Falling for a Hustler: A Benton Harbor Love Story

by Jerniqua K.

  “BRYCE what the fuck are you doing?” I ran over to them and tried pulling him off her, but he was too strong. When he jerked away from me, I went flying into the door. I got myself together quick and jumped on his back. I had fallen head over heels for this man, but I couldn’t just stand there and let him choke my aunt out.

  When I hit him in the head, he let go of Yandy and slung me off him for the second time. He then turned to me, and a look of hatred flashed in his eyes. What the fuck was going on? Ignoring the glare he was giving me, I looked between the two. Yandy was on the floor holding her neck and crying, while Brick just stood there like a madman.

  “Can somebody please tell me what the fuck is going on?”

  Brick looked down at Yandy, and then walked over toward me. I slowly backed away from him until my back was against the wall. This was not the Brick I knew.

  “Was I just a lick to you, Lyric?”

  My eyes darted to Yandy, and then back at Brick. I hadn’t hit a lick since me and Yandy hit that dude Eric’s shit, and I knew that he couldn't have found out about that. I wasn’t about to stand there and tell on myself, because I had just seen firsthand what he would do, so I did what any normal person would do under the circumstances; I played dumber than a muthafucka!

  “Bryce baby, what the fuck are you talking about? Would you tell me what’s going on? Why were you choking my aunt?”

  Hurt was evident in his eyes. “That’s what this shit was all about!? Money! You been schemin’ on me with this bitch?”

  Now I was lost! Besides the shit I had backed out of, hustling Brick had never crossed my mind. I actually wanted something real with him. I...Hold the fuck up...how the fuck did he even know Yandy?

  “Brick, I don’t know what the fuck you’re talking about! I would never do no shit like that to you and you know it.”

  He opened his mouth to speak, but nothing came out of his mouth; instead, he turned around and walked out the door. I looked over at Yandy and cocked my head. I needed fuckin’ answers, and I needed them right the fuck now!

  Lyric

  “What the fuck just happened, Yand?” I asked as I tried to help her up from the floor. Brick was long gone, but the two of us had been sitting in the same spots stuck on stupid for the past hour. I was confused as fuck, and this bitch was making it no better!

  “Don’t fuckin’ worry about it!” she said as she snatched away from me.

  Jesus must have come down and touched my soul, because I swear my hand was just inches away from her face.

  “What, now you wanna fight my ass too? Why the fuck would you tell that nigga where we live?” she screamed.

  “I’m fucking the nigga, so why the fuck wouldn’t I?” The look on her face told it all. “What the fuck did you do!?”

  “I did what the fuck I had to do back then, bitch.”

  “Imma need you to chill the fuck out with all this fucking name calling,” I said between clenched teeth. Lately, I had been giving this hoe too many chances and it was clear that she was taking advantage of it.

  “Or what, Lyric? We both know you ain’t shit but talk. Ya fucking panties all in a bunch over a fucking nigga! That nigga don’t want you! He sitting nice while you stripping and robbing muthafuckas to make ends meet. Ain’t no nigga in they right mind gon’ wife yo ass BITCH! I did you a fucking favor!”

  I don’t know how she figured she helped me, but what I did know was that I was fucking tired of biting my tongue and walking away from this bitch. She laughed and turned to walk off, and that’s when I lost it! Everything that had ever caused me pain flashed through my mind; my parents murder, being broke, Khalil raping me, Brick leaving me, and now this. I had been holding it all in for too long, and it was time to let that shit go. I rushed her ass and sent her flying face first into the wall. I was a fair bitch, so I gave her a chance to fight back. She turned around and looked at me in disbelief.

  “Yeah bitch, I touched you!”

  As soon as she opened her mouth, my fist went crashing into her jaw. Before I knew it, she charged me, causing my house shoes to slip off and we both went flying to the floor. She grabbed a fistful of my hair and started slamming my head into the hard ass tile by the front door. When I felt a small patch of my hair being snatched out, I dug my nails deep into her face and pulled down as hard as I could. I could feel the tiny pieces of her skin in my fingernails, and blood covered my hands; still, it wasn’t enough for me to stop. I grabbed her hair and slung her off me. With my barefoot, I stomped on any exposed skin I could see.

  Before I could do anymore damage, I felt a pair of strong hands pulling me off her. I kicked and screamed for whoever had me to let me go; I wasn’t even close to being done with that hoe. I had put up with her for too fucking long. I was able to get one arm free, and I used it to punch whoever had me in the face. Just like I thought, they let me go. Pure rage had taken control of me, and all I could see was Yandy. I took off for her once again, but the sight of Destiny and her four-month pregnant belly stopped me.

  “Move out of the fucking way, Des,” I said as I tried to control my breathing.

  “No Lyric, you have to stop! I don’t know what happened, but she’s family; I can’t let you do this, sis!” Tears were falling from her eyes, but I didn’t let it get to me. Yandy was no longer family in my eyes. She was just like the rest of the bitches around Benton Harbor. She was scandalous and only looked out for herself.

  “Fuck that bitch!” I spat. Destiny looked behind me, and that’s when I realized that Dominic was there as well. He had to have been who grabbed me. Without even looking at him I said, “Don’t even think about grabbing me, Dom!” He threw his hands in the air, and walked over to Destiny.

  “Dom, you can go. I can handle it from here bae.” He looked at Yandy, and then back at me.

  “You sure, Destiny? I don’t want anything to happen to you.” No this nigga wasn’t throwing shots!

  “I’ll be ok. Lyric would never hurt me, especially not over Yandy.” I watched as he kissed her lips, and told her he would be back to check on her before leaving. Once he was gone, Destiny turned back to me. “What happened, L?”

  “Ask your bitch ass auntie! She sent us into that shit knowing her and Brick had some unresolved issues. That nigga came over here and spazzed the fuck out on her ass, and I still don't know what the fuck happened between them.” I grilled Yandy again. “I need some fucking answers right now! Why the fuck is he so hell bent on killing your ass!”

  Yandy

  Had I known Brick was on the other side of that door, I would have never took my ass to it! As soon as I saw his face, I tried to slam the door on him, but he pushed that muthafucka so hard that it would have sent me flying. I only say would have because that nigga yanked my ass up so fast I saw stars! I started to plead with him, but he wasn’t trying to hear none of that shit. Instead, he pressed his thumbs so far to the back of my throat that I’m sure he could feel my tonsils through my skin.

  Lowkey, I was thankful that Lyric came when she did. Anyone that knew Brick knew that nothing would stop his ass from killing you. I knew right then that he had to have some kind of a soft spot for her uppity ass. When he left, I knew the shit wasn’t over, but I’d rather deal with Lyric than Brick any day. I wasn’t mad at her for questioning me, but I couldn’t just come out and tell her what I had done. The shit was too fucked up, and I knew that she wouldn’t look at me the same again. Maybe she was right. Maybe I was just like the bitches I had tried so hard to rise above.

  “What happened, L?” Destiny’s squeaky voice called out.

  “Ask your bitch ass auntie! She sent us into that shit knowing her and Brick had some unresolved issues. That nigga came over here and spazzed the fuck out on her ass, and I still don't know what the fuck happened between them.” Lyric grilled my ass like she was ready to go another round. “I need some fucking answers right now! Why the fuck is he so hell bent on killing your ass!”

  “A'ight. A'ight!” I barely yelled
after finally being able to suck in a few drops of air. I had to stop for a moment, because Lyric had literally knocked the wind out of my body. I wouldn’t be surprised if the bitch had fractured my windpipe or some shit. As soon as I opened my mouth to explain everything to my nieces, the front window shattered and a bullet flew right past my head.

  Lyric grabbed Destiny, and we all dropped to the floor. “We got to get the fuck up out of here!” I screamed. “Crawl to the back door.”

  Just like that, the drama that we had just gone through had been pushed to the back of our minds as we struggled to get to the door. Destiny cried the entire time, and I understood why. Though I doubted God could hear me, I said a silent prayer for Him to watch over us and Destiny’s unborn child. We couldn’t go out like this!

  We were only a few feet away from the back door when we heard the front door being kicked in. Lyric screamed and tried her hardest to pull Destiny a little faster, but it was too late. A man with a ski mask on and a big ass pistol in his hand had grabbed Destiny and yanked her up so quick that her head bobbed from side to side. Tears ran down all of our faces.

  “Please let her go! She’s pregnant! Take me!” Lyric begged.

  “Shut the fuck up, bitch!” he screamed.

  I sat in silence, trying to figure out who would want to hurt us. Brick had just left, and it wasn’t his style to wear a mask. That nigga wanted you to see his face while he tortured your ass. After ten seconds, I gave up. We had ran so many niggas’ pockets, and Benton Harbor was so fucking small that it could have been anyone after us.

  “Y’all bitches thought I wouldn’t figure that shit out? Where the fuck is my money!?”

  “I swear, we didn’t do anything! Please just let us go!” I begged. When he cocked the hammer back and placed the gun up to Destiny’s head, I pissed on myself!

  “NOOOO!!!!” both Lyric and I screamed in unison.

  To be continued...

  Please enjoy this excerpt from ‘Loving A Trap God 3’!

  Chapter One

  Eden

  “What the fuck you mean this nigga got my kids? I told you to leave this shit alone Eden, damn! How the fuck did this shit happen?” Christian yelled. For the first time, I was actually scared of him. Chayse and little Christian meant the world to us, and knowing that they were gone because of me ate away at my heart.

  “Christian, please calm down! Yelling at me won’t bring them back. I swear, I didn’t think he would go after them, baby. I should have just put a bullet in his head when I met with him.”

  “You met with him?” His jaw began to clench like it did whenever he was upset. Before I had the chance to respond, his hand was around my throat and he forcefully pushed me against the wall. “Bitch, I swear to God if something happens to my kids, I will kill you. Wife or not.”

  “Bro, what the fuck you doing?” said Zo as he struggled to pull him off me, but his grip was too strong. “Christian, let her go! Nigga stop.” Since Christian seemed to be ignoring him, he gave him one hard shove, causing him to look at him. “I know you pissed and hurt, but this ain’t the time for that. We need to be figuring out where this hoe ass nigga at. You and Eden can squash this shit later, man.”

  He finally let go, and I tried to suck in as much air as I could. Had he been anyone else, he would’ve been dead, but he was right – this shit was my fault.

  “Yes, I met with him. Before I came to you, I put my own plan in affect. I had Tenisha to go after him and make him fall in love with her. When he shot me, I decided that I needed to lay low and focus on my family. I wanted to let the shit go, I swear I did Christian, but just hearing about how he was bragging about killing me and my father ate at me! He’d reopened that wound, and I couldn’t stop until he was gone. I flew to Michigan last night and had Zo with me just in case.” Christian’s eyes quickly went to Zo. “He knew nothing about it until I had him knock Tenisha out. I told Julian that I killed his sister, and that Tenisha was next.” Tears fell from my eyes as I looked down, rubbing my neck. “I just wanted to hurt him and I fucked up. We have to get them back.”

  Saying nothing, Christian shook his head at me and walked to the opposite side of Angel’s living room. He began loading his AK and his pistol. When he finished, he walked right past me and out the door. Fuck! I started to chase him, but Harmony grabbed me.

  “Sis, let him go. He needs to calm down.” She grabbed my phone from my hand and read the text Julian sent. “Is this nigga for real? He wants us to meet him at the warehouse?”

  I looked at her in disbelief. Sure, I had read the message, but with so much going on, I didn’t even pay attention to the address. How the fuck did he even know where my shit was? He had never come to Miami before with my father, and Tenisha didn’t know anything about it either. This shit was no coincidence; he was seriously one-step ahead of me, and I couldn’t stand the shit.

  “Let’s go.”

  ***

  “Wait, what? Eden, slow down! I can barely understand what you’re saying!” Tenisha yelled into the phone. As we left Angel’s home, I wasted no time calling her. After all, she was what Julian’s psychotic ass wanted.

  “Julian. He has my kids. He wants you and if I show up without you, I know he’s gonna kill ‘em.”

  “Say no more, where are you? Where should I meet you?”

  “I’m outside your spot now.” She quickly hung up the phone and within five minutes, she was coming from her condo, wearing distressed jeans, a tank, and her Timbs. I hit the locks on my BMW, and she climbed in. Immediately, I passed her the blunt I rolled while I was waiting on her. She inhaled deeply, and looked around the car before exhaling.

  “Eden, I know this ain’t the right time but bitch! When the fuck did you get this?” she said as she ran her hand across the dashboard and admired the black leather interior

  I couldn’t help but to laugh at my ghetto ass cousin. Growing up with nothing, she was always excited or impressed about new shit. She had money now, but I guess some things would never change.

  “I been had this, just never drove it. I had it custom made for shit like this,” I said. I knew the life I lived was dangerous, so I didn’t give a fuck how much I had to spend to ensure my safety. The 2014 midnight black BMW sat on factory rims and looked average on the outside, but it was equipped with secret compartments to hold my guns as well as my dope if I ever had to step in and drop off or pick some shit up. The windows had that limo tint on them so no one could see inside, but I could see any and everything moving. I also made sure that the body was bulletproof. I’d be damned if a nigga shot my ass while I was driving. Fuck that!

  “This bitch hard as fuck for real! My ass is definitely trying to do this shit. Let’s hurry up and get yo baby's back and get rid of this fuck nigga!” she said as she accepted the smoke I was passing back to her, and reclined in her seat. “Damn this some fye ass weed!”

  I only smirked at her as I pulled out of the parking garage. Tenisha was a get money type of bitch. She didn’t give a fuck about what she had to do. Money was the motive, and she was determined to get it by any means. I didn’t blame her though. If I would have grown up the way she did, I would probably be one of the grimiest bitches out here. Being ruthless was one thing, but to be grimy? That was a different story. A ruthless bitch didn’t mind putting in work when needed and usually had limits on what she would do. A grimy bitch would do whatever it took. Even if she had to suck and fuck her way to the top, she would. There was no limit to the things she would do to survive. At the end of the day, she was about self and wouldn’t give a fuck about being alone, as long as she had what she wanted.

  Hitting the blunt she had just passed, I let the herb take its course before I deeply exhaled.

  “Trust me – after tonight, Julian will never be a problem again.”

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  Table of Contents

  Title

  Copyright

  Acknowledgements

  Synopsis

  The Players

  Lyric

  Destiny

  Bryce “Brick” Donovan

  Brick

  Journee

  The Game

  Lyric

  Yandy

  Brick

  Destiny

  Journee

  Lyric

  Brick

  Lyric

  Yandy

  Lyric

  Journee

  Destiny

  Lyric

  Brick

  Lyric

  Journee

  Lyric

  Lyric

  Yandy

  Excerpt: Loving A Trap God 3

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