Believe And Hope

Chapter 1

I woke to the sound of a car crash near the house. Of course Kyeal was drinking again. That old brat just won't follow the rules and was the most racist guy I have ever known. Hate to admit that he is my older brother. Kyeal is 1 year older than me and is a senior in high school. I can't believe he doesn't care. Me, on the other hand, cares. After what momma and daddy have gone through to get us to this point, I'll do anything to make them happy.

I quickly got out of the worn-out matress I have had since I was a little girl. All I ever wanted was a new bed, but momma and daddy don't got the money. It's ok though, I work my fair share. I slip out the white, or used to be white, tank top and slipped on the red and purple shirt Nana gave me for my 17th birthday. I button up the denim shorts and head down the hall to breakfeast.

From the aroma of the kitchen, we havin' eggs and bacon. My favorite.
"Mornin' Momma!" I call out.
"Oh, mornin' sweet pea. I cooked your favorite breakfeast since you have your end of the year exams." She spoke.

Dang. I forgot all about studying. Frick, I better eat quickly and maybe I can head down to Starbucks and study with the 2 hours I have.
"Thanks momma. Have you heard the crash out this morning?" I asked.
"You know Kyeal. No matter what I try to do, he just gonna keep drinking. I quit worrying about the car crashing. He will learn his lesson." Momma replied.
"And I'm also assuming that dad left, right?" I wondered again.
She sighed and got back to washing the remaining dishes.

It's not a surprise that he left. Daddy is a civil rights leader, I guess you could call it. He should be making billions of dollars, but according to the Senator, no black civil rights activist should be paid more than 1,000 dollars a year. Momma works at the local diner which she also doesn't get paid that much.

About 10 minutes of silence passed before momma put on her diner uniform.
"I'm gonna go on ahead and begin my shift. I want you to do your best, Exodus. Remember, if you wanna make a change to all this, you must do your best," she told me.
"Momma I won't let you down. Since I woke up earlier than I thought, I'm gonna go to Starbucks and study until school," I told her.
"That's my girl." Momma replied.

We said our goodbyes and went our different ways. I look around the corner of the house and see Kyeal's car ran in a pole.  Better get this over with. My conscience bugs me. I trudge on over near the purple Toyota Camry and opened the remains of the door.

"Kyeal you ok?" I hollared out.
I hear a moan and see Kyeal making his way to the car door. What the heck was he doing in the backseat?

"Hey, uh..uh.. Exodus. Uh, I was just, uh getting something out of the back," he stammered.
"Yea, uh huh, what is back there Kyeal?" I ask him.
"Um..nothing of your concern, sis. Shouldn't you go study of something? It's whatcha do best." He snapped.
"There's no need to yell at me boy. And there is no need to hide anything from me. Now get out of the car and gather up your thoughts. You look bad enough already." I got up and grabbed a loose brick from the house and threw it at the backseat window. Kyeal was sitting on the wooden bench near a plum tree, with his hands on his face.

I get through the broken glass and look at the gray seat. And right in front of me were 2 ziplock bags filled with a white suger substance. Something was written on the bags and I brung it up closer to read it. I never thought I would have to see this. Written on the bags were "Two bags of cocaine and pot. Bring 100$ by Wednesday night at 10:00."