Renee’s drunk ass sat up.
“Yo Ke-Ke, when Tony was locked up, I used to have mad niggas coming to the spot, sometimes the niggas would be fly and I be like T, come out with us, get your feet wet a little bit and get yourself broke off. Her ass would give me that serious look she be giving us when she be blitzing on niggas and I just used to be like fuck it.”
I cut her drunk ass the fuck off.
“Renee, first of all you never brought no fly niggas to the crib when I lived with you. They were all crusty dust ball niggas. Plus I was too focused to be having some niggas on my mind. I was stressed, depressed and broke. My focus was on my daughter Shayonna and on some real shit, I don’t think that I would have survived losing Sharod if it wasn’t for my daughter.”
“Aw T I know that was rough for you. And I want to meet your daughter, I know she’s beautiful,” Ke-Ke said.
“My daughter’s the shit,” I boasted.
We all chuckled and Renee agreed. “She is a cutie Ke-Ke.”
"Oh I'm sure she is," Ke-Ke said before adding, "She's the newest DPG member, a tiny Dime Piece Gangstress."
"She got the sassiness for it," Renee said.
"Whatever y'all my baby is far from a little gangstress."
We had fun growing up claiming our little crew. DPG would never be forgotten around my old way. Everyone remembered us for smashing chicks that crossed us. I even heard there were younger girls from around my old way claiming DPG now. I used to think it was cute, but if they are anything like we were when we were growing up, God help those little girls because they are nothing trouble.
Ke-Ke sat back and the car was quiet for a little while until her horny ass just couldn’t help but to ask some more sexual shit.
“I just still can’t believe you kept your legs closed for three years. What the hell were you doing to get off? You must have been wearing your little silver bullet out.”
“What the fuck is a silver bullet?” I asked. I had never used any sex toys before so I had no clue.
“I know your just playing right?” Ke-Ke asked sitting up.
“That bullet is the shit!” Renee blurted out putting her hands up like she was preaching to the choir.
“Girl, go to the sweet and nasty store and buy you a bullet, you will probably never need Tony again. Shit, since you don’t like cheating you should buy you a bullet so you can feel like your cheating on his ass when he acts up.”
“I’m bout to go home and use my bullet now, my shit vibrates maximum speed,” Renee said closing her eyes as drunk as she wanted to be.
“Y’all are so nasty. I’m good, I won’t be needing no silver bullets any time soon.”
“Well I’m just putting you on girl,” Ke-Ke said.
We were finally at Renee’s crib and she staggered her drunk ass to the front door.
“You gon’ be a’ight Renee, you want me to walk you to your apartment?”
“I’m good T, I’ll talk to you tomorrow.”
“A’ight Renee good night.”
After dropping off Renee, Ke-Ke jumped in the front seat.
“I couldn’t wait till you dropped her off.” She said.
“Why?” I asked suspiciously while pulling away.
“Well, what do you think about her new job?” she asked with her lips twisted to the side.
“New job? Renee’s lazy ass didn’t tell me about no new job? A new job doing what?”
“Now T, I haven’t been in touch with y’all in years, so I hope I don’t know what she does and you don’t?” Ke-Ke said.
“Well put me on bitch, I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Okay, well you know that dude Tank from Renee’s projects right?”
I smirked. “Yeah I know his lame ass.”
“You know what he does right?” Ke-Ke asked as if I should have known.
“No, but I know his whack ass be putting his hands on chicks.”
“You know why right?”Ke-Ke said.
“Yeah because he’s a fuckin’ coward.”
“No bitch, he’s a pimp.”
“Whaaat?” I almost crashed my damn car.
“A pimp?”
“Yeah girl, he be pimping Renee. He got a few chicks from Fall River working for him. I went to school with one of the chicks, she lives in my apartment complex. Tank be coming out there paying for their spot and making sure their stank asses break him off his paper and if they come up short, he be fuckin’ them up. And when I say fuckin’ them up, them bitches be having big ass Tina Turner bruises on them.”
“Oh hell nah,” I hollered.
“Yeah girl I guess Renee turned being a chickenhead into a full time job, haaa.”
“Nah Ke, that’s not funny.”
“You right it ain’t but when ole’ girl told me about Renee, I started tripping! I was hoping that Renee had changed but she went ass backwards.”
Ke-Ke didn’t know it but she had just put me on to some valuable shit that would probably end me and Renee’s friendship. I’m sure Renee didn’t tell me about her new occupation because she felt ashamed of it. But damn, that right there should tell you something; if you’re ashamed of it, then you shouldn’t be doing it. But the bigger picture was, I not only jeopardized myself but also niggas from Trè’s block thinking that I was helping a friend and all that I was doing was digging myself deeper into some street shit that I should’ve just minded my business about. So there I sat, backstabbed once again. She really let me take it as far as getting niggas after Tank knowing the whole time that she would go back to Tank since she worked for him. She lied about why he hit her, she knew she must’ve came up short on his money and that’s why he was so-called setting her straight by whooping her ass.
“Niggas out here be killing me like they Iceberg Slim, they be having girlfriends still trying to pimp some loose booty bitches on the side. You can’t live the pimp life and the square life, pick one nigga!” I said as if I was talking to Tank.
“Yup T, I agree. Do he still go with that pretty chick Bianca?”
“Yup he sure do,” I replied.
“Shit, I wonder if she knows that he be out here pimping. And if she do know, I know he probably lied to her and told her he ain’t fuckin’ his hoes but he is digging in all their asses because the girls in my apartment complex be telling me and I know for a fact Renee’s nasty ass be letting him up in that.”
“Man Ke, I ain’t got time for this, I can’t believe Renee man, I’m pissed off right now.”
“Don’t be pissed off, she’ll learn, I don’t know what it’s gonna take but she will definitely learn. Fuckin’ mad different niggas and giving all of her money to Tank is just stupid to me. I don’t know how chicks could do it. If I fuck for money, he would have to give me that gwap in my hands and I would be damned if I would give my doe up to some so-called pimp dude, hell no, not Ke-Ke baby.”
I was so fired up at the fact that Renee had lied to me to the point where I was now speeding up the highway and reached Ke-Ke’s crib in no time.
Her house was right off the exit, I pulled up and put the car in park. I noticed Ke-Ke was grinning looking at her front door. “Ugh, I hate going in this house with this broke dude, a nigga with no money is such a turn off.” She said while rolling her eyes.
She lifted up her purse. "Look at this shit T. This is a bootleg Gucci bag. Since when have you known me to rock fake shit like this?"
“Ke-Ke you’re a mess, you’re just used to having nice shit. He’s probably a good dude, you better stop treating him bad before you lose him and end up with a cheater or someone who treats you like shit.”
“You might be right but broke just ain’t cute,” she said screwing up her face to the max.
“Bitch get out my car with your crazy ass,” I said chuckling.
Ke-Ke smiled and then bent to hug me. “Girl I missed you so much it’s not even funny Tiara. I’m sorry about everything too, you were truly the only real friend that I had and I never reall
y realized that till you were gone.”
“I missed you too girl. We could have all squashed this a long time ago but I just needed to get my mind right. I was so focused when I lived with Renee, nothing else mattered. And when Tony got out, I tried to start my life out fresh and I was actually happy again, but now it seems like I’m being pulled backwards in some ways. But we’ll talk later girl, get in the house to your man, I’ll holla at you.”
“A’ight T, I love you.”
“Love you to.”
I drove home steaming thinking about Renee. Tank just got shot and now the war is going to continue to go back and forth between him and Trè’s block and I was very much apart of it. And just like that I put myself back into some hood shit over a friend.
I was heated with myself for making a stupid decision trying to have someone hurt this dude for my homegirl and she knew damn well why he hit her. I was truly moving backwards instead of forward and I had to get it together quick. First things first, I had to check Renee’s ass.
“Hello?”
“Yo Renee it’s me, Tiara. I have to talk to you.”
“A’ight T hold on for a second, I’m in here throwing up, I drank too much tonight and didn’t eat shit all day.”
She put me on hold and I heard her gagging in the background but I didn’t care, she was gonna feel me tonight!
“A’ight T what’s up?”
“What’s up is you! Why didn’t you tell me what you really be fuckin’ with Tank for?” I got straight to the point.
She fell silent. Check mate!
“Hello? Nigga you heard me,” I griped.
She sighed. “T, why you coming at me like that let me explain?”
“I’m listening, explain this shit to me.”
“Okay man damn, how did you find out?”
“Fuck that, what’s your explanation Renee?”
“Well T, first off I’m grown, I really don’t have to explain shit to you but you’re my girl so I’m gonna tell you since you’re putting it on the table. Yeah I been dealing with Tank, I’m getting money with him.”
“Getting money with him how Renee?”
“Damn, why do I have to say all that if you already know?”
“Because it’s fucked up that’s why. How you gonna have me put Ken-Ken into this when you knew all along why Tank hit you? That’s fucked up Renee. Now you got me in some shit and if my name comes up in this, it could really get ugly out here, niggas could try to off me when all I was trying to do was help you out because you’re my girl.”
“T, you got yourself in this shit don’t blame me.”
“Oh it’s like that? I got myself in this shit? That’s real fucked up Renee, you knew the deal before we went to Trè’s block, you could have told me not to tell them to do shit to Tank.”
“Why you think I asked you to give me Ken-Ken’s number afterward, you really thought I wanted to kick it with him on some being my man shit? I wanted to tell him not to touch Tank.”
“So why didn’t you just tell me that?”
“Because I didn’t want you to know what I was doing.”
“All these years Renee, you held me down when I had no one and it takes this one thing to fuck us up. I can’t fuck with you no more man, shit like this just pulls me backwards. I love you to death but this is some shit that I don’t think I can forgive.”
“Well I ain’t gonna hold your hand, you’re a grown woman, you want to end our friendship over this then fuck it.”
“You’re right Renee, fuck it.”
I clicked her off and threw my cell into my passenger seat. And just like that, I ended our friendship immediately. As they say, with friends like her, who needed enemies.
Chapter Thirteen – The Mistake
Tony began to question my whereabouts because I spent the majority of my days handling my property. My time was solely spread between Shayonna and my obligations as a new property owner. After Shayonna completed her homework each day, it was either Chuck E. Cheese or out to see a Disney movie and I enjoyed every second spent with my baby.
Business with my property consisted of making new leases for each floor, obtaining deleaded certificates and also ensuring that each apartment was in tip-top condition for showings. I was extremely proud of how things were coming along because I was just steps closer to generating income from the tenants and wouldn’t have to depend on Tony for shit.
Tony offered to take Shayonna and I out to eat because he claimed that he’d been missing us because of his absence from the crib spent hustling. I rejected his offer and instead took Shayonna with me to the Lee School in Dorchester with Karen to watch her little cousin perform at a talent show.
The Lee School was known for throwing hot talent shows and it was also a school and recreational center for youths. I loved attending their talent shows because they always had an array of creative, talented and diverse performers. There were often rappers, dancers and singers showcasing their talents and there were always large turnouts. I loved watching the dancers mainly because they always brought the most excitement to the talent shows and Karen’s little cousin Nick could dance his ass off.
The DJ began playing a mix of Crank Dat, Souljah Boy and Walk It Out and the crowd went wild as Nick's dance group entered the stage with full energy.
"Yeah Nick!" Karen’s loud mouth hollered out along with other rowdy audience members and onlookers.
The boys came out and started Crunk dancing against each other. They were doing dance moves pretending to hit each other, popping their bodies in wild motions. The shit was off the hook.
My brother Sharod would have been the same age as the boys dancing if he were still alive and it just killed me that he was no longer here. Karen’s little cousin Nick was into sports and he also danced as a hobby. The extra activities helped keep him off the streets and he was known as a good dude. I sat wishing that I could have motivated my little brother to participate in some sort of extra activity so that he wouldn't have to had spend so much time in the streets mixing in with the wrong crowds.
Watching Nick's crew perform crushed my heart thinking about Sharod so much to the point that I wanted to leave. I was truly zoned out. That was until my baby girl stood up and started Crunking. It was too cute, Shayonna was moving her little body to the beats and we had our own little show going on in the audience. She was frowning up her lips like she was in a Ciara video giving her "dance face" swaying her hips, popping and dancing better than some of the kids in the show. I didn’t even know my baby’s little body could pop like that, dance school was paying off.
"Go Shayonna! Go Shayonna!" Karen and I chimed out dancing along with her.
We actually ended up having a ball at the talent show.
My daughter added so much joy to my life, it was little things like her dancing in the midst of me drowning in my grief that helped me out and she had no idea. She really made my day that day.
Tony called my cell on our way out and told me that he at least wanted to spend time with Shayonna since I gave him the cold shoulder earlier. So after we left the Lee School I dropped Shayonna off at home to spend some time with her father while I took Karen home.
As I mentioned before, I noticed something inside Karen that changed but I just couldn’t put my finger on it until she decided to pour her heart out to me.
“You a’ight Karen?” She got quiet all of a sudden.
“Yeah I’m a’ight.”
“You sure girl?”
“Yeah I’m good, I just hate living with my aunt. I’m too old to be living there with her. All of her kids already moved out and I’m sitting in there like an asshole eating her food and drinking her shit, you don’t understand what that shit does to my pride.”
“It’s cool girl it’s only temporary, you’ll get on your feet soon,” I said hitting the back roads to her crib.
“Shit that sounds good T. The only good thing about living with my aunt is that I’m out of my mother’s house. She kicked me o
ut because she wanted to be with her young ass boyfriend. She calls him her pretty young thang. But girl, that man has been molesting me for years.” She looked down and shook her head before she went on. “It seemed like my mom always knew that he had a thang for me and that’s why she always treated me like shit. I know you remember how she was when we were young T? She acted like she resented me for living, like she meant for my father to cum on her face instead of inside her to produce me.”
“Don’t say no crazy shit like that.” I sympathized.
A Hood Chick's Story pt. 2 Page 14