𝐎𝐧 𝐆𝐚𝐧𝐠 ᥫ᭡

XXXIII

"Where yo car keys at?" He asks me.

My jaw drops open.

"C-car keys?" I ask slowly.

"Yea, maybe the battery- wait you did unlock the car right?" He looks at me for confirmation.

"Uhhh..." I look down.

He just stares at me in disbelief.

"You drunk?" He asks.

I nod and he bangs his head against the top of the car making me laugh.

"Getcho ass in this car." He walks to his.

"But mine?"

"We'll get it tomorrow." He says and I get in the passenger's side.

"If we had a baby girl what would we name it?" I ask as he drives.

"You tryna have a baby?" He side eyes me.

"No nigga I mean like if we had a little girl what would we name her." I frown.

"Ion know it'd have to be sumn unique not no basic ass names, you feel me?" He says and I nod.

"Mhm I'd want it to start with an N' like the girls in my family." I add.

"N'talia?" He suggests.

"Noooo, ion like it." I shake my head.

"Okay, N'miracle?"

"Nope, sound like numerical." I scrunch my face up.

"N'liya?"

"N'liya, N'liya, N'liya... Ou I likes it." I smile while he chuckles.

"Why you thinking ah baby names?" He asks genuinely.

I shrug and he holds back from asking more. We continue the ride in silence.

"Thank you Amari." I sigh getting out.

"Be safe, I love you."

"Thank you." I say before closing his door.

I walk back in my house and collapse on the couch. I'm too tired to make it to the room.

The couch pillows provide me warmth and the tv comfort as I fall asleep.

Amari Christian Walton
Monroe, Louisiana

"You can't make money being all depressed and shit." Chubby says ashing his blunt.

"I can do both." I shrug.

"Finna go tell Ecstasy to take yo sad ass back. You polluting my air with all this negative, depressing energy." Nunu put his feet on my coffee table.

I slap his feet down before getting on my phone. I looked through Pinterest for ideas for N'laisah's apology gift for tomorrow.

A big ass box full of bags of chips with a bow on it stands out.

"Get up niggas we going to Walmart." I hop up.

...

"Why the fuck would you buy 20 party sized bags of Hot Cheetos?" Chubby asks helping me carry the bags in.

"This shit is ridiculous. Got me carrying shit I ain't buy." Nunu mumbles.

"Stop complaining, y'all posted to be at the trap working but y'all dilly dallying round with me." I carry the last few bags inside.

I take out the sticky notes and colored pens I bought and get to work.

On every note I write one reason I love her in a different color, in cursive then stick one to each bag.

"Aight my sister coming over, das cool?" Chubby asks me.

"Mhmm. The gate open."

"Yo sister the one who got trapped in that cage with the gorilla on our school trip to the zoo?" Nunu asks.

"Why you had to bring that up?"

"Her lil badass wanted to see the gorilla up in person." He shakes his head.

"Ion know why them gorillas ain't fuck her up fa being in they cage." I say.

"Cuz she look like one, they prolly thought she was they own." Nunu starts laughing.

"He just put me out, Chauncey! All my shit and everything still over there!" Emoni whines coming in.

"Manuel sleep?" Chubby refers to his nephew.

"Yea he in the car, knocked out. Ion know what we gone do, all our clothes and everything at the house." She sits down next to him.

"Why you had to leave?" Nunu asks.

"He gotta new bitch. She told him to kick his child and baby mama out. He broke up with me and threw us out on the street." She puts her head on her hands.

"We gone getchu straight Mani. We'll go over there witchu to get yo shit." I say while putting the chips up.

Shit getting tew peaceful again and y'all know ion like det, don't y'all want a lil 🤏🏾 bit mo drama? 🌚