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AJ grunted as she lifted one of the last packing boxes from the trunk of her dad's truck.
"Dang, dad. Did you put rocks in this box or something? I should be a body builder, the way I'm lifting these boxes." The brown skinned girl remarked as she passed her dad lounging in the kitchen of their new house in Outer Banks, North Carolina.
"First of all li'l girl, that's your box. Second of all, you ain't body building nothing, with those jelly arms you got. Can't even beat your little brother in arm wrestling, and he's 12." AJ's dad, James chuckled out, teasing his daughter about the time her brother had easily beaten her in an arm wrestling match after she was talking big the whole night.
"You gotta admit though baby, he got his strength from his momma," AJ's mom, Renee interjected just as the girl was opening her mouth to return a snappy comeback.
Renee was someone AJ heavily admired and looked to for motivation in any situation. Renee had given birth to her daughter at the young age of 17 and still graduated high school with at 4.2 gpa and finished law school on a full ride scholarship. She succeeded in being a single mother with no help from her baby daddy. As a kid AJ would never tire of hearing the story of how determined and resilient her mother was, only hoping to be that strong and independent someday.
"As if, momma. These muscles are honed from long nights of lifting weights." Jackson, the youngest of the tight-knit family said as he came down the stairs. The boy stopped at the bottom of the stair and flexed his "muscles".
AJ scoffed and rolled her eyes. "Long nights? Boy you eat dinner at 5 and be passed out by 8. Get ya skinny ass on somewhere."
You better watch your goddamn mouth." Renee snapped at her oldest child quickly and turned to point at her husband. "She get that foul shit from you."
James looked up at his wife and snorted. "How? I ain't even her daddy for real."
"Glad to know you love me pops."
"No problem, shortcake." James responded almost instantly, like routine.
"Whatever." Renee rolled her eyes and began unpacking kitchen appliances and utensils and putting them in their place. "Don't know why I married your ass in the first place."
"I don't know either, but you don't see me complaining do you?" James tugged his wife toward him by her waistband, wrapped his arms around her waist and laid a light kiss on the top of her head.
AJ watched the whole scene fondly, loving how they seemed to complete each other. James came into her mom's life when AJ was two. There was never a moment that AJ doubted James' love for her mom. Despite coming with a child, being dead set on finishing law school, and constant rejection from Renee, James never gave up on her. He actually supported every goal she wished to achieve, no matter how impossible it seemed. AJ could only hope that one day she could have a love like that.
"Alright enough of that lovey dovey stuff." Jackson interrupted his parents' sweet moment with his own smart remark. "You'd think after more than 10 years, they'd get tired of each other."
"Shut up," James proceeded to throw a small wooden spoon at his son. "Bad ass kid."
And that's how the rest of the day went, unpacking, and more than enough sass from all members of the family. When all the boxes were empty it was well into the night and AJ was tired and sweaty. So she ended her day with a nice warm shower. While she was putting on her pajamas was when her mom decided to enter her room.
"Hey baby, you should go out tomorrow, explore the island, you know? Meet some new friends." The stern tone in the mother's voice brooked no arguments. AJ hadn't been very keen on moving away from all her friends. She'd had a reputation, even clout from where she came from. Now she would have to build that back up, but she knows these people could never compare to the people she loved back in Chicago. It's almost like refusing to delete your social media account, no matter how much it made cringe because it took way too much time and effort to build up what you already have.
"But, ma," AJ tried to object but one look from her mother, and the girl knew she was stuck. She sighed and nodded. "Alright. I guess I'll go see what trouble I can get into." AJ smiled brightly at the thought of adrenaline rush from doing something she wasn't supposed to and getting away with it. She doubts there is much trouble to get into on this small island, though.
"Now listen here, I ain't say nothing abou-," Renee was interrupted by her mischievous daughter.
"Good night momma. Love you."
"Ooh wee, chile you need a whoopin'," Renee chuckled. And with those last words AJ's lights turned off and her door closed, leaving her to dream about shenanigans.
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soooo this is kind of an introduction to aj's life and her family dynamic. i know this is short-ish but this is only the first chapter so of course there will be longer chapters. i wish i could add gifs sooo bad they're not working right now. if you're having that issue on wattpad too and figured out the solution can you put it in the comments?
