Concrete Rose, page 18
“Of course. As long as we can declare that I’m not a scrub.”
Lisa giggles. “You definitely aren’t.”
Connor smile at her, and she grin back. I’m not even here.
“Oh! I almost forgot.” Connor slide his backpack off and dig around. He take out a little brown teddy bear and hold it toward Lisa. “I got it for your baby.”
“Awwww!” Lisa hug it to her chest. “It’s so cute. Thank you, Connor.”
“You bought a toy for our baby?” I stress that “our” part. “Ain’t it early for that?”
“What can I say? I like babies.” Connor look dead at me. “I’m good with them, too.”
Yoooo, this fool basically just told me he tryna raise my kid.
He kiss Lisa’s cheek. “Catch you later.”
“Later,” she says. She watch him walk away with a smile.
I point back at him. “Don’t tell me you dating that cornball?”
“Wow, I’m doing fine, although your child had me nauseated all day. Thank you for asking. How are you?”
“C’mon, Lisa. You can’t really be into that dude. What you see in him?”
“For one, he’s not a gangbanger,” she says. “Two, he’s doing things with his life. Three—”
“He corny as shit.”
Lisa’s lips thin. “That’s your opinion. It’s none of your business anyway. You and I are only friends, remember?”
“I know,” I say, tryna play it cool. I can’t let her think I’m tripping over this. “But I oughta know who might be around my baby, right?” I touch her stomach. Her puffy coat hide her bump. “How he doing today anyway?”
“She is fine.”
“Nah, he. Bet you it’s a boy.”
“I bet you ten dollars and a rib plate from Reuben’s that it’s a girl,” Lisa says.
“A rib plate?”
“Yep! With fries and extra sauce on the side.”
“You so damn greedy. Fine. It’s a bet.” I hold my palm out.
Lisa slap it. “You may as well get me that rib plate now, homie.”
I smirk as we start for the bus stop. “You hungry, ain’t you?”
“Duh. They gave us some nasty steak fingers and mashed potatoes for lunch. Okay yeah, I ate them, but your baby wanted barbecue.”
“My baby? Ain’t he ours?”
“When she’s like this, she’s yours,” Lisa says.
I shake my head. “You bad as my momma. I mess up, I’m Adonis’s son. It’s a trip.”
Lisa grip her backpack straps. “You know … you really should talk to your dad.”
I groan. “Drop that, Lisa.”
“No. You love your father, he loves you. You know what I’d give to have my momma call and check on me?”
We sit on the bench at the bus stop. “He called me stupid for getting you pregnant.”
“Having unprotected sex was stupid,” Lisa says. “We both admitted that. Why is it so different coming from him?”
Because he got no room to judge me. “How was school today?”
“Wow, avoiding the subject, are we? Okay, cool. I’ll let you slide. School was fine. I found out I aced my calculus exam last week. Bam!”
“Ooohwee! That girl killing it!” We bump fists.
“That’s what I do.” Lisa unwrap a Blow Pop. She addicted to them. “How was your day off? With your lucky public-school ass.”
I laugh. “It was a’ight. I caught up on some sleep. You know me, I’m always tired. Then I visited Dre for a while. You and Connor hung out all day?” Hell yeah, I’m back on that.
Lisa smirk as she take her headphones and her Discman from her backpack. She wear them headphones around school to block out the gossip and whispers. Pregnant girls catch it bad.
“I’m gonna listen to some music and rest my eyes,” she says. “Let me know when the bus is here.”
Lisa slide her headphones over her ears. She never answer my question.
This Lisa and Connor shit really bugging me.
I swear, I’m doing everything I should to get her back. Like when we get to the Garden, I buy her a rib plate at Reuben’s since that’s what she craving. I check on her daily, walk her home from school, give her money, buy stuff to help her with all the aches and discomfort pregnancy bring. I’m being a good-ass boyfriend without being her boyfriend. Now this white boy sliding in with a teddy bear, and she grinning in his face?
I can’t win.
I walk Lisa from Reuben’s to Ms. Rosalie’s. She swear she can walk herself home but the streets too wild for her to be alone. A li’l girl got struck by a bullet a couple of days ago over some shit P-Nut started with the Garden Disciples.
There’s a red Honda parked in Ms. Rosalie’s driveway behind her Oldsmobile. “Tammy got a new car?” I ask Lisa.
“No,” Lisa says with a slight frown. “I don’t know who that is.”
I follow her onto the porch and hold the front door open. Lisa gasp. “Bren!”
Tammy’s older sister hop up from the couch and meet Lisa with a big hug. “Leelee!”
“Oh my God, stop calling me that,” Lisa whine.
“Never.” Brenda hold Lisa in front of her to check her out. “I don’t care that you’re having a baby. You’re Leelee and Tam will always be Teetee.”
Lisa roll her eyes. “What are you doing here?”
“Momma’s been bugging me to bring Khalil to see her.”
“I sho have,” Ms. Rosalie says. She cradle a tiny baby boy in the recliner as Tammy shake a rattle over him. Lisa told me Bren had him last month.
Suddenly, he all Lisa care about. “Aww! Hi, Khalil! Bren, he looks exactly like you.”
“You think so? He’s Jerome’s twin to me. Hey, Mav.”
I set Lisa’s food on the coffee table. “Whaddup? Ain’t seen you in a minute.”
“Me and Khalil’s daddy moved outta town, but we’re coming back to be close to Momma and Tam. We hope to find an apartment this week.”
“That’s dope,” I say. Only thing Brenda and Tammy got in common is their dimples and hazel eyes. Tammy quiet. Bren? Never. She the life of the party when there ain’t a party. Last I heard, she got pregnant by some dude and moved in with him. Lisa said that Tammy and Ms. Rosalie don’t like him, but Bren gon’ do what Bren gon’ do.
“You want your room while you’re looking for a place?” Lisa asks.
“Nope. We’re getting a motel. I don’t want Momma all up in my business.”
“Somebody needs to be,” Ms. Rosalie mumbles.
“Momma,” Brenda groans.
“I’m leaving it alone.” Ms. Rosalie give Khalil to Brenda. “I’ll go take those pork chops out the freezer. Somebody begged me to cook for them despite the fact I’m all in their business.”
“I love you, too,” Bren says to her back and look at Khalil. “Grandma knows she was gonna cook for me regardless. I don’t know why she’s catching an attitude.”
“Hold on, Ms. Rosalie,” I say as I dig in my pocket. I count out a couple hundred dollars and give it to her. “A li’l something to help out. I ’preciate all you do for Lisa.”
“Boy, I don’t need your money. We’re fine.”
“Then you can put it aside for a rainy day,” I say.
Ms. Rosalie roll her eyes, but she stick the money in her shirt. She bad as Granny, keeping money in her bra. “Mmm-hmm. I’ll put this aside for Lisa.”
“You do whatever you wanna do with it,” I say.
She shake her head at me and go to the kitchen.
Lisa stare me down, all frowned up. “You sure have a lot of money lately.”
“Oh, you know. I took on a couple of odd jobs around the neighborhood.”
“Go ’head then, Maverick,” Brenda says. “Nothing wrong with a man hustling to provide for his. That’s how my boo do.”
“I guess,” Lisa says, biting her lip. She turn to Bren. “Can I hold Khalil?”
“Of course.”
Lisa take Ms. Rosalie’s spot in the recliner, and Brenda carefully give her Khalil. I sit on the arm of the chair. I forgot that newborns be so tiny – I didn’t get Seven till he was three months old. Khalil small as a doll. He seem to be looking at us or at the lights, I don’t know. He stretch and make li’l grunting sounds.
“He a’ight?” I ask.
“Yeah,” Brenda says. “I’ll probably have to change him soon.”
“Don’t you poop on me,” Lisa coos at him. “No, sir, don’t you do that.”
“Good luck,” says Tammy. “He got me earlier.”
Ay, I’m just glad it wasn’t me. I run my finger along Khalil’s slick black hair. He got a head full of it. “Dang. We gonna have one of these in a few months.”
“Y’all ready for it?” Brenda asks.
“No,” me and Lisa both say. Brenda and Tammy laugh.
“He’s so little and fragile,” Lisa says. “Don’t you get scared that you’ll break him?”
“Word,” I say. I toss Seven around, and he fine. I’m scared to hold Khalil.
Brenda chuckles. “I used to be. He’s not as fragile as he looks. I promise, your baby won’t be either. Y’all know what you’re having yet?”
“Maverick thinks it’s a boy. I know it’s a girl,” Lisa says.
She can get outta here with that. “Andre Amar ain’t a girl.”
“Dang, y’all picked out a name already?” Tammy asks.
“Just for a boy,” says Lisa. “It made sense to name the baby after Dre. We wanna do something different for a girl.”
“I’m sorry about your cousin, Mav,” Brenda says. “He was a real sweet guy.”
Months later, and the sympathy still hurt. “’Preciate it. You knew him?”
“Yeah. Jerome used to be one of his customers. He was one of Jerome’s customers, too.”
A door open down the hall, and somebody yawn loud.
“Man oh man,” a dude says. “I needed that nap after that drive.”
I know that raspy voice.
Red the hustler come into the living room, stretching and yawning. “Thanks for letting me catch a couple of z’s in your room, Tam.”
Tammy go “Mmm-hmm,” with a strong stank eye.
Hold up. Red is Brenda’s boyfriend?
He go over to her and kiss her on the lips. “I slept so good, I’m ready for whatever now.” He wiggle his eyebrows at Brenda.
She giggle. “Jerome, behave.”
I should’ve known his parents didn’t name him Red. Sometimes you don’t find out folks’ real names in the Garden until you go to their funeral and see the program. Red notice me and Lisa on the recliner. “My bad. Hey, y’all.”
“Hey, Red,” Lisa says, dry as hell.
“Whaddup, Mav? How you living?”
“I’m chilling. Long time, no see.”
“Oh yeah. I’m a man on the move. Gotta make that money after the damage you and your boy caused when you knocked over my shit.” He laugh, but it sound forced. He still mad.
“You gave me some fake sneakers,” I say. “We had to let you know that won’t fly.”
“Y’all lucky I’m forgiving.” He come over to the recliner. “How daddy’s buddy doing?”
Red lift Khalil from Lisa’s arms, and that’s when I see it – a gold watch with diamonds, glistening on his wrist. There’s a scratch on the face from the time it fell off during a water gun fight.
How I know? That’s Dre’s watch. The one that was stolen the night he was killed.
CHAPTER 21
Dre’s watch is all I see.
I ain’t bugging, I know my cousin’s watch. I always wished Granddaddy gave it to me. I only got one of his brimmed hats ’cause I was the youngest. Dre would rub that shit in my face, too, like that annoying big bro he was.
He wore it everywhere and all the time. What the hell is it doing on Red’s wrist now?
Red’s eyes follow mine to it. He step back. “Um, baby, I think Khalil need his diaper changed.”
Brenda come get Khalil, saying that Red could change the diaper himself. Red say something to Brenda while staring at me, but his eyes won’t meet mine … almost like he nervous.
What he nervous for?
He clear his throat. “I’ll be back in a little bit, baby.”
I snap outta it. Brenda beg Red to stay a little longer. He already heading for the door.
I hop up and start after him, but somebody grab hold of my wrist.
“Mav.”
I look down at Lisa. I forgot she was here that fast. “Huh?”
“Are you okay?” she says.
I gotta go after Red. Gotta go after Red. “Yeah, I’m straight.”
“Are you sure?”
A car door slam shut in the driveway.
“Yeah, I gotta go to work,” I tell Lisa. “I’ll holla at you later.”
I tug away from her and rush out the house, but I’m too late. Red disappearing down the street.
Mr. Wyatt got me working in the store today. This probably the easiest shift I’ve had on this job. I bag customers’ groceries as he ring them up. Simple. Yet I’m almost too distracted to do that.
Everybody in the Garden know that Red crooked as hell. That’s why he always got the hookup on good stuff – he get it dirty. He’d definitely buy a stolen watch, so he could’ve bought it from Ant.
There was this look in his eyes though. When he noticed me staring at the watch, dude was straight-up nervous. Would he be that on edge over a stolen—
“Dammit, boy!” Mr. Wyatt snap. “Pay attention to what you’re doing!”
Oh shit. I dropped a carton of eggs. The yolks and the whites ooze near my kicks.
Mrs. Rooks, one of our neighbors, set her hand on her hip. “Now how the hell I’m gon’ make red velvet cake if all the eggs on the floor?”
“I’m sorry, Elaine,” Mr. Wyatt says. “Maverick, go get her two cartons. They’re coming out of your check. That’ll teach you to pay attention. Then clean up that mess.”
The one part of this job I hate is dealing with his mouth. I bite my tongue every day.
I grab two cartons of eggs for Mrs. Rooks. She pull out her glasses and examine each egg, as if she don’t trust me to get good ones. I guess they fine ’cause she let me bag them.
Mr. Wyatt wait till I finish cleaning the floor and my sneakers to say something to me. “Where in the world is your head at? You’ve been on another planet since you got here.”
“I’m sorry, Mr. Wyatt. It’s one of them days.”
He fold his arms. “You keep this up, you’re gonna lose half of your check. What’s more important than your job right now?”
I’d be a fool to tell him any of that Red stuff. “You know how my life is, Mr. Wyatt. I got a lot on my plate.”
Mr. Wyatt take a deep breath. “Yeah, I suppose I understand. You have to keep your eyes on the prize, son. Tackle one thing at a time until you reach your goals.”
“Goals?”
“Yeah, goals,” he says. “Don’t you have some?”
“I mean, I wanna buy a ride soon. Oh, and one of them double strollers that I can use for Seven and the baby.”
“Son, that’s a to-do list. I’m talking about real accomplishments. What do you wanna do with your life?”
I look at him.
Nobody ever asked me that.
A’ight yeah, back in the day when I was little, teachers would ask what I wanted to be when I grew up. I’d say stuff like an astronaut or a doctor or a vet. But at some point, I stopped imagining myself being any of that. Ain’t no astronauts, doctors, or veterinarians around here. Everybody I know just tryna survive, and that’s all I wanna do.
I shrug at Mr. Wyatt.
His forehead wrinkle. “You don’t have any kind of dream?”
“Dreams can’t buy diapers.”
“Maybe not immediately, but they can eventually. When you were a kid, what did you wanna be?”
“Mr. Wyatt, c’mon. This silly.”
“Humor me for a bit,” he says. “What did you want to be?”
I stuff my hands in my pockets. “I wanted to be like my pops.”
“Is that why you’re in that gang?”
“That’s for protection, Mr. Wyatt. These streets can get rough. You gotta claim gray or green to survive.”
“I don’t believe that. There are young men around here who don’t gangbang. My nephew doesn’t. That Montgomery boy, Carlos, he didn’t. Now look at them. Jamal’s at community college and about to head to a university, and Carlos is in college, too.”
Them the worst examples he could give. “No offense, Mr. Wyatt, but your nephew seem like a nerd. As for Carlos, his momma kept him and Lisa in the house. Of course they didn’t need protection. Anyway, I’m Li’l Don. Everybody expected me to join.”
“Because the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree?” Mr. Wyatt asks. “However, it can roll away from the tree. It simply need a little push.”
“Yeah, a’ight.”
Mr. Wyatt shake his head. “It’s going in one ear and out the other. Did you have any other dreams, Maverick?”
I had one when I was a kid that I never told anybody. It was gon’ sound stupid, but it was the only thing I really wanted to be. “A Laker.”
“One of them basketball players?”
“Yeah. I wanted to join the team and convince Magic to come outta retirement and play with me. We were gon’ be better than the Bulls. That ain’t happening. I can’t ball for nothing.”
“Have to agree with you there,” Mr. Wyatt says. “I’ve seen you play, and that’s definitely off the table. What dreams have you had lately?”
I shrug again. “Sometimes I think it might be cool to own a business like you do. You ain’t gotta answer to nobody. That’s dope.”
“An entrepreneur,” he says. “That’s doable. What kinda business do you have in mind?”
“Maybe a clothes store? I could sell jerseys, sneakers, caps, all the fly gear. Or a music store. Everybody love music, and CDs and tapes not going nowhere.” I look at him. “You think that could work?”
He smiles. “I do. You can make it happen, but you have to come up with a plan.”
“What kinda plan?”
“Well first, you need to get your high school diploma or a GED. I have the latter myself. Next, I’d recommend taking some community college courses or going to a trade school.”
