Family Tithes

Better Left Unsaid

"He's picking you up to go where?" I ask.

"Where else?"

"He wants you to open the trap at 5 in the morning?"

Simon's tongue rolls across his jaw before he sighs. I can tell I'm getting on his nerves with the third degree but I'm not used to him leaving out the house at the crack of dawn. I knew shit was gonna' change when he went full-time but this seems a lil drastic.

"He think we could keep the money flowing in the Florida projects. You know nobody sell round there but us," Simon says.

"But this early in the morning? Do crackheads even be up at this hour?" I ask.

Simon shrugs, "It's his neighborhood. He should know."

"Does Caesar know about this?" I ask.

Simon glares at me.

"You know, just 'cause Caesar helped out don't mean I answer to him. I asked to work for you, remember?" Simon asks.

"How can I forget? Besides, I ain't hire Calvin--

"Right. Yo errand boy did," Simon interrupts.

"--so I'm not who he answers to."

Simon shakes his head.

"Whatever, bruh. Is there a point to this?" He asks.

"Yes. I don't think you should be jumping whenever Calvin says jump."

Simon rolls his eyes.

"Nah, hear me out," I say, "He makes you wait until he tapped out on his block to even give you the time of day. What's the point of you committing to this shit full time if you barely clocking hours 'cause you working around his schedule?"

"So what you want me to do? You said we needed help. I came to you for answers and this what you told me to do. I never asked you to let Caesar take over, that was yo' decision. But you the boss, right? If you don't like how shit moving then do something about it," Simon says.

Just then, a car horn blares outside at the same time Simon's phone starts to ring.

He declines the call. He shoves his phone in the pocket of his beige cargo shorts.

"I gotta go. I'll catch up with you later," Simon says.

His low-cut red Converse are thudding down the stairs before I can say 'bye'. I walk to the edge of the stairs in time to see his white T-shirt slip through the front door.

"Be safe," I say as the door slams shut.

I'm exhausted when I walk back to my bedroom but it has little to do with waking out my sleep. I lose sight of falling back into my dream as I climb into bed. After my conversation with Simon, it's unlikely that I'll dream of anything other than our current circumstances. I decide stress berading my dreams is better than it nawing at my brain while I'm up so I force my eyes close.

Before I drift off to sleep, I reach over and unplug my phone from the charger. Simon was right. I'm not completely helpless. I still have the power to do one good thing concerning him. I open my text thread and click the name at the top of the list.

I text Caesar, I need to talk to you about some changes I wanna make. Where you gon' be at today?

Then I lock my phone and turn over on my side. I watch the bare trees outside of my windows rattle with the pull of the wind. It becomes therapeutic as the fan hums above me. Pretty soon, the darkness of the room is shut out by the darkness of my eyelids.