Moving to the rough streets of Harlem is a step back for Lorena after running from her supposedly good life in the suburbs of Miami.
She searches for freedom in the most unlikely of places yet in meeting Cross, she couldn't find herself more trapped...
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𝘅𝘃𝗶𝗶. 𝗹𝗼𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗮 𝗿𝗼𝗱𝗿𝗶𝗴𝘂𝗲𝘇
After Jahron picked me up from outside a random store, we headed over to Wendy's to get some food before we parked up somewhere on a quiet street to eat and talk.
He had urged me to delve deep into my life story insisting he wanted to know me but I, of course, was reluctant. He was cool but I didn't trust him enough to tell him everything that had been going on so I kept the disclosure to a minimum.
"It's getting pretty late," I said suddenly, glancing at the time on my phone. "I should probably head back."
I needed to be home before Riq got back so I could get my stuff and probably check into a hotel. It made me really sad to think about being kicked out so soon. Was I that much of an unbearable person? Was that why my mom hated me, Cross didn't want me, and I had no friends? Or was it just down to self-sabotage?
"We hardly been parked up for an hour, what's the rush? I'm still tryna get to know you." Jahron chuckled, "Don't tell me you just used my ass fo' some food and now you tryna escape."
"I can afford my own Wendy's, Jahron." I said in amusement and gave him a small smile. It was all I could muster. "And why did you suddenly want to hang out anyways? Cuz I'm finally eighteen it's okay to start giving me some attention?"
He only started to text me a few weeks after my birthday.
"It ain't even like that, Lorena." He scratched the back of his neck awkwardly. "I always thought you was beautiful. You know I wanted you back then when I asked for yo' number."
I sighed, so sick of older niggas. Every guy I attracted recently seemed to be older but I'd learned that none of them were trying to take lil ol' me seriously. After Cross, I decided I'd save myself some more heartbreak and not get involved with anybody else.
"You asked for my number but you never used it though, did you?" I challenged Jahron.
"Aight, maybe I was waiting til' you turned eighteen." He finally admitted.
My eyes rolled. Now that I was no longer seeing through my rose-tinted glasses, it finally dawned on me that Cross had done the same thing but even Cross wasn't my first experience.
And it wasn't okay. None of it was.
Men were predators and Cross was no different as much as I liked to convince myself that he was.
"Whatever. I think I just wanna go home now, okay?"
"Nah, c'mon. We can go somewhere else. I gotta spot we can chill at." He insisted and started up his car.
I stared at the side of his face with my eyes narrowed wondering why he was so persistent. Eventually, I shrugged my shoulders and leaned into my seat, zoning out for the ride.
