by Anjela Day
“Can I go for a ride?”
I looked over at Venice as she stood by the car looking at me and knew this was the best way possible to show Venice that she and I were just cool. I could tell she was becoming too clingy, and I wasn't trying to wife anyone. I unlocked the door and let Raven in.
“Hell yeah,” Raven said, nodding her head to the music. I looked over at Venice with her arms crossed over her chest and lip poked out. She was mad yeah, but I couldn’t show that I cared the least bit. I laid my seat back and pulled off.
I knew Venice was pissed because she didn't answer her phone for two weeks. I felt like I was missing a part of me; the best part of me at that. I hit the block hoping that would make things better, but of course all I made was cash.
She was my girl, and I knew it. Now I just had to prove it to her without looking like a pussy. I showed up at 3:30 and waited for her to get out of school. I watched her walk past me; she didn’t even acknowledge I was there.
“Ven, come here!” I ordered.
“Naw, Deuce, there goes Raven, holla at her,” she fired back.
“Man, Ven, come here now!” I said with authority and pulled her to me.
“Stop Deuce,” she whined, but rested her face on my chest.
“Come take a ride with me,” I told her as I opened the door to the car.
Mad as she pretended to be, she obliged with her arms still over her chest. She was pissed. She didn't take her book bag off and just flopped down in the seat. We rode around for a bit, and then I parked.
“Venice, why you mad at me?”
“You cheated on me with some low rent, dumb …!” Venice struggled to cuss and I smiled because she was such a good little girl. “I just hate you Deuce!”
“How I cheat Ven? You not my girl.” I told her, and her face really flipped upside down. Her pretty butter pecan skin began to turn red.
“So, why you acting like I am?” she asked.
“Man you my nigga! My best friend and I miss you!”
“Fuck you Deuce!” she blurted with ease, and then got out of the car.
Ugh she could piss me off. I got out behind her and slammed the door. I pulled her in my arms.
“Fuck is wrong with you?”
“I’m in love with you,” she confessed leaving me speechless.
I stared at her for a second, not knowing what to say. I just nodded my head and hopped in back in the car. I sighed. That was a lot to take in; even though I was feeling the same way. Once she got back in the car, I pulled off.
“Man, Venice, you gone spend the weekend with me?”
“No, just take me to the bus stop,” she whined as tears fell down her cheeks.
“Come on Ven, hang with me. My mom won’t be there!”
“See she don't like yo’ ass either,” Venice joked and wiped the tears from her face.
“Ha ha! Naw my sister sick, so they go out of town and shit to see different doctors.” She looked away and began to stare out the window. The first read light we stopped at, I pulled her face back and kissed her.
“No, Deuce, just take me home.”
I wasn’t trying to hear that bullshit! I pulled off and took her to my house. I walked inside, leaving her in the car. I knew she would follow sooner or later. It took about an hour, but she came inside.
She stormed inside and walked up to my room. She undressed, and I tossed her a T-shirt. She didn't even look at me, she just climbed in bed. I climbed in behind her and wrapped my arms around her.
“Gone Deuce,” she said pulling away I held her tighter and kissed her neck. She turned over and slipped her tongue in my mouth. Then she pulled away again.
“Best friends, aye?” she said and turned back over to go to sleep..
“I love you too,” I whispered in her ear as I closed my eyes.
Soon as I dozed off, my phone rang.
“What?” I shouted.
“Nigga, you better watch that tone! I need you to go pick up the cash!” my uncle Dinero yelled through the phone.
“Man unk.”
“Its yo’ pop’s cash and Lee said you told him you was a man so prove that shit BOY!
“I got to do it now?” I asked looking down at Venice already fast asleep.
“Yeah, you don't let any nigga hold money over night! Get the fuck off yo’ lazy ass and do it!” my uncle ordered.
I kissed Venice and woke her up. “Baby”
“What best friend!” she said sleepily.
“Man, you know you mine, shut the fuck up. I got to go pick up my money. I’ll be back!” I told her as I kissed her lips.
I got dressed and called Jay to ride with me. I picked him up, and we cruised the block, picking up the cash along the way., I loved kicking back and hanging with my nigga.
“So, what’s been up wit you nigga?” he asked and lit a blunt.
“Man, girl Raven been hounding me.”
“That yo’ girl?”
I damn near choked upon hearing him ask that shit.
“Naw, we fucked one time and she wanna be my bitch. I’m good”
“Nigga, is you booed up?” he asked jokingly. I guess the fact that I wasn’t laughing caused the smile on his face to turn upside down.
“Why the fuck you ask?” I asked with a raised eyebrow.
“Cuz nigga you smell like a bitch!” Jay said with a smirk.
“Nigga, fuck you. I got a girl, but we just chillin’ for now. I told Jay as we pulled up in front of the last house. I was supposed to meet my uncle’s man, Desmond, he was the nigga that put me on.
He seemed to be a cool nigga. He was nineteen and cocky as fuck. I stood outside the car and leaned on the trunk. This nigga was already thirty minutes late. I pulled my phone from my pocket since it had been ringing for about twenty minutes.
“What’s up ma?”
“I’m hungry, can I order a pizza,” Venice asked and I smiled upon hearing her voice.
“Yeah bae, go head. Look in the closet. There is money inside the Jordan box on the bottom. Get enough money to order what you want and I’ll be…” I paused when Desmond walked up on me.
“Bae, I’ll hit you back.” I said dropping my phone when Desmond pulled a gun on me.
“Nigga, is you stupid? Do you know who the fuck I am?” I asked this nigga as I stared down the barrel of his gun.
“Nigga, you a fuckin trader. One minute you on the Money Squad, the next minute you are rolling with my fam. You a bitch nigga; with a good spot, making way too much cash.”
I stepped back and looked at this nigga, but mainly his gun.
“Nigga take the money. Just put the gun up. We’ll forget this shit happened,” I said. My heart was racing, and my hands shaked as I slipped my hand around my back and reached for my gun. I watched as this nigga’s hands shook and could tell that he was unsure if he wanted to shoot me or not.
“Yo you know why they call me Deuce?” I asked and he laughed at me.
“Man, nigga take the cash,” I said and reached in my pocket. “You walk away, I walk away, and my uncle and my pops won’t have to know you pulled on me, you know Ali, Dinero, and Sacario.”
He sucked his teeth and cocked his gun. He shook his head no and I took a deep breath and pulled my gun. I cocked it, but he fired before I could do anything. I stumbled backwards, feeling the bullet hit the side of my face.
I pulled my trigger and he stood there watching me as I stumbled to the ground. The first bullet I fired went straight to the sky. I lowered my gun and aimed at this nigga; firing two more times. I watched the bullets spin him as they entered his body.
My eyes froze on him as he hit the ground. Jay jumped out the car. Quickly he pulled me inside, and then ran to Desmond to check on him. Jay grabbed my phone from the ground and hopped in the driver’s seat and pulled off.
Jay was all hype and loud as he asked me if I was good, but I couldn’t hear much he had to say over my heart racing. I had him take me over to my uncle Lee’s house. I knew I had to be
a man and deal with the situation no matter what the punishment.
I explained to my uncle Lee once we got there how shit went down. I could instantly see the disappointment in his eyes. I didn't know if was for me or Desmond. He took the money from me and gave me 90% of it.
“You keep 5 and put the rest up for yo’ moms. I’m gone flip the rest for ya’ pops.”
We left there and I dropped Jay off and then headed back home. Soon as I walked in my bedroom, Venice was sitting up watching a fuckin’ reality show and eating chicken wings.
“Hey,” she said as she stood up walked over to me. “What happened D?” She looked at me and a tear rolled down her face. She ran her hand over my face and stared at me with fear in her eyes.
“I’m good man!”
She nodded her head, wiped her tears, and then walked into the bathroom. She grabbed a warm cloth; washed my face, and then put some cream on it.
“Man, I’m good,” I told her and snatched the food from the bed. I was lying. I was in so much pain that I wanted to scream. Not to mention my mind was racing.
“What you buy me? I asked and sat on the bed. She climbed on my lap and kissed my lips. I forgot that I was even pissed and laid back on the bed. I kissed her as she caressed my chest.
My dick was throbbing, but I didn’t even crave sex. Her lips on mine and the look in her eyes made me feel good. Man I was falling in love and that was not something I was ready to do. The best thing right now was to stay away from Venice. I didn't want to keep my distance, but my mom was getting on me about school and my uncles was on me about work. I had to handle my shit.
Chapter 3
Deuce
“Deuce your sister's party is tomorrow I’m really gon’ to need your help,” my mother said to me causing me to sigh. I didn’t know what was worse, my mother nagging or the look she gave me about my ringing phone.
“Alight ma’,” I told her and kissed her face. I grabbed a juice sitting at a stool in the kitchen.
“Boy, answer yo’ damn phone!” My mom yelled as she looked at it vibrating. I sighed as I looked at Venice’s number for the sixth time. I thought she would’ve gotten the hint by now.
“Man what?” I said into the phone. I looked up to see my mother giving me a displeasing look.
“Damn, what did I do to you best friend?” Venice asked, and her soft, sexy voice made me weak.
“Nothing, I’m just working,” I told her and she sighed.
“Alright, well are we ok?” she asked still sounding lost.
“Yeah, man we Gucci! Can I hit you back? I’m watching my baby sister.” I lied, and my mother raised her eyebrow.
“Can we hang out tonight?”
“Yeah, I’ll call you,” I told her and ended the call. I didn't really mean a word that I said. My mom gave me that look, and I just walked away.
The next few days really got hectic. My pops got released just in time for my sister’s birthday party. I watched in slow motion as every bit of my family's past was tossed out in the open like wet laundry.
My mother, I thought would be happy to have my pops at home but instead, she smacked him and ordered him out the house. I truly didn't know what to think. Whenever my parents fought, the more my father felt he had to do for my sister and me.
He went as far as buying me a truck and a 9mm with the word Deuce engraved in it. I really wanted to love my dad, but the tears were back in my mother’s eyes and I felt torn. I wanted to call Ven. She always knew what to say, but I knew if I called her she would want to know why I had been avoiding her for the last few weeks, and truthfully I wasn’t ready to deal with it.
I did need a little release, so I hit up this chick that went to Jay’s school. Candi was stuck up and ghetto at the same time. You know that chick that will only talk to niggas rolling. She was trying to get a come up, but at the same time she rolled her eyes and popped her tongue like a hood rat. I never took her back to my house, but we had fucked in the truck a couple of times. Sadly after I fucked Candi, Istill felt like I was missing something.
“Yo’ Deuce,” I sighed and looked up at my pops
“What's up?” he walked in my room and I prepared for the sex talk that I really had no need to hear.
“So you fuckin?” he said like I was one of his niggas.
“Yeah! You gon’ tell ma?” I asked with a raised eyebrow.
“Hell naw.” He reached in his pocket and pulled out some condoms. “Understand you are the prince and hoes gon’ try and trap you! They think that kids are a come up. Never fuck a bitch raw!” He warned and I nodded my head as he eased out my room. Just as I got comfortable my phone rang.
“What!”
“Hey, can I speak to Deuce?” the shaky voice asked. I looked at the number and had never seen it before.
“Yo who dis?”
“It’s Ven.”
I won’t lie when she said her name, my whole face lit up. I missed my girl.
“Fuck you at and who phone you calling me from? I asked.
She explained, but all I could hear is her ask me to come for her, and I was out my bed. I finished the call and ran in the bathroom, washed my face, brushed my teeth and was out the door.
“Yo son where are you going?” my pops asked, I flashed a smile, and he nodded, as he watched me walk out the door.
I floored it, till I got to address she had given me. As I pulled up, I saw my girl standing on the curb with her hair in a messy ponytail, with a white t-shirt shirt barely covering her ass.
I started to drive right by her, but I figured if she called me, she had to have had a reason. I stopped and hopped out the car giving her that ‘what the fuck look.’ But one glance in her brown eyes, and I was over the madness.
Chapter 4
Italy
The smell of drugs always lingered in my house; that was nothing new. It was like that moth smell that old people had in their houses. I could hear my mother in the living room talking. I mean that was nothing new, but she was begging. I couldn’t hear every word that she said. The voices were getting closer to my room.
“That’s Tasha, she’s 15, but she only been with two men. Her pussy still tight as any of these little hoes out there.” My momma voice sounded shaky like she was sick or worried.
“That little bitch black you know I don't like dark meat or I would have fucked yo’ ass,” a deeper voice said. It sounded familiar, but not sure where I had heard it.
“What about that pretty little yellow thing that I saw over here last time I was here?” he said sending chills down my spine.
I instantly knew who he was; one of my mother’s suppliers or whatever it was called. I didn’t know much about drugs just that my mother did them and I never intended to.
“No! That’s my baby! She’s too young!’ my mother countered.
“Too young? Fuck! Well guess yo’ pocket too empty and these rocks; they can go home with me.”
-+I sighed with relief thinking that my mom had a bit of a heart. I was mortified with the thoughts of the things he wanted to do to me. All that she had put Tasha and me through; she had not sunk low enough to sell us to chase her dragon.
“Ok ,ok, Dre, she’s all yours.” I heard and my body began to shake. I felt the walls closing in on me. I had never had sex before, and I really wasn’t ready to do it now. Not with him. I was supposed to have sex with the man that loved me, not my mom’s dealer.
I got out of my bed not even putting on my shoes and opened the window. I just sat on the ledge of my window. I was a little afraid to climb out although I had done it before. A part of me hoped that my mom wouldn’t go through with it.
Slowly my bedroom door crept open, and the light from the hall shined brighter in my bedroom. I slipped out my window and cut my foot on a piece of glass that sat beneath it. I didn't care if I bled to death, I was not going back to sleep with a man I didn't know.
I ran not knowing where I would go just that I had to go somewhere. Normally when I got in trouble, I
would call my boyfriend. At least I hoped he was my boyfriend, and he would let me sleep in his bed and he would sleep on the floor.
The last time I spent the night he laid beside me, and it felt super good being held and wanted. Tonight I was kind of scared to call him. Lately he had been pulling away. I feared he didn’t want me. I also knew he stayed kind of far. I went over my home girl Emily’s house. It was too late to knock on the door, so I tapped on the window. It took a minute, but she finally opened it.
“What Ven?” she said in a bad mood.
“Can I stay the night? My mom is tripping.”
She looked behind her and sighed. “Not tonight. Is there anywhere else you can go?
I looked at her ready to cry. If I had somewhere else to go; I would have gone there; I thought to myself. I could only think of one other place, and it was killing me to have to call him.
“Yeah, but I need to call him.”
She handed me her phone, still looking behind her like she was in a rush. I looked at the numbers over and over and then I said fuck it and called. After three rings, I could hear the sound of someone clear they throat
“What?”
Can I speak to Deuce?”
“This is him! Who is this? How you get my fuckin number?” he asked causing me to pause.
“Hey, this is Venice, are you working?” I asked nervously. He cleared his throat and started to laugh.
“What up ma? I was just thinking about you. Where the fuck you at?” he asked his voice changing from calm to stern.
“Um, well see I had a problem and…” I didn’t know the words to say. Emily was staring at me, like I was bothering her.
“Man, where you at?” Deuce asked, and I sighed in relief.
“I'm at my girl Em’s house. She stay on Dexter. Can you come?” I could hear him sigh.
“Yeah, tell ya girl text me the number and I’m on my way!” he said and ended the call without so much as a good bye. What if I had made a mistake calling him? I questioned myself.
I handed Emily her phone, and told her just what Deuce had said. My foot was killing me, so I walked around to her front porch and sat on the steps. The wind was blowing through me. Doubt was so present in my head. I should just get up and go home. I told myself. Sex may not be that bad; I said trying to convince myself.