S I C K O F Y O U R S H I T
"Let's go see where this son of a bitch lives." JJ mumbles and the others follow JJ.
"I'm gonna remember this shit!" Barry crawls around on the floor. "You can't hide from me! I know exactly who y'all are! Huh? You're gonna see me again!"
John b throws the keys of the car as far as he can into the woods and then gets on the bus with us.
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"Welcome to Crackhead Wasteland." murmurs Sarah as the six of us arrive at Barry's home. This really is the worst part of the cut.
"I don't know about this, man." sighs Pope, and JJ stops the bus. "Dude, why are we at Barry's?"
"This'll only take a second." JJ gets off the bus and walks straight toward the house.
"Where you going?" questions John b.
"Yo soy justicia." JJ exclaims and walks into the house.
"Did you glean anything from that?" mumbles Pope from the bus.
"You know somebody should probably-" says Kiara but is interrupted.
"Yeah, I got it." I and John b say at the same time and look at each other briefly. "We can both go. Two is always better." he says and we follow JJ into the house.
We walk in, to JJ who is ransacking the house. "Yeah, so what's your plan, slick?" asks John b.
"Well, as thou hath stealeth from us-" the boy lifts up some pillows. "-we shall stealeth from ye."
John b looks confusedly at his friend. "Yeah that kinda got lost in translation."
"An eye for an eye, John b." says JJ, and John b stands in front of him.
"Yeah, yeah, yeah, that's great, JJ. Brut what happens after you rob a drug dealer, huh? He knows who we are!"
"I'm not scared of this guy." JJ scoffs and walks past John b.
"JJ, maybe-" I try to say, but my brother interrupts me. "JJ, don't-" but JJ has already gone into Barry's bedroom.
"There we go." JJ takes a bag from Barry's closet and pours it out to see quite a bit of money falling out of it. I come in the door while John b waits in the kitchen
"what are you doing?" he shouts.
"Getting even!" calls JJ back.
"JJ, don't do that. That's not you, you-" but JJ interrupts me.
"How do you know it's not me, Mia? Huh? Look, this guy had a fucking gun on you." JJ puts the money in his backpack. "On my girl, a gun on my girl."
"All right, took care of business." He comes back into the kitchen, with me following him. My brother gives me a questioning look, but I just shrug.
"Hey, look at me." John b stops JJ by his shoulders. "If you keep going down this road you're gonna end up just like your dad, do—"
but John b stops when JJ holds him by his shirt and pushes him against the wall.
"You watch your mouth, man." says JJ serious. "Aren't you tired of being messed with?" he asks.
"That's not the point, JJ." John b answers.
"'Cause I am." JJ laughs in an aggressive way and then walks out of the house.
"All right, so we're looking at five grand each for reparations for putting us through that bullshit. Sorry about that, y'all." JJ says to the others.
"So that's what we're doing now? We're robbing drug dealers?" Asks Kiara upset.
"This Barry guy's gonna find out. And he's gonna come after us." Sarah adds.
I remain silent all the time. I know that JJ has to pay a huge sum of money for restitution, and therefore he needs money. And everyone knows that he will never be able to pay the money out of his own pocket. But I seem to be the only one who thinks about it.
"Yes, he will. This is not the time to start wilin' out." Pope looks reproachfully at JJ.
"How'd you guys like havin' a gun pulled on you?" asks JJ then.
John b steps closer to JJ. "Relax."
"He had it right here on you, bro." JJ points his finger at John b's head.
John b stands with his back to the bus, in front of JJ. "Look. We've gotta go get the gold, okay? Just give me that shit." he reaches for the backpack in JJ's hand. "We're putting it back."
But then JJ pushes his friend, by his chest, against the bus.
"do you feel like a tough guy? Huh?" he looks pissed in JJ's eyes. "What are you gonna do when he comes for us?"
"We punch him in the throat." replies JJ.
"Yeah, good fuckin' idea, JJ."
JJ looks at John B's face for a moment, then picks up the backpack. "I'm not putting it back."
He sits down on the bus and waits for us to come in. "You guys gettin' in or what?" he shouts. But no one comes. He looks down at the floor and takes a deep breath.
Then he looks up, straight into my eyes. I'm standing in front of the bus, just like the others. I see how the situation is getting him down, that he doesn't get any support from one of his friends. I see the disappointment in his eyes because I'm not coming with him.
I want to be there for him. That's why I approach him. "JJ, don't do this. I promise you we'll find a way to get the money but-"
"You can't promise that. Because you know damn well there's no other way. Do you want to see me in jail in a few weeks?" JJ looks at me, biting his lip nervously.
"But committing another felony isn't going to make it any better."
JJ gets off the bus and stands in front of his friends, who all look at him with annoyance. "What?" he asks.
John B approaches him. "We're sick of your shit."
"Oh, my shit?" laughs JJ, pointing at himself.
"Yeah. Yeah. Your shit."
"Yes." Kiara turns to JJ. "Your pulling guns on people shit."
"You acting like a freaking maniac-" Pope starts to say but JJ interrupts him.
"Okay, Pope, I took the fall for you, man!" JJ looks hurt at Pope. I see the tears in his eyes, which he tries to hold back. "You know how much money I owe because of you?"
"I'm gonna pay you back, and I didn't even ask you to do that!" Pope yells back.
"I just did!" yells JJ, coming closer. "Pay it back. Right here, right now, by myself."
"guys, what the fuck?" I look at the four looking annoyed at JJ.
"Stop protecting me, Mia." sighs JJ.
"I can't do that, JJ! You know I can't!" I say, when my brother gives me a confused look at the way I'm talking to JJ.
"You know what?" says JJ, grabbing his backpack. "That's exactly what I'm gonna do. Go off by myself." JJ swings the backpack over his shoulder and walks away.
"JJ..." shouts Pope, but is held back by John B. "Hey, wait, man."
"Just let him go." mumbles Kiara.
I look at my friends in shock. "Are you fucking serious guys? All you care about is the gold, right? But to think for a moment that JJ has to pay more than 20 thousand dollars out of his own pocket doesn't occur to you?"
"Why are you protecting him?" asks John B, upset.
"Because it's not fair! What you are doing john b. What you all are doing. John b, all you care about lately is the fucking gold. No matter what's going on around you. And that's okay because of our father, but at some point enough is enough."
John b says nothing.
I turn to Kiara. "And you, I mean honestly, you in particular have always cared about what JJ has to go through, and then don't even help him. It's not like you're rich as shit either way."
"And you, Pope. I mean, honestly. He took the fall for you!"
"I never asked for that!" yells Pope back.
"Yeah but he still did it! Out of friendship. Because he already has a shitty life either way, and he didn't want yours to be like that! Do you understand that?" I look around. "But you don't seem to care anyway."
I look briefly at my brother, then walk away, following JJ.