“Where the hell did you get extra money from?” she pressed.
“My gigi gave me money for my grades. Plus, my dad gave me a few extra dollars when I spent the weekend at Gigi’s house,” Shaylyn replied.
“Hmm, you never said anything about him giving you money. That mothafucka acted like he ain’t have no money when I called him last week.” She scoffed. “Don’t spend too much on her. She’s already staying here rent-free. She doesn’t need anything else for free.”
My feelings were crushed, but I kept my face neutral. Since I had been staying with them, she treated me like the modern day Cinderella. I was forced to do most of the chores around the house by myself, and after dinner, I had to wash all the dishes. She never let me go back for seconds, but her kids ate as much as they wanted. Shaylyn would sneak me extra food at night, but it still hurt being treated so poorly.
“Okay, Momma. We’re gonna head out.” Shaylyn nodded toward the front door, and I followed behind her. The moment we got outside, she wasted no time expressing her feelings.
“I love my momma, but she’s a miserable bitch. She gets child support for me and my siblings, but she stays pocket watching. Anytime my daddy does anything for us, she wants to know what we have.”
“Yeah, she has been on my ass ever since I moved in, but I try not to let it get to me. Once I turn eighteen, I can get my own spot, and I’ll be able to move out on my own.”
“We can get a place together. I know a girl from the east side that makes check stubs and shit like that. Trust me, I’ve been planning to move out of my momma’s house since I was little. The only reason I couldn’t live with my daddy was because he went to jail after they broke up. Trina is the definition of a bitterbaby mama, and she tried to keep him out of our life whenever she couldn’t get her way.”
I remember my momma telling Aunt Trina she was wrong for trying to use her kids as pawns. Apparently, Shaylyn’s father ended up marrying the woman he cheated on Aunt Trina with, and it infuriated her to no end. She would dangle her kids in his face for money and then cut off all communication when it was time for him to come see them. I thought it was weird, but as a kid, I really didn’t have a full understanding of why she made the decisions she did.
We continued to talk as we made our way to the corner store. I put my head down when I heard the men barking and calling out to us. It was something we were used to because older men tried to holler at us often, but my brother used to shut it down when he was free. Without him being around, the men seemed to be bolder than usual.
“Aye, blue eyes. Let me eat your pussy from the back. I know ya young ass ain’t never had a tongue like mine. Come holla at a real nigga.” When I turned around, I locked eyes with a dusty looking young man with beat up shoes and dry dark skin.
“She can’t holla at shit she doesn’t see, and as far as I can tell, there aren’t any real niggas out here. Now leave her alone, damn. Y’all need to run in the store and get some Aquafina. You too thirsty out here,” Shaylyn quipped.
“Bitch, fuck you! I could have your little ass bent over in my Honda right now. You young hoes are all the same. All I gotta do is throw a little money your way, and that little pussy is mine,” he replied with a smirk. I couldn’t remember his name, but I had seen him around my neighborhood a few times. He wasn’t wrong with some of his points because girls my age were easy.
The girls my age only cared about money and appearances. They liked to be linked with the niggas with motion because it helped them get more attention from the niggas who were wayout of their league. While I knew I was a beautiful girl, I had no desire to gain the attention of these fools. My brother taught me the game at a young age and made sure I understood the motives of most men. Although I lost my father at a young age, my brother stepped in as a father figure.
“Boy, fuck you. You’re the ugly friend out of the group. If I really want to fuck with someone, it would never be you.” Shaylyn shot back.
Her mouth was smart and had been since we were kids. We used to get in trouble all the time because she never knew when to quit.
“Bitch, what chu say?” His chest heaved up and down as he attempted to lunge toward her. His friend held his arm out to stop him, but I was scared shitless. We were out here unprotected and outnumbered.
“Aye, chill. You over here arguing with a little ass girl. You should never have bothered them to begin with. It’s too much pussy out there to be going after jailbait. What the fuck is wrong with you?” His older friend chastised him.
I didn’t bother to stick around to see what was going on. Instead, I grabbed Shaylyn’s arm and headed inside.
As soon as we stepped inside, I breathed a sigh of relief. The last thing I needed was to get caught up in some drama. I had no one to look after me, and Aunt Trina was looking for any and every reason to put me out on my ass.
Shaylyn stopped to talk to one of her friends, so I headed off to the snacks. I already knew what I wanted, so I wasted no time grabbing a bag of hot fries, a fruit punch, and a pack of sour straws. I planned to eat my snacks before I made it back to the house because I wasn’t tryna hear Aunt Trina’s mouth.
“Oh, I think I need two hot sausages this time and they on sale!” Shaylyn squealed as she joined me.
“Damn, shorty. Let me get your number.” Another older boy called out to Shaylyn. He was a cute, light-skinned dude with curly hair and a body littered with tattoos. His eyes were tinted red, so I assumed he had just finished smoking, and his diamond grill was damn near blinding.
“I don’t have a phone, sorry.”
I glanced over at her but kept my face neutral even though I knew her ass was lying. He was easy on the eyes, which made me wonder why she was turning him down.
“Shit, I can fix that. If you fuck with a nigga like me, you’ll never have to go without anything you need.” He continued to press her, but she didn’t seem to be impressed by his advances.
“No, thank you.” She flipped her weave, grabbed the remainder of her snacks, and then switched over to the cash register.
I followed after her, putting my stuff on the counter.
“You could have gotten way more than this. I told you, my daddy gave me plenty of money.”
“I know, but I don’t have time for your momma and her nagging. I’m cool with what I have.”
