Southern Californ-I

VII.

Southern Californ-i 

CJ

"Nana?" I said as I shook her arm gently. "Nana, wake up a second." I said and her eyes opened in a manor of confusion before she understood what was going on. "I'm gonna head out for a bit but Imani's gonna be here at the house. If she leaves, make sure you call me. Alright?" She gave me a quick nod and I left her side so she could go back to sleep. Walking down to Imani's room, I opened the door and found her on her bed with the phone set up on her headboard. She quickly grabbed the blanket and covered herself hesitantly. 

"Knock first!" She yelled at me. "Hold on, Eric." She said as she hung up the FaceTime call. 

"Yell one more time at me, Imani." I growled. "Whatever the fuck you're doing, you better stop."

"What do you want?" She asked in a more settle tone. There was still sass in her voice but I'll let that slide for the time being. 

"I'm headin' out for a lil' bit. Be sure to give Nana her meds and you better not forget, understand?" She nodded her head. "And put some actual clothes on." I closed the door and headed out of the house, letting the screen door close on it's own and sliding in my car.

Imani and I have never gotten along. Even when she was a newborn, I can remember how I never cared for her. Always crying, always fussy and it irritated me. Then as she got older she only got worse and I kept pushing her farther and farther away from me. Call me heartless but I have no type of love for Imani, if it was my choice I would have sent her off to some boarding school over seas just so I didn't have to deal with her and so she wouldn't cause stress to Nana. 

Cruising through these streets, the night was lively as ever. Street lights were on but kids were still out playing around and traffic was backed up from people trying to get home as fast as they could. I rolled up to a cross walk and waited for the kids to cross on their bikes. It reminded me of a time when I was a kid for a brief moment before having to grow up too fast. 

Because of the double murder of my parents, Imani and I were sent to Nana's house and left in her care. I was about four when that happened and Imani was still just a baby but life wasn't bad. We didn't have luxuries but our basic needs were met. I used to go to work with Nana and earn a couple bucks here and there, which began to add up when I stopped buying candy at the candy shop but when Nana fell and injured herself, that was when I had to grow up. I was about fourteen at that time and picked up some small jobs but it was tough with school and I left that to do something else.

I started dealing drugs. 

Was I proud of it? Hell no. Did it pay good? You bet your ass it did. That was the only reason why I kept doing it. It didn't interfere with school and I set my own hours, building up my own clientele and our financial needs were more than just met... I just had to make sure I didn't get caught. I went with the street name of CJ and I haven't been locked up since getting into this trade. 

I pulled up to the house and cut the engine. I was in a quiet neighborhood that was just about abandoned with only about four houses actually occupied by people. I opened the gate and walked up the cracked pathway. Weeds beginning to sprout in between the cracks and morning glory that was growing up along the short porch. 

"You home?" I called out as I walked inside. The TV was left on and a ruffled blanket draped over the back of the couch was what I saw in the living room. 

"Come to the back!" He called back. Following the hallway to the very back room, I saw he was managing two burners at once and I laughed. "What? Ain't ever seen a nigga hard at work before?"