Stay

11

Monse and I were exhausted the next morning. With all the drama and girl talk, I could barely keep my eyes open in class. 

As soon as school was over, I went to the bathroom, rinsed my face and waited for Oscar. 

In a matter of seconds, his red car pulled up. I got in the car and without hesitation, he kissed me. 

"Hey hermosa. How was class?" He asked.

"Long. Im exhausted. I barely got any rest last night" I replied.

"Aww I'm sorry. How bout you let me take you to my place and you can take a nap there?" He asked.

"Id actually like that" I replied. 

Oscar drove off and drove straight to his house.

"So uhm, hows Tito?" I asked.

"He's alright." Oscar answered.

"How're you two? Things better now?" I questioned.

"Yeah. Hes still a lil mad at me. But after talking to him, he understands now. It took him 4 blunts to finally realize that you and I were bound to end up together. But he is really sorry about what he did and said to you. He wants you back home" Oscar said as he pulled up in front of his house. 

"I'm glad you two are okay. But honestly. I just need some time away from him. This is my last year in Freeridge and I just want to make the best out of it like everyone else is." I replied. 

"I get it nena but hes just trying to keep you safe. When we grew up, the block was not a safe place. We lost a lot of friends in school and in the neighborhood to violence. We had no choice but to follow in the footsteps of our peers in order to remain alive and put food on the table." Oscar said as he got out of the car.

I got out as well and followed him inside to his room. 

"I don't understand though. Why couldn't you two get a job instead of joining a gang?" I asked.

"Hmm, so I guess Tito never told you what happened" Oscar said. 

"Get comfortable nena. Im gonna roll one up" he said as he took his shirt off. 

I took my shoes off and sat on his bed. 

"What happened?" I asked.

"That's his story to tell. But just know that it was never his choice nor mine to join this gang. It was almost expected of us. Plus, we have criminal records. Hard to get a job when you were wrongfully accused of a felony because of the way you look and where you lived." He answered. 

I was almost in shock. I remembered when I was about 12 years old, Tito never came home. He just called me and told me to stay over my friends house for the next few months. I didn't want to so I basically lived by myself for 6 months before Tito came home. He never wrote or called except for that one night. 

"Wow. I had no idea. He always kept his business to himself and kept me far away from you and Santos in general." I replied. 

"Tito is a good guy. He loves you a lot Nati. Its just… Hard to explain" he said while lighting up the blunt he rolled.

"I get it. I just wish he was more open with me. I understand things a lot more than he thinks. If he were to just open up and tell me the truth, our relationship would be so different." I answered.

"I think he knows that now. When I spoke to him last night, I told him why I cared about you. I explained how you've been there for me when no one else was. And how you understood me and my past" he said.