I zip up my coat and pull on my hood as I get off the bus.
In South Gate now that it's November it's kinda dead around. Weirdly quiet, extremely foggy, I mean, the old heads don't wanna sit on their porch cause the temperature and no one's willingly coming out this early unless they've got work or school. SouthGate got one Highschool and one middle school,
that's also crammed in with an elementary school,
which everyone goes to, that's if you aint flunk out.
3's my parents lucky number. They started dating on the 3rd, got married on the 3rd, had 3 kids, all 3 born years apart from the last. Ke'Andre, Kaiyana, Kyrie. Daddy always says,"He's still with us, like a sidewalk weed, no matter how many times you pull em, rip em, dig up, they keep coming back. Yeah they took his body–"
"But they'll never take his soul" I mumble quietly to myself.
People used to called us "The KKK" given me and my siblings names all start with K,
Daddy lost a bet with mama before we were born so he only got to pick our middle names.
At the time I hated it, hell we all hated it, but as bad as it sounds I kinda miss it. There aint no more jokes about us being the three K's since now there's only two of us left. Kyrie and myself.
It's been three years since Ke'Andre died, we don't celebrate his death date though. We only celebrate his birthday. To my family, celebrating the day a person died shows who killed them that they took their spirit too. It's hard to keep believing that he's still here with us though, especially when things are starting to change. If Ke'Andre was here he would've been knocked some sense into Tyson.
I've known Tyson since I was literally in diapers. We've always been tight, shit, I think he's the only guy Daddy'll put up with. If he knew we were dating though, I'm sure that would've been thrown out the window. He'd say he'd kill Tyson, but I know he'd kill Unc even though that's his boy, because I told him before I told Daddy.Obviously that's not my uncle, that'd be on some weird incest mess but, before I even knew what the word meant I've always been "Niecy" to him, blood don't mean nothing when folk's always got your back. He had me and Tyson fresh as hell before we was even crawling, iced out in little chains, and flyass baby Jordans, yeah it was a waste since we'd grow out of em in like a month but he and Daddy aint care.
"Yo Kay!" A loud voice shakes me from my thoughts as I then notice I'm already at the school. I look to the right of me and of course it's Alexis running at me at full speed, we've been friends since my freshman year, in South Gate, a white girl sticks out like a hard piece in your mashed potatoes, but nobody trippin, she cool most of the time til you start fucking with her.
Swear I ain't never thought her 4 '11 self could throw hands but last year at homecoming she whooped some senior's ass for talking shit at the salad bar, yeah she got suspended and couldn't go on any trips for the rest of the school year, but man was it funny looking back.
"Hey, you straight?" I backed up a bit before she knocked me over or stepped on my shoe.
She practically yanked me down and grabbed onto my arm, she always did this, the first few times seeing it people swore to hell and back we were a couple, my mama even confronted me about it after she heard one of our neighbors talking about "Kaiyana and that lil' special white girl."
One thing about old heads they'll never say gay, ever. You can be special, funny, sweet, touched, but they'll never say gay, their favorite being to say someone "got a lil suga in their tank."
Mama wasn't on that judgmental mess though, neither was Daddy, they just wanted to set the record straight. Course I couldn't tell them about Tyson but I did clear the air that me and Alexis are JUST friends.
"Yeah, yeah I'm cool, hey um.. You know about Marquis right?" She twirled her hair around her finger She always does when she's about to drop something big. S
hit, every girl and they mama knew about Marquis, he's single handedly keeping Plan B in business
"Yeah, what about him?" Glancing over at her, she's got this stupid look on her face, it's a mix between a smile and a nervous laugh. That's something she also does every time she's about to drop some life-changing news on you then switch the subject like it's nothing.
"I know you lyin.'""We're going out! Well.. not going out, he says we're 'talking'" Mhm, every girl in the gate talks to him and then by next year they've got a baby on their hip and he's talking to his next pick up.
"Alexis.. You know good and well he's not gonna hold anything down" I can't help but slightly groan when I say it. She's my girl, when shit hits the fan, no matter how many times we argue, I can't never say she aint been here for me, but this..
I can't stand beside her on this one.
Marquis got 4 kids and we're juniors, one freshman year, two sophomore, and his last girl just had her baby before the school year started. I would know.
My Yaya, that's what me and Kyrie call our grandmother since she always said it made her sound old and she's still "fine as a Georgia peach" her words not mine, been telling anyone who will listen that Marquis been sending girls down to the clinic in droves this past summer, and if even if you weren't listening, she still told you.
|"Look look, I know what people say,"
Ain't nothing to say, the proof is in the pudding
"but he's a sweetheart, really, look."
Alexis pulled out this little dainty chain with a gem heart pendant in the center, it'd take a fool to believe it was real and I'm pretty sure she can tell what I'm thinking based on her smile slightly fading.
"I know it's fake, but I mean, at least he's trying?" Alexis may be my best friend but this girl was as delusional as I don't know what.
"If he was trying he'd get you the real deal, no? He got all them real chains round' his neck and on his wrist but can only afford to get you sum' out a gumball machine? I call bullshit." I can tell I hit a nerve.
"He ain't playin' me okay!" her grip on my arm tightens then quickly loosens as she calms back down "Look.. I'm sorry Kay, it's just.. I really think he's tryna lock in this time."
Another thing about Alexis, she's been chasing after him since middle school, so I heard, and from what I also heard, he's been keeping her at arms length ever since. But, If she wants to play around, go ahead.
I'll be on standby when she needs some sense knocked back into her.
"I hear you, as your friend I wanna be happy for you. But also as your friend, I wanna slap the hell outta you for messing with him." I shoot back with a laugh as I, lovingly, shove her head away while she tries to push back I can clearly see she's a bit annoyed that dry dissin' her lil boo thang but she gives me a little nudge back as she sucks her teeth and lets out a little huff laugh while we keep walking to our first hour.
Me and Alexis slink off to the back of the room before we're marked late. We get to class about a minute before the bell rings since I spend a good chunk of our time trying to open my locker. Yeah, even now as a junior I still don't know how to open it, I mean half the time it's jammed anyways.Swear, this year that's the only thing that hasn't changed. The smell of mothballs and the usual black coffee that lingers in the room, the desk that's got a few words carved into it and gum stuck under it. The chairs that feel like it'll only take the slightest shift in movement before the things disintegrate under you.
Our first hour all three of us, myself, Tyson and Alexis, we all got the same homeroom class, Ms Novara. That woman been old all our life, she's like the humanized version of a cockroach. She lives right down the block from Tyson, used to watch us when our parents did lil double date nights, one thing about her, if you don't know something she'll make you feel so stupid you actually get motivated to learn it.
She teaches US History, I don't know who felt like that'd be a good idea. The woman's a Black Panther through and through. Her fro might be faded out to a bright white now but she's got picture on picture of her at protests and riots on almost every surface of the room. Hell she's even got a picture of herself with Rosa Parks.
Don't expect to get anything on her test right though. She'll go an entire quarter talking about one thing but once she pull out those end of quarter tests, bet you aint a single thing she'd been talking about will be on those papers. I get she's tryna teach us about our history but man she's got my grades starting to look real funny since she aint teaching us the expected material.
I hate getting bad grades, but I ain't never been one to stay all organized and study y'know, I'm not a bad student though... well, my grades were kinda rocky freshman year, but swear, I made a comeback. Hell I had to or I'd be locked in the house all summer.
The first thing I notice when I get in class though, Tyson isn't here. He's never been one for getting to class on time but my God for the past 2 months he's become one of those "surprise guest" students that'll be gone most of the day and show up last hour.
This lil junior year glow up really pumped up his ego as if his head wasn't big enough already. Mr Moneybags act like he can just show up and do whatever he want now that his pockets hanging lower than they used to, that shit piss me all the way the hell off, I still love him to death, just someone needa humble his ass.
Admittedly, Tyson was a lil ugly duckling back in freshman and sophomore year. Hey, I cant judge though, I wasn't kind on the eyes either, short, pudgy, braces and glasses, yeesh. But now, if I do say so myself, I aint half bad, I got my braces off over the summer, still can't see worth a damn though and I sure as hell ain't slim. Tyson doesn't care though, he always saying something about "what's a cake if it ain't sturdy?" To be honest, I don't know what kinda metaphor he's tryna make but it's cute. He's cute.
As much as I hate this school for the drama, I can't help but love the familiarity of it.
Ms Novara started attendance right as that bell rang like she did every morning, and just like every morning she couldn't help but stop and pause when she got to my name before saying "Ms Washington, I see you're in your brother's old seat, he was a good boy you know." And just like every morning, I nod with a soft smile, I hate that she does that.
Ever since his death I've just been "Lamont's lil girl's that hadda find her brother laid out like that." The charity case. It's been three years since it happened and people still look at me like those little dogs they play on the commercials asking people to donate anytime I do anything that slightly mimics my brother.
I miss him too but damn.
Alexis slightly glances over at me, silently asking if I'm alright, which I give her a little smile, I'm fine, I can think about Ke'Andre, just can't talk about him.
"You ever think she'll stop pointing it out?" I set down my stuff and take a sip of my water, Alexis pauses for a minute before slightly laughing and laying her head against the desk.
"Not unless she gets dementia and forgets it ever happened."