by Anna J.
After school, he waited for me to get myself together in the classroom, and we walked out hand in hand, right past Gina and Marissa. Khalid didn’t even appear to notice they were there. I looked back at Gina in time to catch the evil stare she threw my way, and I smiled back in return, letting her know she didn’t faze me.
Our walk home was even more pleasant than the day before, and when we got to the block, I initiated the kiss before I ran off and went in the house.
When I walked in, Vince was already waiting inside, watching the ending of Duck Tales. I zoomed by, hung up my coat, and handled my business, making sure whatever dishes that the home health aide left were cleaned up.
On this day, Vince just gave me the Snow White, not making me beg for it or anything like that. I snatched the cap up from the table and took everything I needed, as well as my mom’s food, into the room to get it over with. Usually I took my time with my mom, making sure that she was comfortable and all that, but today I had a mission to accomplish.
I fed her only half the food, which she took in pretty well, before I set up shop to give her what she needed. I had to take my time with this, though, making sure not to overcook the product, if you could actually do so. It took me a while to find a vein this time, and I almost lost hope until I saw a small vein pop up by her ankle that I was able to use. By the time I got done injecting her fix and had washed everything off, she was laid flat out on the bed. I turned the fan on low and fixed the covers around her, making sure the television was turned to Fox 29 before I left the room.
Vince was already at the door waiting for me, and I grabbed my coat and my house key, rushing behind him down the stairs before I lost sight of him. When I got outside, I jumped into the back seat of his Jeep, buckling my seat belt as he closed the door and jumped in himself. It was almost like he was driving a jet as we sped away and made our way to the Gallery to go shopping.
I had never been to the Gallery, but I knew that Gina’s mom got her a lot of things from there, so I knew we were about to spend some money. We went into the Kids Foot Locker first, where I was able to pick out four pairs of sneakers and a pair of Timberlands like the ones I saw Khalid wear to school when it snowed.
I didn’t even want Vince to help me with my bags after he paid for my stuff. I grabbed up the two bags the cashier put my stuff in and was out, ready to go to the next store.
We stopped in another shoe store, where Vince got himself some stuff before we went into Gymboree, a high-priced children’s clothing store where I was able to pick out five outfits to go with my new shoes. I tried on all the clothes, too, making sure that everything fit, so that I wouldn’t have to bring anything back. I settled on three pairs of jeans and two pairs of corduroy pants, with sweaters to match, before we left out.
I was content with what I had, but when he took me into the Children’s Place clothing store and told me to get what I wanted, I almost passed out from the excitement. I took just as much time in there, piecing together my outfits. He reminded me to get some more underwear and undershirts and whatever else I needed before we left that store. I walked out of there with enough stuff to last me a month, mimicking the styles of clothes that I saw the other girls in my school wearing when we were allowed a dress-down day.
Once we left there, we went into another shoe store, where I was able to get a nice pair of loafers and a pair of Mary Jane shoes that I had seen Gina and Marissa wear to school on occasions. Our last stop was the Gallery hair store, where I got like a hundred packs of barrettes and hair baubles. I didn’t even know how to put them in, but I would figure it out before the week was out.
We went to McDonald’s before we left there, and I started getting suspicious because I knew that for him to be spending this kind of money, he must want me to do something in return. I was quiet on the way back to the hood, still not believing my luck.
A half hour later, we pulled up in front of one of the apartment buildings in Bartram Village. I was scared because of the stories I heard about people being killed in the basements and stuff, and I refrained from even looking out the window, just in case I saw something I wasn’t supposed to.
From my view in the back seat, I saw Vince talking to this big-booty girl on the stoop. She was all hugged up on my uncle like they really knew each other, and my young mind began to wander. If he had girls that looked like that all over him, what did he want with me? They conversed for a while longer before I saw Vince pull money from his pocket and hand it to the girl before beckoning me to get out of the car. I was trying to grab all my stuff to bring it with me, but he told me to leave it all in the car except for the hair barrettes and stuff. I took the liberty of taking all of the clothing receipts out and putting them in my pocket before I went up to the strange girl. Vince told me to call him when I was finished getting my hair done. I looked skeptical about going, but I really didn’t have a choice in the matter.
The hallway smelled like piss as we walked up to the third floor, and just like my teacher, I noticed this girl had on a thong too. That must have been the thing to have, because everybody was wearing them, and I made another mental note to get some of them next time I went out shopping with Vince.
Surprisingly, the girl’s house was the bomb. She had a nice plush carpet that I couldn’t step on until I removed my shoes. I was suddenly happy that I had put on clean socks that morning. From there we went straight to the kitchen, where she made me climb up on the sink and lay flat down so that my head could hang over the edge inside of the bowl. She loosened my hair from my raggedy ponytail; then she took a big plastic juice pitcher from the cabinet and filled it with warm water to pour over my hair. I used my shirt to cover my eyes as she washed and scrubbed my hair several times before finally applying some conditioner and combing it through with a wide-toothed comb. My hair felt silky and smooth, and after she combed and rubbed every follicle, she rinsed me out and wrapped my hair in a towel, instructing me to have a seat in one of the kitchen chairs that surrounded the table.
She left the room for a few minutes, but came back with a hair dryer and a few other items that she would need to get the job done. I listened to her yap away on the phone, telling whomever she was talking to how all the niggas out there were foul and that even though Vince broke her off with good dick and some cash every so often, she wasn’t his girl. I just giggled to myself as she roughly dried my hair and sectioned it off into two small parts before corn rowing my hair in a zigzag pattern. She hung my barrettes from the ends.
My hair easily reached the center of my back, and the barrettes clapped together as I walked into the bathroom to look at the new me. I was pleasantly surprised at the girl I saw in the mirror. My hair was nice and shiny and long, hanging down my back, making my face look different.
She came in the bathroom and smiled at me smiling at myself, saying something to me for the first time today. “You like it?”
“Yes. Thank you so much.”
“No problem.” She instructed me on how to take care of my hair. “Just keep a scarf on it every night, and try not to scratch too much, and you should be good for at least two weeks.”
“I don’t have a scarf,” I replied. I had forgotten to get one from the hair store. After all, I really didn’t know what to buy, since I wasn’t really into the hair care thing.
“I got one. Don’t worry about it.”
I left the bathroom just in time to see Ms. Reid, my substitute teacher, walk into the apartment. She smiled at me when she came in, calling me by my name when she spoke. I was shocked that she recognized me because I didn’t really recognize the new me that I saw in the mirror.
“Hi, Ms. Reid,” I spoke back shyly before looking down at my hands. She was even prettier up close, and I couldn’t believe she lived right around the way. We held a brief conversation before the girl that was doing my hair came back into the living room, heated at whomever she was talking to on the phone.
“See, Journey, a man ain’t good for nothing but givin
g you what you need to maintain. You’re a pretty girl. Just keep yourself nice and clean, and keep your gear together, and you’ll have a man eating out the crack of your ass for the rest of your life.”
“Toya, what kind of advice is that to give a growing girl?” Ms. Reid said, shaking her head and smiling at Toya, introducing her to me as her sister. I took in that tad bit of information, though, just in case I needed it down the line. I had a feeling that this year was going to be my year, and I knew I would have to stay on Vince if I wanted my shit to stay tight.
Vincent Clayton
Big Things Poppin’
“You ready?” I spoke into the phone when I noticed Toya’s number pop up. She took a lot longer with Journey’s hair than I thought she would, but that was cool. It gave me time to set up shop at the crib so that Journey could get to cooking this good coke up. I just got some new shit from my connect that I wanted to test out, and I needed to see how Journey would do with my sister-in-law before I put it out on the street.
“Yeah, she ready. Hurry up, nigga,” Toya spoke into the phone before banging on me. She was mad because I wouldn’t let her suck my dick, but in reality, she needed to up her head game if we were gonna roll like that.
I ain’t sweat that shit, though. I just went ahead and got my niece, pulling up to the door and beeping the horn, not bothering to call upstairs for her to come out. Much to my surprise, Toya’s sister, Tyfanie, walked Journey out to the car. She was the shit, and wasn’t tryin’a give a nigga no play whatsoever. She wasn’t stuck up or nothin’, but I guess her being a teacher had a lot to do with how she dealt with people. I ain’t give a fuck about none of that, though. I’d bend her ass right over the back of the couch right next to her damn sister and fuck the shit out of both of them. Just thinking about it made my dick hard.
Toya did a good job with Journey’s hair, making her look like a well-kept young lady. It almost made me feel bad about what I was doing to her . . . almost. Shit, she’d have to learn how to maintain eventually. I was just showing her the ropes.
Journey quickly climbed into my Jeep and shut the door, buckling her seat belt as we drove off. I already told Choice and Bird that I would be out later, not bothering to tell either one of them what I had cooking up. I didn’t want too many people in my shit, just in case it didn’t work out the way I planned.
We pulled up to the crib in less than five minutes, and I saw the look on Journey’s face when she didn’t see all of her bags in the back seat where she’d left them. I knew enough about her to know she wouldn’t ask for the shit either; she’d look upstairs first. I had the bags hidden in my sister-in-law’s room for the time being. I needed her to cook this shit up before she even touched her homework, and she needed to understand that shit didn’t come for free. I spent well over a thousand dollars on her earlier, and she would have to work that off.
When we got in the crib, she ran right into her room, expecting her bags to be on her bed, or at least in the closet. I took a seat at the table and pulled the brick out of my pocket, allowing her to search around a little before she came back to me.
“Uncle Vince,” she said to me in a strained voice, like she was trying to keep herself from crying. I ain’t give a fuck, though. By the time I was done with her, she wouldn’t have a tear left in her damn body. Crying is for weak bitches, and she would be a soldier whether she wanted to be or not.
“Yeah, wassup, Journey?” I asked her as if I didn’t know what she was looking for. I probably should have felt bad about what I was doing to her, and I could see her little nose getting red and her eyes starting to well up as she blinked back tears. She had to learn that she couldn’t trust anyone, though. Not even herself.
“What happened to the stuff you bought for me? Did you take it back to the store?”
“I might have. Why?” I asked, looking her in the face and trying not to smirk. She was falling apart, but in a month from now, nothing would faze her.
“Because I have all of the receipts right here,” she said, pulling a handful of receipts from her pocket. I laughed a little because she was at least smart enough to know that I couldn’t get my money back without them. She was a little brighter than I thought.
“Did you think I needed those to return your stuff?”
“Yeah.”
“Well, I didn’t. Now, this is what I need you to do. . . .” I started her off with just cooking down enough for five or six tops at a time, to make sure she didn’t mess up. “Measure out the baking soda in individual scoops for each one, so that you don’t add too much. And don’t spill any of the product.”
I showed her how to use the scale for measuring and how to pack the product into the vials. Her hands were a bit shaky at first, but once she got a rhythm going, she was knocking them joints out without much effort. Once she made up about thirty tops, I had her do the ultimate test to see if she had done it correctly.
“Go give this to your mother.”
“Now? I already gave her what she needed for today.”
“Journey, you want your stuff back, right?” I asked her with a serious expression on my face. It took her forever to cook up that little bit of shit, and even though I told my people that I wouldn’t be out until later, it was getting too damn late for me to still be inside.
“Yes, I want my stuff back.”
“Then you know what you need to do.”
She hesitantly got up from the table and went into the room to test the product on her mother. I stood in the doorway and watched as she approached my sister-in-law, who was up watching the news. Journey told her that she was going to be giving her another hit, and she happily obliged. I just hoped this simple bitch didn’t overdose, but it had been a couple hours since her earlier hit, so she would probably be cool.
Journey was very meticulous in how she set everything up, being sure to wash her hands and everything before she touched the supplies. My sister-in-law could hardly contain herself as she waited for Journey to get her situation right. Journey knew her shit, too, taking her time to find the vein and everything. If she kept up this shit here, I might have to put her on the block.
I took a seat in the living room and waited impatiently for her to finish up. I knew my brother didn’t really want his wife strung out like that, but she was a grown-ass woman that made a grown-ass decision. I was just helping her out.
When Journey came back out, I showed her how to clean up all traces of activity, sliding back into my sister-in-law’s room to hide the rest of my supply and get Journey’s shit out of the closet.
“Here’s your stuff. Keep doing what I need you to do, and I’ll keep lacing you like this. Understood?”
She didn’t open her mouth to respond; she just shook her head. Peeking in the room one more time, I saw that my sister-in-law was feeling nice, and I knew that Journey had done a good job cooking this shit up. Normally I would have gotten at least some head from Journey, but it was already getting late and I’d already stressed the girl out, so I let her slide.
When I came back into the living room, she was undressed and waiting on the couch with her hair tied up in a scarf. My dick jumped at attention, and I almost doubled back, but I kept it moving.
“Journey, go to bed. I’ll be back tomorrow so that you can package up some more shit. Come straight home from school.”
“Okay, but what do I do for my mom in the morning? I used my last one earlier.”
I reached into my pocket and gave her two caps of Snow White from the bag I had earlier today. The stuff that she had just cooked up would be given out as testers, and we would be doing that for the next few days to see how it went over. If our clientele was demanding it, we would go with the new connect.
I slid over to Choice’s place to put him on to what I was trying to do. Just as I had asked, he had two fiends waiting on the corner for me when I got there. We walked down to one of our hit spots on the block and gave the fiends one top each, to go with what they had just purchased, to get t
he party started. The one dude, Smitty, was a lifelong customer, and every time we got some new shit we would hook him up, because he sent a lot of traffic our way.
“Smitty, let me know how you like this, man. I’ll hook you up if you keep sending traffic my way. You know how we do.”
Smitty just shook his head and moved the party upstairs, not even bothering to ask any questions. Me and Choice went back on the block so that we could get things poppin’.
“So, that’s the new shit?” Choice asked me as he puffed his L and leaned against the side of the bar. He was the one that put me on to the connect, and I knew once I told him what I had cooking up, he’d be in.
“Yeah. My plan is to put Street on the project so that he could get his game up. I only had like thirty tops made up, but over the next couple of days and over the weekend, we’ll just pass out samples to see how it goes over.”
“You think Street ready for this game, man?”
“Yeah, I think he is. The question is does he think he’s ready?”
My plan was to up Joey’s status within the next couple of months, but I needed to get this dude on some shit that would have him stuck for good. That reminded me that I needed to see Shanyce about some shit too. It was about time for her to ride this dick if she wanted her little boy to make it another day.
It wasn’t until three in the morning when I finally got home, and I was tempted to creep back up around the way to take Journey up on that offer from earlier. I swear that girl gave the best head ever. Instead, I stroked my nut up until I busted all over my legs and shit, not even bothering to wipe the shit up.