When childhood best friends Lauren and Justice become fed up with the disrespect they face as women on the streets of South Central LA, vengeful, the two demand they are given their respect at any cost. But the differing reasons for their actions so...
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Cali breeze Blowing in the palm trees The sun is shining His hands are on me He's whispering in my ear And giving my booty a squeeze We dancin' We laughin' There is no sadness In our last day of summer madness Meat sizzlin' on the grill The homies still pullin' up to come chill Bottles popped & blunts lit Wishing this feelin' would last forever Cuz' we ain't worried about shit I giggle and sip from my cup of cranberry & cognac It's always a vibe when we kickin' back.
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Labor Day 2019 Los Angeles, California
I GAZED UP AT THE CLOUDS and imagined I was flying.Soaring high over our neighborhood I kissed the sun. At night the moon is my pillow when I pull the stary sky over me that is my blanket. Los Angeles. South Central to be exact. Slauson. Crenshaw. Home. In every corner, alley, or neighborhood, embedded in my soul is South Central L.A. It ever flowed inside of me and gave me divinity in the place that made me, Lauren Denise Love. And like my last name I exuded that aura without even trying, giving me a fire that draws many in these mean streets to my flame. I can't help it. I am my father's daughter inside and out.
That man could make every woman that crossed his path fall in love with him without saying a word. My mama said it was his eyes that did the talking, she said that's how he got her too. I have those same eyes, brown, doe, with a sparkle in them that can make the meanest of mean blush. They've been a blessing and a curse at times but most of the time the powerful feeling they give me is exhilarating.
I believed my dad's biggest attribute was his heart. He used to always say, "You could save a life with just a hug and a smile", and he was right after the many times he saved me from the boogeyman that I believed lived in my closet and wanted to eat me. He would just scoop me up into his arms and instantly my life was saved by my hero. Years later I began holding myself with my eyes tightly shut, imaging my arms were his knowing that they weren't.
Coming back to reality, I glanced to my left to see my best friend Justice crip walking with Cam, my boyfriend Cash's older brother, while he sipped from the forty-ounce bottle in his hand then held it up in the air. There were people all over the house for his and Cash's annual Labor Day Kickback, inside and outside. But most of us were out back either drinking, smoking, eating, or dancing like Cash and I currently were.
"You smell good as fuck right now," his raspy voice whispered in my ear while he wrapped his arms around my waist pulling me closer. My back pressed up against his chest giving me the safety I craved while his cologne intoxicated me more than the drink I held in my hand. Leaning over my neck he kissed and sucked my spot then he moved back to my ear. My baby always knew how to give me butterflies even sometimes without touching me at all.
