A Girl From Flint

by Treasure Hernandez

  Honey and Amra packed the bags into the cab that had arrived in front of Ms. Pat’s house. They got in as Tasha stood outside the house, wondering if she was making the right decision. Amra shouted from the back seat of the cab. “Tash, are you ready?”

  Tasha looked at the cab, and then at the taillights of Joe’s car as he drove away. She took a deep breath. “Yeah, let’s go.”

  Chapter Six

  They arrived in Flint at one o’clock in the morning. Amra was excited to be there, to be away from New York. She was anxious to hit the hottest spots in the city. Tasha was confused, not knowing what to expect from the streets of Flint.

  “Mimi should be here,” Honey said, leading the way through the airport.

  The girls walked outside and saw a honey-colored girl with a short haircut that had been died blonde. She had hailed a cab and was standing on the outside of it. She reminded Tasha of one of the girls from a video or something. They walked up to the girl.

  Honey said, “Amra, Tasha, this is my cousin, Mimi.”

  Mimi was thick as hell. An average-looking girl, her face wasn’t all that, but she was well endowed, and her ass made up for the features she lacked.

  Mimi smiled and greeted the girls. “Hey, let me get some of them bags.” She helped them put their bags into the trunk, then they all got into the cab.

  After a twenty-minute ride to Flint’s South Side, they finally arrived at the house. When they walked in, Tasha immediately recognized the smell of weed. The pungent smell was heavy in the house.

  “Hey, my babies!” a woman loudly said as she approached them all.

  “This is my moms,” Mimi said.

  “Just call me Tammy,” Mimi’s mother said with a strong Midwest slur. Tammy had an old Stephanie Mills song playing loudly through the house, and she was grooving with her hands in the air. A small glass of Rémy Martin with ice was on the table as Tammy smoothly danced by herself.

  Tasha smiled at Mimi’s mother and introduced herself. “I’m Tasha.”

  “And I’m Amra.”

  Tammy gave both girls a friendly smile. “Okay, now I need to set some ground rules.”

  Tasha and Amra looked at each other with skeptical looks on their faces.

  Tammy put her hands on her hips. “Now, y’all some grown women, so I’m not gonna try to tell y’all where you can and can not go. All I want is one hundred dollars apiece every month. Hell, with five of us in the house, the bills are gonna be sky-high. The money will help pay some of them and buy groceries for all of us.” She paused for a minute to get the girls’ reactions, but when they just nodded their heads in agreement, she added, “Well, go make yourselves at home.”

  After the brief introduction, Mimi led the way upstairs. The house had three bedrooms, so there was plenty of room for the girls. “This is where y’all gon’ sleep.” Mimi pointed into the room.

  They all went in, and Tasha and Amra started to unpack.

  “So, who was that nigga that you called over before we left home?” Honey asked, intrigued by Joe. Honey liked to deal with thugs. Joe’s car, his clothes, the tattoos that covered his solid body, and the gun she saw through the imprint of his white T-shirt told her all she needed to know.

  Tasha smiled at the thought of Joe. “That was this dude named Joe.” She kept it short because she didn’t want Honey to be too interested in her man. What the fuck is she so interested for anyway? A streak of jealousy quickly passed through her.

  Mimi sat down on the bed that Tasha had chosen to sleep in. “So, what’s up for tonight? I know y’all bitches didn’t come here to sit in the house.”

  Tasha frowned at the term. She better watch that “bitch” shit. We ain’t cool like that yet.

  Amra laughed it off. “Hell nah. I didn’t come here to sit in the house.”

  “Well look, I’m about to get dressed,” Honey got up and said. “So let me know when y’all ready to go.”

  Mimi followed closely behind her. “Me too. I got to do my hair.”

  “Damn, Tasha! I can not believe we are so far away from home. On our own too; I mean, besides Tammy and all, but she doesn’t count, because it don’t even seem like she gon’ be tripping,” Amra said, playing in her own hair.

  “Yeah, she’s cool.”

  Tasha grabbed hangers from out of the closet to put her clothes up. She was tired and wasn’t really in the mood to go clubbing. She had a lot on her mind, and she also wanted to call Ms. Pat to make sure she had gotten the letter.

  Tasha walked out of her new room and down the hall into Honey and Mimi’s room. She softly knocked before she entered, “Hey,” she said as she walked in and sat on Honey’s bed.

  Mimi was rummaging through her closet, trying to find something to wear, and Honey was in the mirror, getting ready to do her hair.

  Honey turned and looked at Tasha and immediately knew she wasn’t up to going out. “Hey, we don’t have to go out tonight. We can just chill if you are too tired.” She walked over to her dresser and pulled some pajamas out. She already knew Tasha would take her up on her offer.

  “Good. I really don’t feel like partying hard tonight anyway. I have to call back home to check on Amra’s mom.”

  Honey nodded her head and looked skeptically at Mimi.

  Mimi smacked her lips and shot Honey a look that said she wasn’t having it. She quickly replied, “Oh, bitch, you already know I’m going out. It’s two-dollar Tuesday, and the club is going to be packed tonight. I will be in there. But don’t trip, we can all do something tomorrow, or whenever y’all feel up to it.”

  Tasha walked back into her room and saw Amra asleep on her bed. She walked over to her and nudged her softly. Amra didn’t move, so Tasha pulled the cover over her friend and turned out the lights.

  Tasha picked up her cell phone and called Ms. Pat. The phone rang a couple times, and with each ring, more butterflies accumulated in her stomach.

  “Hello?” Ms. Pat finally answered.

  Tasha paused when she heard Ms. Pat’s voice. I hope she’s not mad at us. Tasha said nervously, “Hey, Ms. Pat—”

  “Oh, thank you, Jesus! Tasha, I am so glad you called. What in the world were you girls thinking, running off to Michigan without even waiting to tell me? Where is Amra?” she yelled sternly through the phone.

  Tasha could hear the anger and sadness in her voice as she spoke. “She’s asleep. I’m sorry, Ms. Pat. It was wrong for us to just leave, but we’re okay. We’re staying with Honey’s auntie for now,” she explained, hoping that it would ease Ms. Pat. When there was silence, Tasha knew Ms. Pat was disappointed.

  “I know you two are grown now, and I can’t dictate what you two do, but you take care of my baby. Watch out for her. You and Amra are like sisters, and I love you like you are my own. Make sure you both are careful. Flint is a bad city. Don’t get caught up in any mess.”

  “We won’t. We’re okay though. I don’t want you to worry.”

  Ms. Pat was unsure about the whole situation, but she knew that the girls had their hearts and minds set. “I’m going to worry. My girls are far away from me. I know you will make smart choices, for yourself, and for Amra. That makes me feel a little better. You make sure you call me at least once a week.”

  Tasha felt like a big weight had been lifted off of her shoulders. She hung up the phone and went back into Honey’s room.

  Mimi had finished getting dressed and was getting ready to walk out the door. She looked at Tasha, and tried to convince her that she was missing out. “Are you sure you don’t want to come? It’s gonna be jumping.”

  Tasha shook her head. “Nah, I’m cool.”

  Mimi shrugged. “Okay,” she said, and walked out of the room and headed for the club.

  Honey and Tasha sat up talking, catching up on the year that had just passed. Away from each other for months, their friendship hadn’t missed a beat. They were still as close as ever. The absence had made them grow fonder of each other. They sat up watching TV, eating pizza, an
d talking about everything they had missed in each other’s life. Tasha was happy to be around her friend again.

  “So, what is Mimi like?” Tasha asked Honey. Mimi seemed cool, but Honey would tell her the real deal, no matter what.

  “Mimi’s cool. We’ve been tight ever since we were babies. She’s real though; she don’t put up with bullshit. If y’all cool, then she will be the best friend you will ever have. But if y’all enemies, she will be the worst enemy too. That’s just how she is, you know? You don’t have to worry about Mimi though. Y’all will be cool.”

  Tasha knew that if Honey thought highly of her cousin, then she must be okay.

  Tasha went into her room and tried to go to sleep. It took her a couple hours to get comfortable. Just as she was about to fall into a deep sleep, she was interrupted by the sound of Mimi shouting.

  “Honey!” Mimi yelled in a slurred voice.

  Tasha put her pillow over her head, trying to ignore the noise. When she heard a loud thud followed by glass breaking, she suspected that Mimi had fallen, stumbling around the dark house. She assumed that Mimi was drunk and tried to block out the noise. Then she heard Mimi fall and hit the floor hard.

  Tasha jumped out of bed and ran into the hall. She turned on the hall light and saw Mimi lying on the floor, breathing hard, almost gasping for air. Blood was running onto the carpet from the cuts on her face. She ran over to Mimi. “Oh my God! What happened to you?” She tried to help Mimi up.

  Mimi screamed in pain when Tasha tried to move her.

  Amra appeared at the entrance to their bedroom and groggily rubbed her eyes.

  “Go get Honey!” Tasha screamed.

  Amra snapped awake when she saw Mimi lying on the floor. “Damn! What happened to her?”

  Tasha waved her hand. “Go get Honey!”

  While Amra rushed into Honey’s room, Tasha pulled off Mimi’s blood-soaked shirt and saw a deep cut on her stomach. She immediately ran into the bathroom and started to run cold water in the sink. When she came back with towels to stop the bleeding, Honey was kneeling by Mimi’s side. Mimi was crying, and Tasha could tell she was in pain.

  “What the fuck happened to you?” Honey asked her.

  “Them bitches jumped me!” Mimi yelled.

  Amra looked down at Mimi, and knew it had to be a group of girls for Mimi to be beaten up so badly. “Damn! How many girls was it?” Them bitches mauled her ass!

  The girls helped Mimi up and took her into her room and laid her on her bed. There was a deep cut in her side, and little cuts on her face. She had a busted lip, and she complained that her ribs were sore from being stomped.

  Tasha went and got some Tylenol from the bathroom cabinet and gave them to Mimi.

  After they cleaned Mimi up, she fell asleep.

  Honey shook her head. “I shouldn’t have let her go out by herself.”

  Amra was standing in the doorway with her hands on her hip. She looked at Tasha and said, “I’m going back to sleep. Let me know if y’all need me.”

  Tasha turned to Honey. “Me too. We’ll deal with it in the morning. It ain’t too much we can do tonight anyway.” She turned and walked out of the room and crawled into her own bed. I hope it don’t be drama like this every night. What type of beef do she got anyway? I hope she ain’t gonna be starting shit all over town, because I am not trying to be fighting every time I leave the house. Tasha went to sleep with a lot on her mind, hoping her new experience would be what she expected it to be.

  A couple weeks passed before Mimi left the house. The girls who had jumped her had messed her up pretty badly, and she didn’t want to leave the house looking tore up. Her wounds healed quickly, but one of the scratches on her face left a small scar above her eyebrow. Mimi was furious. In all her years of fighting, she had never been hit in the face, and she was determined to get back at the chicks that had done it. “I am beating them bitches down when I see them,” she exclaimed as she sat at the table and ate breakfast.

  No one commented. Mimi had been talking about getting even with the girls ever since the day after the fight.

  “I heard they gon’ be at the party tonight,” Mimi said, referring to a party that was going down at a local club.

  Honey quickly replied, “Well, that’s where we gonna be then.”

  That night, the girls headed to the party. It was Tasha’s and Amra’s first time getting out, and they were excited to see what life in Flint was like. When they entered the party, they immediately felt the steam emanating from the hot bodies that filled the room.

  “Damn, it’s packed in here!” Amra shouted over the loud music blaring from the speakers.

  As the girls walked through the party, Mimi scanned for the girls who’d jumped her. “They’re not here,” she said.

  The girls found a table and sat down and enjoyed the atmosphere of the club. It was crowded, and everybody seemed to be having a good time.

  Tasha looked out onto the dance floor and saw people grinding against each other. She sat back and chilled with her girls, enjoying herself. The clubs in Flint were different from the ones back home. They were wilder, and Tasha liked the change.

  Amra got up and went out onto the dance floor, pulling Tasha along with her. The girls started to dance, and men instantly jumped at the chance to be close to them.

  A dude began dancing with Tasha from behind. She turned around and saw that he was butt-ass ugly. Hell nah, brother! she thought and slyly danced away from him.

  Amra started to laugh, and Tasha made her way off the floor. Amra danced with a group of dudes and left the dance floor with one of them, and headed to the bar. She flirted coyly with the dude, and when she ran out of conversation, they exchanged numbers, and she rejoined her friends at their table.

  The party lasted until two o’clock, and when it was over, the girls were tired and ready to go home. As they were leaving the club, a tall, good-looking man called Mimi’s name.

  She turned her head to see who it was, and a smile slowly crept across her face. “Manolo!” she said excitedly. She left her friends and walked over to him and gave him a hug.

  “What up, Mimi?” Manolo looked her up and down. “I ain’t seen your ass in a while.”

  “You the one who be acting like a stranger,” Mimi told him.

  Manolo pulled out a piece of paper and wrote down his number. He handed it to her. “I got to talk to you and your girls about something. Holla at me when you get a chance.”

  “What’s up? You might as well holla at us now.”

  Mimi was about to motion for her girls to come over, but Manolo stopped her. “Nah, it’s about making some money. I’d rather discuss business in private. Just holla at me, ma.” Manolo walked away.

  Mimi walked back over to her friends.

  “Who was that?” Honey asked.

  “That’s my boy, Manolo. We were cool back in the day. I haven’t seen him in a while though. He said he want to talk to us about making some money.”

  Honey’s eyes glistened when she heard the word money. She was always down for making money. “We need to get at him then.”

  Mimi told her friends about Manolo on their way back to the house. They all wanted to make some money, and they decided they would call him the next day to see what he was talking about.

  Chapter Seven

  Manolo sat down across from the group of girls and looked them all up and down as he took in their features. He passed a blunt to Mimi. “What up, Mimi baby? What the fuck you been up to?”

  Mimi licked her lips, almost tasting the weed. “Shit, just chilling. What up, though? You said you wanted to holla at me and my girls. We here, so what you want?” She took a pull from the blunt then passed it to Honey, who was sitting next to her.

  Manolo sat back on his black leather couch. “I got a business proposition for you and your girls. It’s easy money.”

  “You know I’m all about making money.” Mimi crossed her legs. “What you got in mind?”

  Manolo clea
red his throat. “I saw you and your girls at the club last night. Y’all would be perfect for the job.”

  Tasha was listening closely to the conversation, but she was getting fed up, because Manolo was talking in circles. I’m all down for making money, but he ain’t telling me shit. He got to come with some more details. She was up on her game and had heard how grimy Flint niggas could be. She didn’t know Manolo, and wasn’t sure what he wanted them for. “What exactly is it that we got to do?” she asked, not hiding her skepticism.

  Manolo smiled. “A’ight, lil’ mama, calm down. Look, this is what I’m saying. It’s these niggas from the North Side. These niggas getting money. I know, the streets is talking. They’re sitting on chips and waiting to get robbed. Your girl right here got one of they numbers last night.” He pointed to Amra. “That’s one of the reasons why I picked y’all, ’cause it’s already an interest on they part. Now the hustle that I’m trying to do gon’ take about three hours, tops. Now this gon’ pop off with or without y’all, but if you down, then you and your girls gon’ get in good with these niggas. The only thing y’all got to do is get them in the hotel room, and I’ll do the rest.”

  Tasha put her hands up, rejecting the blunt that was being passed around the room. “Hold on, let me get this right. You want us to set niggas up for you to rob ’em?”

  Manolo looked straight into her eyes and said, “Exactly !”

  Honey hit the blunt, held it down for a minute, and then blew it out. “Well, shit, what do we get out of all this?”

  Manolo laughed. “At the end of the night, we will come together, put the money down, and split it up. I’ll give y’all fifty percent of whatever I get. Y’all can keep the jewelry and split the cash however you want.”

  Tasha folded her arms. “Hell nah! We’re taking all the risks. I’m sure you gon’ be all ski-masked up and shit. We have to worry about these dudes coming back at us.”

  Manolo shook his head lightly. “Ma, don’t even worry about that. The way I’m gon’ do it, they gon’ think y’all getting robbed with them. See, what I was thinking, y’all could lure these cats into a hotel room. Make them think they ’bout to get in on some freaky ménage-à-trois-type shit, and that’s when I come into the picture—handcuffs and everything. I’ll catch them in a vulnerable situation.”