Calabasas, California
August
Two weeks later
"I went through everything so Nia wouldn't have to. She is really untouchable." — Naomi Cartier
—
The sun was shining brightly, peeking through Nia's large pink drapes. Nia is buried in such a profound sleep. One of her legs is from underneath the covers, her head is in between her large pillows and she's snoring.
Sir Chase quietly opens her door, peeking inside to see if she's awake while Saint Zeke is waiting behind him. When Sir Chase noticed that Nia is still in a deep sleep, he motions for Saint Zeke to quietly follow.
They're walking on their tip toes because their school shoes will make noise against Nia's light hardwood floors. Bending down at the edge of Nia's bed, Sir Chase whispers to Saint Zeke to go on the other side.
"When I say go, tickle her feet." Sir Chase gave out instructions.
Like a soldier, Saint Zeke nodded his head and did what he was told. Sir Chase waited a few minutes before giving out the command. "Go."
They both began to tickle her feet causing her to stir in her sleep. Nia groaned in annoyance, kicking at the both of them. "Oh my God! Y'all are annoying, get out!" She yells.
Sir Chase's raspy and rugged laugh was a contrast of Saint Zeke's light giggles. "You such a brat." Sir Chase shakes his head. "Ma said get up. You gotta take us to school, doofus."
"Kiss my ass, Shit Chase." Nia mumbles, pulling the cover over her head.
Sir Chase puts his hands into his pockets, unfazed by her tone. "I'm telling Mama you cussed me out."
Nia removes the cover, and glares at him. "Snitch."
Sir Chase smacks his lips. "Get up fo I tell Mama."
"Get out of my room!" Nia yells.
"Fine." Sir Chase shrugs, putting his arms around Saint Zeke. "Let's go Saint."
"You said this was gonna be fun." Saint Zeke glares up at Sir Chase as they exit Nia's room. "She mad at us."
"So." Sir Chase shrugs again.
Nia rolls her eyes as they close her door. She sits up, sighs softly and pulls the cover off of her body. Sir Chase will snitch and she didn't need Naomi hollering at 7 in the morning.
I'm too young for this.
She walks to her bathroom, yawning in the process. Today was her first day as a junior in high school. She always liked school up until this point.
Now she was just ready to get these two years over with. Looking in the mirror, she removes her bonnet and begins to do her daily hygiene upkeep.
She brushes her teeth, washes her face twice with water and black soap. In the other room, she could hear her door opening which meant that Naomi had made her way up there.
Nia could hear her heels clicking against the floor and she appeared in Nia's bathroom in seconds. Nia looks at her through the mirror while she continues doing what she was doing.
Naomi is dressed in a pair of high waist jeans and a white tank top tucked inside. A pair of Alexander McQueen Leopard print pumps were on her feet.
Her hair is bone straight, flowing effortlessly down her back and she looks like she's getting better with time. Nia can't see her eyes because of the oversized dark sunglasses that were on her face.
"Goodmorning." Naomi greets.
Nia bends down to spit and smiles. "Morning Mommy."
"Chase said you cursed at him?" Naomi lifts up her eyebrow while walking to where Nia is standing.
Nia discreetly rolled her eyes at her snitching, Mommy's boy of a brother. "Mommy, we both know Sir Chase is a compulsive liar."
Naomi laughs at the fact that it was true. "Mhmm." She's still unsure Nia is telling the truth. "I guess, Renèe."
"What time do the ugly kids have to be at school?" She asks Naomi, turning around to face her.
"Before 8:30." Naomi responds as she glances at the watch on her wrist. "You still have time to get ready and eat. I made breakfast, they're eating right now."
One good part about Nia starting her junior year was the fact she would be able to drive her self to school. All she had to do was get up and take her siblings to school on occasions.
Nia nods and turns back to her mirror. "My baby is growing up." Naomi pouts.
Nia looks at her, and turns on her shower. "That's what kids do, Mommy. You still have Jamila, Saint and Chase." She smirks.
Naomi cups both sides of her face. "You were my first. It's going to be harder to see you go soon. I'll probably be kicking them out myself."
Nia giggles, leaning more into Naomi and sighing contently as Naomi hugs her tightly. "I keep trying to tell them that you love me more." Nia jokes.
Playfully hitting her, Naomi pulls away slightly to look at her. "Don't be telling my babies that. Get ready." She taps her butt.
"Yes ma'aamm."
After Naomi leaves the bathroom, Nia takes a quick shower. Nia was professional shower singer, with or without music. She was talented, but singing wasn't her forté.
It took her about fifteen minutes to get out, and she wraps a towel around her body. Nia has a body most sixteen year old girls didn't have. Mostly because of track.
If she didn't run track, it would be different. All she does is eat and sleep.
Nia is a little on the tall side, standing around 5'7 with growing years still ahead. Her thick thighs were toned and so were her calve muscles. She has a flat stomach, no abs because she doesn't care for it.
She couldn't leave the chicken strips alone.
As she walks into her walk-in closet, she applies deodorant under her arms and turns on music. KIRBY'S Loved By You sounds through her bluetooth speakers.
While the young ones attended private school, Nia went to a public high school. Nia just didn't know if she could do the uniforms. Her baby sister, Jamila, always looked pretty, though.
Nia decides to wear a white striped buttoned down with a pair of high-waist, light denim shorts that stopped just above her knee caps. She tucks in her shirt, and purposely leaves the first two buttons unbuttoned. As an accessory, she wore a pair of red suspenders.
She looks in the mirror to see what shoes she wanted to wear with them. While she's thinking, she puts her braids into a high bun and slips on her watch. Reaching up, she grabs her tall, brown gladiator sandals.
Jamila walks in with her curly hair boucing around, snacking on a few strips of bacon. Jamila and Nia's relationship was more on the loving side than Nia with her brothers.
Chase and Saint terrorizes her and she often returns the favor. Jamila is the little sister she always wanted. Sir Chase popped up out of nowhere, hiding behind Jamila so the doctor wouldn't see him.
Jamila looks up to Nia, as little sisters usually do. She was her Naomi when Naomi wasn't around.
Nia turns around and smiles at Jamila. "Hey baby girl. You're all cute in your little uniform." Nia walks over to fix her collar.
Jamila was wearing a blue skirt, a white buttoned down that was tucked in with a blue cardigan that held the school logo on the right side. Long blue socks with a pair of low top, blue Chuck Taylors completed the look.
"I hate it." Jamila rolls her eyes, wiping her greasy hands on the cardigan.
"Grace." Nia kisses her teeth, laughing to herself and shakes her head. "Are you ready for your first day of junior high?" She asks as she sits to put her own shoes.
"Nope." Jamila responds, popping the p.
Nia snorts while applying lotion on her long legs. "Why not?"
Jamila shrugs her shoulders. "The kids are mean. They always talking about how dark I am and I'm tired of it."
Nia's face distorts into a frown then it turns into a mug. "Have you told Mom?" She asks.
Shaking her head, Jamila fiddles with her fingers. "I'm a big girl now."
Nia places her arm around Jamila, placing her finger under Jamila's chin and lifting her head up. "You're still her baby, just like me. Mommy will move heaven and hell for us."
"I can handle it." Jamila shrugs. "Sometimes it just makes me sad."
Nia shakes her head. "It doesn't matter what they say, Grace. They're just jealous that their skin isn't poppin' like yours. If they say something, tell Mom and I promise that she'll fix it. If you don't want to tell her, tell me because I fight lil kids."
Jamila giggles, and nods her head. "Deal."
"Good." Nia smiles at her, and kisses her forehead. "What Mommy cooked?" She leads the two out of her closet.
"Pancakes, bacon and eggs." Jamila says while following Nia to her makeup vanity.
"Chocolate chip??" Nia abruptly turns around.
"No."
"Aw man." Nia smacks her lip, and sits down to start on her makeup.
"Can you put some on me?" Jamila asks.
"Girl, no." Nia glances at her briefly. "ZeeZee is not killing me. You have to work your up to that. We can always play in it, though."
Jamila watched intently as Nia did her makeup. It didn't take long because Nia didn't use much. She puts on lip gloss, popping her lips and puts on her gold hoop earrings.
"Why you call him ZeeZee?"
Nia shrugs. "I've been calling him that since I was five. It just stuck with me, I guess. He still calls me Nia Bia."
Jamila looks confused. "He not yo daddy?"
"No, Grace." Nia chuckles as she lays down her edges. "My dad lives in Seattle, remember? The guy you call 'Ashy?'"
"Oh!" Jamila face palms herself. "That's where you go every summer?"
Nia nods her head. "Mhmm. Going to be hard to do that now since I'm going to be training more often."
Nia was still bummed out about not winning the 400m. That's her weakest race, and it showed. She didn't even place. At least she did win gold in everything else. Since she didn't place in the 400m race, she lost her anchoring spot to the gold medal winner.
Nia's stomach growls, and she widens her eyes. "Let me go eat."
Jamila skips out of Nia's room to go back downstairs. Nia grabs her messenger back to place across her body, places her wallet inside and picks up her phone and keys before heading out of the room.
This hall was for the kids, and everyone knew it because their pictures flooded the walls. They wasn't in picture frames or anything like that. Their pictures were part of the wall. Zeke took the pictures and came up with idea.
When Nia makes it downstairs, she could hear Naomi talking business talk which meant that she was on the phone. Zeke is drinking a cup of coffee, focusing on whatever was on his tablet. Nia approaches him from behind, resting her chin on his shoulder. "Morning ZeeZee."
"Chase, you see me on this damn phone!" Naomi covers the speaker on her phone, and glares at Chase.
Zeke looks at Chase before turning his attention to Nia. "Goodmorning Nia Bia." Jamila jumps into his lap. "And goodmorning to the Queen of the universe." He kisses her all over her face.
"Morning Daddy!" Jamila says in between her giggles. "You're gon ruin my hair." She frowns when he keeps going.
"Ah, I'm sorry baby." He chuckles, putting her down. "It's the first day of school! I know the gremlins are ready for a great day and most importantly, no more lazy kids around the house."
"Dad, you don't do nothing either." Chase says, stuffing another biscuit into his mouth. Saint and Zeke are dressed in long, blue shorts with white polo shirts with the school logo attached.
While Chase wore a pair of Blue Air Jordan 11's, Saint decided to go with a pair of Blue low top chucks like Jamila.
"I don't do anything?" Zeke looks shocked at Chase's choice of words. He holds out his hands to magnify the points he was about to make. "I put clothes on your back, I put a roof over your head, shoes on your feet, and give you the ability to chow down on that biscuit you're eating right now. I also love you unconditionally and make your Mom happy."
Nia listens as she fixes her plate and makes herself a cup of tea. "That's your job." Chase shot back.
"I also spend money on those game consoles you spend 90% of your time on, pay your AAU basketball, football, and soccer fees. Buy you those tennis shoes you like. Now, that's merely extra and I really don't have to do that. It's not a requirement like what I stated before. So what do you have to say about that?" Zeke asks before sipping his coffee and looking at Chase expectantly.
"You know, I talk too much." Chase says causing everyone to laugh. Naomi shakes her head at her son, even though she's still on the phone, she hears their conversation.
"Now that's something we can agree on son." Zeke smiles at him, and turns to Saint. "Don't be like your brother and me. Always putting your foot in your mouth."
Saint looks up at Zeke, his face distorting into a look of disgust. "Why would I do that???"
"It's called figurative language." Jamila states smartly.
"That's my girl." Nia gives her a high five.
Naomi sits Zeke's plate in front him and looks at Nia. "You need to eat fast because I really don't want you all to get stuck in traffic."
Nia is too busy chowing down on her pancakes. She just nods her head, sticking bacon in a napkin and placing it in her bag. "Ma, who's gonna take me to basketball practice?" Chase asked. "Nia got track practice."
"I will." Zeke answers and Chase nods his head.
"Who's gonna take me to soccer practice?" Saint speaks up as if they forgotten about him.
"Your mom since it's closer from where she's coming from."
"Where she coming from?" Saint asks.
"Damn, you ask too many questions." Zeke shakes his head.
After five more minutes, Nia puts her tea in a togo cup and rounds up the crew into her red Audi A7. Naomi set them back about two minutes because she was telling Nia to drive safely in forty different ways.
Zeke had to pull her inside the house. Nia jams her Beyoncé playlist, and Deja Vu sounds throughout the car. Nia sings along to the lyrics loudly, and Saint and Jamila were bobbing their heads.
Chase looks at the three with disgust. "Man, don't nobody wanna hear this!" He yells over the music.
Nia glares at him through the rearview mirror. "My car, my music!" She yells. "Where are your headphones?!"
Chase mumbles something under his breath, reaching into his backpack to take out his studio headphones.
Reaching into his pocket, he takes out his phone and pairs the two devices. Nia goes back to singing and focuses on the road once he tunes her out with his own music.
Suddenly, Chase pushes her head and Nia takes a deep breath. If she had of wrecked, it would've been his fault. She reaches her arm back, punching him in his chest. "Ow!" He rubs his chest, forgetting that she was strong.
"Stop fucking touching me you ugly ass duck."
"I'm telling Ma you cussed. Think you grown, and you not." Chase shakes his head. She looks at him through the mirror with a smirk on her face. She actually speeds up just so she could get him out of the car. They basically fought the entire way there.
"Slow down Nia." Chase kisses his teeth.
"I'll drive you into the ocean." She threatens him as she pulls up to the school. She drives up towards the main entrance, parking so they could get out.
"Ma gon kill you either way." He shrugs his shoulder, throwing his book bag over his shoulder.
Nia unlocks the doors. "Get out my car."
Chase snickers, leaning forward to place a kiss on her cheek. "I love you big sis."
"Mhmm, I love you too." She playfully rolls her eyes and gets out of the car. She bends down in front of Saint and Jamila. "I love you two as well!" They both hug her, and runs behind Chase to go into the school. "Have a good first day and text me if one of these ugly ass kids got something to say about you Grace!" Nia shouts so the kids could hear her.
The teachers and kids looks at her as they are walking inside the school. She stares at them with a yea I said it look and gets back in the car.
...
Before Nia goes to school, she stops at a gas station to get gas and snacks for the long day ahead of her. Those few strips of bacon wasn't going to last her.
Getting out of her car, she locks the doors, eyes the the pump number before walking towards the store. She notices a group of boys standing right at the door and she rolls her eyes.
Niggas ain't got shit else to do.
They look to be around her age or older, and her dark sunglasses allows her to be discreet in her glare. She could hear the whistles and cat calls, however, she ignores them and walks inside.
She immediately goes to the aisle where the sour worms and gummy lifesavers are. She gets two of each, knowing Adrian was going to ask her for some. Nia didn't share, but she made exceptions for her best friend.
She grabs two bottled waters and heads up to the counter. The cashier immediately begins to ring up her things. "$20 on 3." Nia says, taking out a twenty and a ten from her wallet.
"Ain't you that girl from the Olympics?" The cashier asks. Nia lifts up her head to finally look at the cashier.
She nods. "Yeah."
"Aye, you was beastin'. You the real deal."
"Thanks." Nia gives him a small smile to be nice.
"You got a man?" He asks. Naomi hears the bell sound which meant that someone else has entered inside.
"I'm not interested. Can you just give me the total so I can go to school?" She emphasizes, telling the strange man that she was underage and he was being creepy.
He eyes her, tapping a few keys. "$25. 76." He says.
Nia reaches to give him the $30 she'd taken out. "Keep the change." She says, not wanting to stay there any longer than she needed to.
The cashier takes the $30, and as she reaches to grab her stuff, he grabs her hand. "Damn bitch. I'm just tryna get to know you."
"Let me go." She raises her voice, snatching her arm away.
"Aye, nigga let her go." A strong, powerful and edgy voice says from behind her. The boy appears beside her, grabs her stuff and hands it to her. "Always bein' aggressive and shit." He glares at the cashier.
Nia looks from the cashier to the guy beside her. Average height, dark brown skin with a visible nose ring, Nia was surprised by her attraction towards him.
He's wearing a blue LA Dodgers baseball jersey, black jeans that's falling off his waist slightly, and a pair of white Air Force Ones. A blue bandana is tied around his head and he has two gold chains around his neck.
Nia takes the bag and he finally turns to look at her. "I'll walk you out. Them clowns out there just like this nigga." He points back at the cashier as if he's not standing there.
Nodding her head, he opens the door for her and walks out behind her. He sizes up the guys outside, daring them to say something to her.
When they make it to her car, he whistles and nods in approval. "Nice whip, shorty."
Nia puts her things in the front seat and closes the door. "Thank you." She says as she turns back to look at him. "For that and what you did in there."
Out of habit, he licks his lips and tilts his head to the side. The look he gives her makes her blush and look away. The motion makes him laugh to himself.
"Don't sweat it. I don't like that nigga no way. He a creep." He walks around her, glancing at her while he starts to pump her gas.
She studies him, and he catches her as she stares and smiles. "What's your name?" She asks.
"Shiloh. They call me Truth, though." He shrugs.
"I think I'll call you Shiloh, your name until I see fit." She leans on the back of her car. Shiloh laughs loudly, looking back at the pump. "I'm Nia."
Shiloh nods his head. "I know who you are." He looks at her. "I watched ya race. You did ya thang. But, I really know you because I be reading up on ya mom and shit. She like my idol."
Nia looks at him, shocked slighlty. "Really?"
"Yea, she really for us. Her people. I'm into activism and all that shit. Ya moms one of the few people with money who actually put that shit into good use. Most of these black rich muthafuckas forget about the small people."
Shiloh finishes, screwing her gas handle back and closing it. "She hasn't always had money, though. So, I guess that's why." Nia says.
"You right." Shiloh nods. "But, still, if they would do an ounce of what ya mom is doing, this country would be a better place."
"I'll tell her what you said. She likes to hear things like this." Shiloh folds his arms across his chest and moves out of her way. She glances at him before walking to the driver's side. "How old are you?" She asks.
"Old enough." He smirks, and she kisses her teeth. "I'm 17, ma. Don't snap on me."
"I'm not." She chuckles. "Well, it's nice meeting you Shiloh."
"You too." He nods. "And you be careful and watch out."
Before getting in her car, she looks back at him with a curious look. "What you mean by that?"
"I'm just sayin'." He shrugs. "You an Olympic champion now, at 16. That's a good and rare feat. But, a target on ya back now and this world is full of spiteful people. The world you once knew is no longer."
He takes a few steps back and walks away, back to group that he'd sized up earlier. She watches him, intrigued. He looks back at her as she gets in her car and drives off.
Shiloh hopes to see her again, but he didn't doubt that he wouldn't.