do with the numbers but whatever it was their slight advantage didn't last that long because Semaj, Clévon, and Noah all came running out the house to almost even the odds but we were Cunninghams so five on six was an easy W for us.

"Damn all of them are fine." One of them said as the hopped back in the Honda and sped off. My first instinct was to check on Jacobi but he seemed fine despite a few scratches, then I looked at my cousins and of course, they were all hyped wanting to go after them.

"That would be stupid... just like it was stupid for them to come to y'alls neighborhood following them back to somewhere that they have the advantage wouldn't be in our best interest." Noah said quietly.

"He's right but we'll catch them niggas slippin eventually." Clévon said even though I knew he more than anyone else had been waiting for a fight to break out. "Who were them dudes anyway?" He asked and I gave them a brief rundown of what happened before we started fighting. "Them were the same niggas that popped up at he cabin... I told you we should've beat their ass when the showed up there." Clévon said shaking his head.

"Noah, you sure you don't wanna go to Georgia? I mean you've only been here a few days and as you can see we know how to make an impression." Semaj said.

"Nah man, I'm committed to USC my stepdad went there and I'm feeling the campus, fuckin around with y'all will have me locked up and then killed because my dads don't play, plus I've had enough excitement in my life and I just wanna chill at this point." Noah said and I found it hard to believe that his life was that crazy but you never know.

"Ayy let me talk to Semaj real quick." I said and they all started walking back to the house. "So I was doing some thinking and I think I know where we have seen that nigga Loyalty before. He was at your trial and the more I think about it I'm starting to think he's related to that woman that Jacobi and Victor hit." I said and Semaj seemed disturbed by this bit of information.

"Quran's interaction, Jacobi's ex popping up, a nigga who thinks I killed someone who he's related to (possibly), and Lucci's dad.... I just find it too coincidental that everyone who hangs around Naz is being distracted at the exact same time, then you gotta add in the fact that De'Vaugh is going on tour... it seems like Natalie is about to make her move and it's clear to me that she's targeting Naz." Semaj said and I couldn't help but feel that Semaj's calculation is spot on and I knew that we needed to tell everyone what was going on before it was too late.........................

****** QUESTIONS ******

1) What should be the next two stories I post; Anthology, Amor é Eterno, BHC3, BH: Seattle, HoaA3, or TB

2) What should be the next chapter in Anthology; Against All Odds, Phenom, or The Bodyguard?