“Stop acting like a little bitch and sit down so I can tell you the results of your test.” Over the years I became relaxed with mixing Jeremy’s life with mine. He knew I had brothers, but he didn’t know much about them until he started middle school. Once they met him, they treated him like he was their little brother.
“I know I ain’t got nothing. Every month Ma Clover gives me a large box of condoms from Sam’s Club.”
“Oh, word. Then why did you test positive for Gonorrhea?” It became so quiet that you could hear a feather touch glass.
Jeremy’s slanted eyes bounced between Atlas and me. Mouth hung open, no longer whining over the pain in his chest from me shooting him. Sometimes staring at him for too long became painful. He grew up to be the perfect combination of his mother and uncle. Tall like Odom with his narrow build. Dark skin and a head full of hair like his mother. His facial features were a combination of them both.
Odom’s eyes and the rest was his mother.
“Fuck man. I knew that damn girl was lying.” He started pacing. Atlas and I shared a look before laughing. “Yo, this ain’t funny man. That bitch burned me.
She infected my dick.” We laughed even harder.
“First of all, I don’t care what the girl did to you. Don’t ever call her out her name.” I reprimanded.
“Second of all, next time won’t be a joke. Stop having unprotected sex, kid. The least of your worries is being a father for eighteen years. You might get something you can’t get rid of.” Atlas walked away to answer my door.
Jeremy turned to look at me. Poor kid looked like he wanted to cry. “Wait, was he joking?”
“Yes, he was. Stop having unprotected sex, JD.”
“Don’t listen to none of the bullshit they’re telling you.” Cassian spoke up. He’d been sitting on the couch so quiet I thought he fell asleep. “Fuck these hoes and strap up. Beautiful women are heaven to the eyes and hell to the soul. Fucking leaches. That’s what they are. They’ll suck everything out of you until you have nothing left.” He gritted walking out.
Damn.
At the time when Noelani approached me about going after Cassian, making him fall in love with her and then break his heart by telling him that she was married to Dominique. I thought the plan through several times. Even sat down with Mitch and we talked about it. He and I both agreed that it was needed to get Cassian in the right headspace we needed him to be in to take over certain parts of the business.
It hurt to see him broken down over her betrayal, but it worked. Every once and a while he played around, that part of him never changed. What did change was his old ways of being unpredictable and careless. Now he started thinking instead of acting with no vision. Turning coldhearted made him demand respect and run the cartel how I needed him to.
“Uncle Amell,” Ariana ran full speed into my arms. Seeing my nieces and nephews always brought a sense of joy and peace. If JD wasn’t at my house, then I had them with me.
“What’s up, pretty girl.” I swooped her up in my arms.
Wrapping her arms around my neck, she laid her head on my shoulder. “I missed you. Did you miss me?” Out of all my brothers kids Ariana had the strongest hold on my heart. I loved them all the same but something about my four-eyed princess tugged at the strings of my heart. “I always miss you, Ari. How was school?” “Good. Oh, hi JD.” She waved over at him.
“What’s up, Ari.” Jeremy moved to grab his keys but I snatched them up before he could. “Sit down. I’m not done talking to you.”
“Ari, let’s go. Uncle Amell will come by the house for dinner.” Atlas knew he was about to have a struggle on his hands to get her to leave.
Before she could start pouting, I put her down and promised to see her later. “You know what tonight is, right?” She pushed up her glasses shaking her head. “We get to watch new episodes of Chopped. Go ahead with your dad and I’ll be over so we can watch it, okay?”
“Okay. Don’t take too long.” She kissed my cheek before leaving out with her father.
“Now, back to you.” I glared at JD. “The next time I get a call about you fucking in her house I’m going to do more than punch you in the chest. Ask Cassian. He’ll tell you that my aim is A1.”
Swallowing, he nodded his head. “Okay, I won’t do it again.” I didn’t believe him.
Several questions sat on the tip of my tongue, but I backed off. Observing JD I just had this feeling something was up with him. He kept getting caught no matter how many times his grandmother hated it. This had nothing to do with me spoiling him. Yeah he had a brand new Charger and keys to my downtown condo. His pretty boy looks made him a chick magnet. He had so much more than the other kids in his neighborhood, yet he felt like he had to do his dirt where he knew he shouldn’t.
“I’m about to head out before I go to Young’s house for dinner. You ready?”
“No!” I stopped at his sudden outburst. He tried to hide the frantic look but I caught it. “I-I mean can I hang with you and come back here for dinner?” I made a mental note to revisit his outburst.
“Ah, yeah. You can go.”
“Thank you.” He relaxed and closed his eyes.
His behavior was…odd.
While I ran my few errands, he talked about where he wanted to go to college next year. He’s smart, he took after his mother. When he graduated next month he’d be graduating with his associates as well. Morehouse, Cornell, and Howard were his top three choices and he got a full four-year scholarship to all three. The decision on which one was up to him. I asked why he wanted to go so far and he said that he owed his mother to reach for the stars.
I had nothing but respect for him. When he reached thirteen, I told him the truth about his mother, father, and Odom. I put off the conversation long enough. He deserved to know the truth but also confessing my wrongs, I never wanted him to look at me different.
“Can I drive your Chevy to prom?”
That surprised me. “I’m surprised you want to take my car. I just knew you were going to ask Young or Cassian to drive one of their expensive cars.”
“Nah, I like your Chevy. What did you drive to your prom?”
“I never went. Prom nor Homecoming. My focus wasn’t on anything outside of regular school and taking care of my brothers.”
We sat in a comfortable silence before he spoke again. “Thank you, Amell. For everything. You didn’t have to take me in and treat me as yours.”
“You don’t have to thank me. I’d do it again. Also, your birthday is coming up. Have you decided what you want or what you want to do?”
“Can we go to Black Beach?” What did JD know about Black Beach?
“Uh,” I scratched my brow. “I can take you to the strip club if you want to see some ass and titties, JD. No need to go to Virginia for that.”
He frowned like I insulted him. “I’ve seen every stripper there is that work at all the Miami strip clubs.” I forgot that he hangs with Cassian sometimes. “I wanna go to Black Beach.”
“Fine. Use my card to book it.” My phone vibrated with a text as we pulled back up to my compound. It was several pictures from David of Krishna.