Serenity

Eighteen

Laughter, loud music, and the smell of weed filled the air as I sat and watched Cole, Kelvin, Jamal, and Deuce play a game of spades down in Deuce's basement that he turned into a man cave.

"Nigga, you just reneged!" Kelvin shouted at Cole.

"No the hell I didn't! Y'all always tryna accuse somebody of cheating. Just mad cause you losing!"

"Hell nah, we finna go back and check!"

I just shook my head and laughed. These dudes was always getting serious over a damn card game.

"Man, fuck it! I'm done playing," Deuce said. "Give my damn money back. Y'all some sore losers."

"Ain't nobody a sore loser. Y'all asses just keep cheating," Jamal said.

"Yea whatever," Cole said as the group dispersed from the square table and sat down on the other couches and chairs in the room.

"Man, pass the blunt," I said. "While y'all wanna argue about a damn card game. It ain't even all that serious."

"That's cause yo young ass don't know how to play," Kelvin said.

"Nigga you only 3 years older than me, talking about some young."

"You still young to me," he said, passing me the blunt.

"Whatever."

"Man a senior in high school. Growing up ain't it?" Deuce said.

"Some like that," I said after a taking a few puffs.

"You decided what you gon' do when you graduate?"

"I ain't sure yet. I'm tryna get in with the guys, but somebody won't let me," I said referring to Kelvin.

"Damn right I ain't," he said, making me smack my lips. I passed the blunt to Deuce.

"Nah, man. You don't want this life. I promise," Deuce said.

Deuce and Kelvin were cousins. They both started working for Ace around the same time 3 years ago. Both of them had dropped out of school at 17 and 18, and thought this was the was their only option.

Deuce eventually realized that wasn't the life he wanted to live, and he got out. Kelvin stayed, but Deuce tried to convince him on the daily to leave. He assured him that he'd help him with whatever he needed, but Kelvin wouldn't budge.

"Y'all keep tryna tell me what I want and don't want. I'm capable of thinking for myself," I said with slight attitude.

"But Leeko, you don't realize we're only trying to help you. Everybody in this room sees something in you that we didn't see in ourselves at your age. Maybe if we had someone to push us to do better, we'd be better," Jamal explained.

"Can't tell his hardheaded ass nothing," Kelvin said while looking at his phone.

"Have you talked to your cousin lately?" Deuce asked me.

"Who?"

"Isaiah."

"Nah. I ain't heard from him in years. Not since we moved to Lakewood 4 years ago. My dad didn't want me coming back to south side for nothing when I was younger so I just stopped seeing him."

Isaiah's dad and my dad were brothers. As kids, Isaiah and I were almost inseparable. He was like the brother I never had. We were together damn near everyday.

The night before we moved to Lakewood, our dads got into a fight. That was the last time I talked to him. I hadn't seen him in forever.

"I saw him the other day. He was asking about Ace and how to get on, but I told him I wasn't doing that shit no more."

It was sad to say that Isaiah hadn't even crossed my mind until Deuce just brought him up. I wasn't surprised that he was trying to join, though. I mean, that was probably all he knew.