Street Cred |On My Block|

23. 22:36

I let out a long sigh and laid my head in my folded arms on the pillow as Jaime planted kisses down my bare back, "you good mamas" he asked as he placed his hands on my shoulders and started to dig his thumbs in, unbuckling my tense muscles, "it's Monse, her mother left her when she was young, started telling people her dad abused her" I mumbled, "oh my god" his aggravated tone and sudden stop brought back the tense feeling in my body. "They're my friends" I rolled over and told him "okay but I'm tired of hearing the same names and same problems over and over again" he stated "you literally just asked me" I argued "I asked if you were good, I ain't ask about Monse or Ruby or whoever else" he yelled "if they're not good than I'm not good, and if you don't want to hear it, don't ask me" I yelled back as I sat up from my position and grabbed my shirt "I don't even gotta ask, you walk in whining about the same people" he snatched my shirt out of my hand as he yelled at me "I'm not doing this with you, I got other shit to worry about" I snatched my shirt back and slipped it on my body "there you go, worrying about everything else except your own damn business" he yelled as I walked towards the door, I swung it open and slammed it behind me.

"You pay bills to be slamming doors" a raspy deep voice asked, I turned to see Jaime's uncle, sitting on the couch with papers and a calculator in front of him "I'm sorry" I told him, I hurried past him headed towards the front door "Jaime's in the wrong" he started, I turned back towards him, who was sitting upright on the couch facing away from me, "thanks, I guess" I unsurely dragged my words. He bent back down to the coffee table that his work was on.

     I stopped in the front of Ruby's house and scratched my arm a bit, "what are you waiting for, we're meeting in the back" Monse popped up behind me, she carried the duffel bag on her shoulder next to her bouncy coils again. "I don't think Ruby's gonna want me in his house" I told her "he's got no other choice, the vote was 50/50 so no action" she shrugged "oh god, I forgot Cesar still hates me too" I mumbled "they'll get over it" she pulled me by my arm, "but Monse I won't, I lied to them, I lied to you" I pulled back "for your safety, I forgive you, they will too" she said continuing to pull me towards the shed in the backyard.

     I sat down in the circle next to Monse in Ruby's shed, he and Cesar stopped their whispers as I walked in "what is she doing here" Ruby rolled his eyes, "she's a member of this group" Monse defended me, Jamal came in, doing a double take out the door acting suspicious. "What's the money doing here" he shrieked "just so we're clear this money could be cursed" Jamal warned "that's not real" I added "of course she's a naysayer" Ruby hissed sharpening his eyes at me. "Think about it, when it was first stolen Benito and Frankie were murdered in jail, then little Ricky mysteriously died, then the night I found it Ruby and Olivia got shot" Jamal presented, it did make sense. "Then abuelita got her hands all messed up" Cesar added "unbelievable" Monse murmured "we go to the cuandera, to fix Abuelita's hands and she tells us something doesn't belong in this house" he started "we come back Ruby breaks a truce then not even 8 hours in Monse's house and she get kicked out" Jamal finished "she wasn't kicked out" I reminded "sure" he brushed off sarcastically "I wasn't" Monse assured "and Ruby lived, that's not a curse" I added "also the truce ending is just freeridge being freeridge" Monse agreed with me, "what about our backstabbing friend, there's no silver lining to that" Ruby mumbled "I didn't shoot you Ruby" I blurted "might as well have" he argued "you can't blame me for that,  you're not allowed to put that on me" I whined "what about sleeping with Oscar, that's the lowest thing I've ever seen" Cesar jumped in "and lying" Jamal added, Monse popped his shoulder "I was afraid" I yelled at Cesar "of what, your crazy ass cousin, so you decide to jump in bed with my brother" Cesar yelled back. "I had nobody, I have nobody" tears started to flow down my eyes "that was the worse day of my life even before the shooting, my parents came to say goodbye, then Latrelle comes, Ruby and Olivia get loaded in an ambulance, I fucking ran, I got to the hospital and Olivia was bleeding out, I watched them run her down a hallway, and the doctor yelled 'there's nothing we can do' the machine just started beeping loud, and they just let go of her and called time, 22:36, Ruby was in surgery, you were with Monse, and Jamal had his damn money, and I-I just walked down the street because I have nobody" I shouted, I slid open the shed door and marched out passing by Jasmine and Amber.

Here I am. Once again. Walking down the street with no where to go. Is this just fucking inevitable? Is the rest of my life? Waiting for a prophet or santo to put a bullet in the back of my head and no one giving a shit because I have nothing. Speaking of a prophet. Latrelle wanted to see me, maybe it time to get some closure with him, after that I don't think I can stay in Freeridge, what if I hitch a ride to the city and just disappear.

I pulled a hoodie over my head as I crossed over to Prophet's territory. I walked fast and closer to the buildings where shadows casted over the sidewalks, making sure to stay at the edge of street lights. I came across my aunts home, the dining room light shined out over the street. Hugging the building, I slowly walked over to peep through the window. I see Latrelle, sitting with Miaya playing a with cards. I crouched down to move positions and scan the rest of the room. Seeing a small corner of the living room where JJ resided, in a wheelchair staring at the TV. I knew I could be risking everything but I lightly tapped on the window with my nail hoping to attract Latrelle but no one else. I watched as he threw his head back in laughter only paying attention to his sister, this is stupid. I walked around the back of the house and went to Latrelle's window which was covered in newspapers block my view from inside, I'm just going to have to wait till he's done.

I seen a light shining through the translucent paper, I pressed my ear against the glass. The window jerk upwards and there stood Latrelle with a .45 pointed at me. "Damn girl you can do that, I thought yo ass was trynna kill me" he gasped while tucking his gun in his pants. Looking at him, I felt a thick pressure against my heart, I tried to shake it off but it grew, "come up here" he told me grabbing my hand and pulling towards him, I stomped my feet on the side of the house and pushed myself up, sliding in his window. "Hey, Liyah" he pulled me into a hug the second boring of my feet were on the floor. My body started to grow hot, like I was practically boiling my skin off. There was a volcano inside of me and I was seconds from erupting, but I couldn't because I don't know what this is but I can't do whatever my body is trying to do right now. "You good" he asked me "yea" I lied "how've you been" he asked. How have I been. "My friend is dead" I mumbled "yeah, sorry bout that, I wasn't trynna get those two, you know that, I just had to handle my business" he told me "you weren't suppose to be there, that wasn't the plan" I felt my voice cracking, as I tried pushing down the lump in my throat. "Yeah, I know, I'm sorry but I couldn't, I was going to but then JJ called me from the hospital, he wanted you Aaliyah, but not dead, he wanted you to kill him" he explained to me "he said at least one person in our family need to finish what they started, and he called me a pussy for not offing Cesar, I had to go back for him, finish what I started before I left" he finished "it was her birthday" I cried out "the shot was clear, but he saw me, he wasn't supposed to turn that way" Latrelle defended himself. "You don't care who she was, you just wanted to make JJ proud, you belong here" I told him "what are you talking about, of course I ain't wanna kill her, but a bullet don't got a name on it" he told me. I looked up into his eyes. "Yours does".