12/5/1988
Dear Diary, yesterday was so horrendous, I couldn't even sleep last night. Those gun shots blaring and the blood splattering all over, was severely terrifying. I just don't know why I drive myself into participating in a activity like that. The most petrifiying part is when the police came. They obviously already got the car's license and we're gonna get tracked down already. I mean, this is all bullshit. This is not the time to commit these crimes, start trouble or mostly, get caught by the feds.
I dug my diary to the bottom of my locker as the late bell rung, which meant I'm late for Global.
I gathered my material and slammed my locker shut as I made my way to the room.
I saw Jada outside from the window chewing on the end of a eraser of an #2 pencil, as the teacher was lecturing about something that I possibly didn't know.
I opened the door and made my way to Jada. "Ni, you're late." Jada commented.
"Tell me something I don't know." I whispered as she smiled.
"Listen, I gotta tell you something." Jada said.
"What is it?" I questioned. "I apologize of what happened yesterday, it was too early in the morning, and I literally just wasted time-"
"No, it's okay. I know how you felt yesterday." I accepted her apology as she srunched her face up and turned to me.
"Wait, how-"
"You were jealous and disappointed." I answered as she pursed her lips together and tapped her against her lips.
"Kinda true." She replied as she continued writing. "But I want you to do something also."
"Mm, hm." She hummed as she continued to write notes.
"I want you to make up with Aaliyah." I brought up.
"What?" Jada yelped as some people stared. "Jada, quiet please." Mr. Rogers begged.
Jada rolled her eyes and sucked her teeth. "Anyways, why?" Jada questioned in disgust.
"Because......you know, I just met her a few weeks back and I'm really not comfortable to have two of my best friends fighting." I explained as Jada just stared.
"Well, you should because there is no way in hell I'm gonna kiss and make up with that chickenheaded dyke." Jada rudely remarked as she went back focusing on writing.
I softly sighed, then started writing on my notebook. "Don't worry, I'll get you guys to make up somehow cause beef does not look good for me."
Jada sighed in annoyance. "Fine, let's see how your way works." Jada agreed as she constructively went back doing work.
"But tell me something." I ask.
"Something." Jada sartastically remarked as I rose my eyebrow.
"Okay, so where did you and Caine go that obviously made you cancel out of the college trip with me and Eric?" I questioned as she threw her head back and sighed.
"Skateland. Also known as the place where you had your first date with Eric-"
"First date? We were friends at the time and we barely knew each other. He came up to me and-"
"And you were going insane because he was coming over. You was like, oh, Jada, how's my hair? Is it fizzy? Is it curly?" She mocked as I nodded my head.
I gave a few chuckles. "Mm, you acting like I was the only person acting like that when you lost your mind when Pac came up to you. And you were like, Oh, hi Pac! Let me throw my shoes at the garbage can and act stupid!" I mocked Jada as I played with my hair.
She srunched her eyes at me. "You straight." She responded as I giggled.
"But how were you yesterday?" Jada questioned. I looked around the room for a bit, then back to her.
"If I tell you, you swear you won't tell?" I questioned as she Jada slowly rose her head up, and looked at me with concern.
"Uh, oh." Jada reacted.
"Jada and Nia, will you two please stop talking?" Mr Rogers begged again.
Jada sucked her teeth. "If you're so bitter of us talking, then why can't you just ignore us?" Jada nonchalantly responded.
"I never asked for your remark, Jada." Mr Rogers replied back.
"And nobody asked for you to tell us to be quiet, also. That's make both of us, huh?" Jada continued to respond back.
"Jada if you're gonna keep going back and forth with me, I'm gonna send you down to the office, okay? It's too early for this!" Mr Rogers yelled.
"If it's so early for this then why are you yelling? Shit, you must hyped for today." Jada commented.
"Jada, get out now." Mr Rogers ordered. As he did that, the bell suddenly started ringing.
Jada gave him a smirk, then a middle finger in return. "I'll tell you what happened yesterday in lunch." I reminded her as she nodded her head, gathering her stuff.
*****
It was lunchtime and I was in the bathroom, combing my hair as i heard a door creaked open.
It was Aaliyah. "Oh hi, Nia." She greeted with a nice smile, showing her left dimple.
"Hey, Li. I wanna apologize to you about what happened yesterday. Jada was-"
"Nah, it's cool." She accepted. I saw a bandage on her right cheek, it was covering the sratch Jada put on her from yesterday's events.
"You sure? Because I really want both of y'all to make up." I obliged as Aaliyah was washing her hands on the sink.
"Well, if you want to do that, you can." Aaliyah agreed as she grabbed sand - paper towel to wipe her hands.
Just when I was about to respond, Jada came inside the bathroom.
She mean mugged Aaliyah then turned to me. "Hi." She nonchalantly said.
"Jada, we were just talking ab-"
"Nobody was talking to you, Aaliyah." Jada cutted her off.
Aaliyah pursed her lips then looked away.
"You guys, can you please make up? This is not healthy for our friendship." I begged as Jada continued to glare at Liyah.
"Our? Nobody invited Aaliyah to be a part of our friendship." Jada remarked as she looked at the mirror and adjusted the hair cuffs attached to her braids.
"C'mon, Jada. Plea-"
"I'm going to lunch, they finally have a sushi section in the cafeteria, and oh, Nia, you have to tell what happened with you yesterday." Jada reminded as she made her way to the door.
"I got you." I responded as she gave me a small thumbs up and fleed.
I sighed, then turned towards Aaliyah.
"I'm sorry." I apologized.
"Nia, there's no need for you to be sorry. I told you, it's okay." She accepted as I gave a appreciative smile.
"But how are you and Pac?" I questioned.
"Things are going the way I wanted so far. In the past 3 years when we first dated, we were shy of each other. I mean, we would never talk that much, never kiss that much or fight but throughout the years, things started to get more.......advanced." She responded as I gave a small smile.
"Well, I'm glad that everything is straight with y'all." I commented.
"But how is you and Eric?" She asked.
I gave a rosy blush as Aaliyah snickered. "Aight." I responded as Aaliyah laughed.
"You sound just like him when you said aight." Aaliyah remarked as I snickered and walked towards the door and we left.
We separated ways in the lunchroom as I saw Jada sitting next to Eric and the boys.
I walked up to then and sat next to Eric. "Hey, Jada." I greeted as Jada ate her sushi.
"What happened yesterday?" She shot me with a question.
"Girl, you wanna know so much of what happened yesterday." I replied.
"Just spill it to me." Jada said as she ate.
"Okay, but I don't wanna say it right next to Eric."
"I heard my name, so what's up?" Eric interjected as Jada srunched her eyes.
"The ceiling." Jada remarked.
"E, no offense, but this is between me and Jada only. Like girl business." I explained to him as he gave me a blank stare.
"I can be apart of the girl business. Who's on their monthly?" Eric questioned as Jada bursted out laughing.
I tried to hold back my laughter, but it just went out.
"Okay, that's personal girl business." I remarked as I covered my forehead while laughing.
"Aight, I'll leave y'all." He replied as he kissed my cheek and turned back to Ren, Yella & Cube.
"Okay, what the fuck happened yesterday?" Jada quetolously questioned.
"Okay, so it was yesterday night and Me, Larenz, His friends A-Wax, Stacy and Keisha were gonna jump the nigga who tried to jack me in the alley." I explained as Jada inquisitively nodded her head.
"Oh, that ain't shit." Jada commented as she sipped a can of Coca-Cola.
"Larenz and his crew didn't jump him. Instead, they pulled a 187 on him and his cre-"
Jada spitted her soda out in revelation. "Hold on, repeat that again?"
"187. I thought he was gonna jump him and that's it but no, he had tools in the back and started smoking him in the parking lot." I continued further as Jada's eyes brighted up.
"Yo, Nia. You just got yourself fucked up. Extremely fucked up." Jada commented as I nodded in agreement.
"I know, I know. But the good thing is that I wasn't strapped." I replied as Jada hummed in agreement.
"But-"
"Uh, oh."
"The police came while Larenz and his friends were smoking them niggas, and I think the police knows the license plate of the car."
"Okay, you're severely fucked up, then. Was it Larenz's car?" Jada questioned.
"No, it was a friend of his named Stacy." I answered.
Jada leaned foward then crossed her arms on the table nodding in disappointment.
Yella and Cube suddenly came over to us and sat in front of us. "Sup?" Yella greeted.
"What do you want, Yella?" Jada responded nonchalantly.
"Do y'all got plans on Friday, Saturday and Sunday?" Cube questioned.
Puzzled, I srunched my eyes. "No, why?" I answered.
"Well, I just wanted to ask y'all if you want to go on a small Christmas vacation with us." Cube commented.
"Vacation? With both of y'all? I'm not tryna get behind bars." Jada refused as I giggled.
"Not me and Yella. Ren, Eric, Raheem, Q and everyone else is coming with us." Cube explained.
"Coming where?" Jada questioned.
"We are going to my cousin's college for freshmen christmas week in USC." Yella told us as he gave us a flyer.
"It's starts on Friday and ends on Sunday, right?" I question.
Cube nodded his head as I took a quick glimpse at the flyer.
"So, are y'all in?" Cube questioned.
"I gotta ask my aunt first if she wants me to go." I answered.
Jada sighed as she placed the flyer down. "I'm down." Jada answered also.
"Aight, Ay, E, Ren, c'mon down here for a sec!" Yella yelled as Ren sucked his teeth and Eric walked up to the table.
"They're in." Yella told them as they faced us.
"You're coming too, Nia?" Eric questioned.
"I gotta ask Dee. I mean, she would obviously want me to stay here than go to USC for the 3 days-"
"I can convince her to go with us." Eric answered.
I was unsure of his response because he never met my aunt before. Yeah, I told a lot about him to Dee in thanksgiving, but Dee is that type of aggressive and stern person who doesn't remember stuff that well.
"Well, if you want to, then go ahead." I replied as he gave me a kiss on the lips.
"Uh, don't you see a person eating over here?" Jada commented with irritation.
"Hope you choke." Eric responded as I slightly slapped the back of his head.
"Hope you die." Jada responded back.
"You guys need to be close, also. I'm working on it." I responded as Eric and Jada groaned.
"Wait, hold up, Yella is Pac coming?" Jada questioned.
"Oh." He responded unsurely as Jada sucked her teeth.
"I'm out." She cancelled as I frowned.
"Jada, c'mon. I mean, you guys are not even gonna be at the same room with each other once we get there on Friday." I encouraged as she looked foward with a death glare.
"Yeah, Nia's kinda right. You guys are gonna be separated not because you got bad blood, cause I don't want my yellow ass to get kicked out on Friday night, you feel me?" Yella replied as she chuckled.
"Okay, only for both of y'all, only for both of y'all." Jada repeated as I gave her a tight hug.
"Okay, Nia & Jada is coming, the boys are coming- wait, what about Larenz?" Cube questioned me.
Eric gave me a undiplomatic look. "Uh, I think I'll speak to him about it when I get home. I mean, it's obvious he's gonna say yes."
~
"Hell, no." Larenz refused as he rolled a joint. This was a few hours after lunchtime, and I just came back home from school.
"Renz, come on. This is can be a spectacular benefit for me, you and Dee." I obliged as he licked the paper of the joint.
"Dee doesn't care about me, all she cares about is you and her bitch ass boyfriend." Renz ruthlessly confessed.
"Wait, what? What do you mean she doesn't care about you?" I questioned with concern as I sat down next to him.
"Look at me. I just got out of jail a month ago and ever since I left, she's been bowing down to you and that punk ass nigga."
".....you mean Nino." I corrected.
"His name is Nino?" Renz questioned in a puzzled way.
I sighed. "Anyways, don't feel like she doesn't care about you. I mean, look at what she has done for you. Got you an education, worked hard for you to keep the food on the table. I think she will love to see her son graduate high school and go to a great college. You know what I'm sayin'?" I motivated as he nodded in agreement.
"Yeah, but I don't wanna be around your crew. I mean......them niggas weird." Larenz commented.
"Some are, some aren't but these 3 days will also let you have more closer friends, than rather hanging out with Wax, Stacy and Keisha." I remarked.
"Uh, I don't always hang out with them. You know I'm in a gang." He replied.
"But see, Dee doesn't want you to be a part of the gang anymore. This is the final chance you have before you're on your own." I said.
"Man....." Larenz muttered. I heard a door creak open and it was Dee holding a brown grocery bag with food inside it.
"Oh, hey y'all! Um, Nia, I got some mail from you. It's from......NYU?" Dee questioned in shock.
I had the same reaction as she did as I walked up to her. "It's probably for the interview I have with that offical." I answered as Dee covered her mouth in shock.
I ripped the envelope open impatiently, then read the letter.
"The offical is coming on Friday night." I said in a dull tone.
Larenz started laughing hysterically out of nowhere, as Dee stood there confused.
"Oh, why that face?" She questioned.
"I have a 3 day trip to go on, starting this friday." I nervously said as Dee's face changed.
"So, do you wanna be dummy and go on that trip with your friends or stay here and discuss with a offical about your future?" Dee questioned which made me speechless.
Well, that strucked me.