Page 37 of Intercept My Heart

“Fasho. Damn, that ass is fat as hell,” Tez called out when Brandie from my psych class walked by. I wouldn’t lie; her body was thicker than cold grits, but I tried not to look for too long. To be honest, the women here were gorgeous, but they couldn’t hold a candle to my baby. Dre swore that I was blinded by love, but what was wrong with that?

“I’m telling y’all now that I’m probably not coming home tonight. Nyeema sent me a video of her playing in her pussy, and I’m about to slide through as soon as I get a couple of drinks in my system,” Dre informed us. Since we had been on campus, everyone had been doing their own thing and exploring what Douglasville had to offer.

“Is that Drake over there?” Dre pointed out.

“Yeah, that’s him. Let’s go over there and see what that fool is up to.”

Things between us had been weird, but I tried not to trip about it too much. We were going through a major life change, and he also had some family issues to deal with. Honestly, I wasn’t sure how to comfort him because I couldn’t care less what happened to his shady ass parents. It caused a rift in our friendship because I wasn’t able to be there for my best friendlike he needed me to be. I tried to reach out to him, but he always found an excuse to get off the phone. Instead of being overbearing, I decided to give him his space until he was ready to talk. We had been friends for many years, so I wasn’t trying to lose him as my brother. At the same time, right was right, and I had to take my girl’s side in this situation.

We headed over to the bar first before we walked over to where Drake and his friends were. This was a party for any and everyone, so there were students from multiple campuses. It had been going on since yesterday, and there was a host of performers who shut the house down yesterday, so I expected more of the same tonight. Right now, they were having some kind of karaoke, and those mothafuckas sounded like hot garbage on the stage. I needed two shots so that I could drown out the sound of them screaming into the mic.

“What’s good with you, bro? I called yo’ ass last week, and you never answered the phone.” Dre spoke to Drake, reaching his hand out for a handshake. I noticed Drake hesitate and wondered what that was about.

“I must have missed it. My coaches have been on my ass lately, so I’ve been sleeping whenever I can. What’s good?” Something in his eyes was off, but I tried to ignore it.

“Yeah, that sounds like some bullshit if I ever heard it, but it’s all good. I was only calling to invite you to the party anyway.” I could tell Dre was bothered, but he brushed it off.

“How have you been, superstar? I see you managed to make a name for yourself out here too. All the folks can talk about is the great Money Sutton and how he’s gonna put Douglasville back where they used to be.” The bitterness in his tone couldn’t be hidden, but I let him slide because, with the cup in his hands, he clearly had gotten a head start on his drinking.

“The team is solid. I wouldn’t really call myself a superstar, because they are strong with or without me. As far as whatpeople are saying, you know I’ve never really cared too much about that shit.”

“Yeah, I bet.” Dre glanced at me, and I gave him a look to let him know I peeped the same thing he did. Something was definitely wrong with Drake. As a friend, it bothered me to know he couldn’t come to me about it, but at the same time, I had to worry about myself right now. College would either make you or break you, depending on how you carried yourself. We were all trying to get our shit together so we could set ourselves up for a solid future.

For the remainder of the night, we chilled and had a good time. Drake bobbed his head to music, making small talk with a few of his teammates, but he kept to himself for the most part. I thought about pulling him to the side later tonight, but I wasn’t sure if that would be the right decision because we were both drinking. Men tend to get more aggressive when liquor entered the equation.

“Hey, Money.” A pretty, light-skinned girl strolled her way through the circle to reach me. I didn’t recognize her, so I gave her a casual greeting.

“How are you doing, beautiful?” Shorty was bad as fuck, no lie. However, the way her ass hung from those shorts made me think she might not be my type. I wanted my girl to express herself how she saw fit but within reason. I didn’t want another nigga to be able to see certain parts of her body that were only made for my eyes.

“Damn, Ryla. Weren’t you just in my inbox a few weeks ago tryna suck a nigga’s dick? I see y’all hos don’t care who you fuck,” Drake spat with venom in his tone.

“Actually, you’re wrong. You’re the one who liked all of my pictures and was sending heart-eye emojis. The only reason why I entertained your ass was because my friend, Lola, said you were a trick, and I wanted a new pair of Gucci slides. Please don’ttry to play me like I’m thirsty because I’m far from it, and I’m not a ho. Lame ass nigga.” A few dudes around us burst out laughing, but I wasn’t trying to get in the middle of it. I didn’t know ol’ girl, and Drake was still my homie, regardless of the way he was acting.

“Sorry about that. I know you probably don’t have the best first impression of me, but I’ve been following you for a while. I came over here because I have a clothing line that I recently launched, and I wanted to have you wear a few pieces for advertising. I don’t have a lot of money, but I know how to cut hair, and I’m a beast in math and English if you ever need help with your homework.” Lil mama smiled brightly, showing her pretty teeth and lips. She passed me a business card as well as Dre.

“I respect the hustle for sure. I’ll check out your website and see what you have on there then get with you. I’m always down to help out black business owners in whatever way I can.”

“Thank you, and thank you for being so polite. You can tell a lot of these fools were raised without manners, and I hate that for them.” I knew that was a jab at Drake, but I chose not to respond. Instead, I nodded and watched her walk away.

“Damn, bro. Why did you jump down ol’ girl’s head like that? You were over there sounding like a bitter baby daddy,” Montez joked, making the group laugh, except for Drake and me. I never joined in on bullshit unless it felt right to.

“Nobody asked for your opinion. I don’t like these slut ass bitches. They always want to hop from one dick to the next, so I said something.”

“Yeah, but she wasn’t even on that type of time. You know I love you like my mama pushed you out of her pussy, but you did a little too much. Now she’s gonna be in the group chat talking about you. You scaring all of the hos,” Dre teased, even though I knew he meant what he said. Drake overreacted big time, andit had me looking at him differently. It reminded me of the conversation I had with Uncle Ro.

“Do you trust him?” We stood by his car as he got ready to head out. Since he wouldn’t be here for my graduation, Tootie decided to throw me a pre-graduation dinner so he could be a part of it. Everyone else was in the house besides the two of us, because he asked to talk to me alone.

“Who?” I questioned, inhaling the weed he provided me with. We’d only smoked together a handful of times because I also thought it was weird to do around him. Grown or not, he was still my elder, and I always tried to make sure I kept things respectful.

“Your homeboy Drake. Do you trust him?” His eyes peered at me as if he wanted me to really think about my answer.

“Of course. We’ve been boys since we were little kids. I trust him with my life.”

“Don’t ever say no shit like that. I don’t give a damn how long you’ve known a person. Never trust a soul with the most valuable thing you possess. People equate loyalty with the amount of time you’ve known a person, but those are the people who are more likely to do you the worst. I’m telling you from experience.”

“Are you saying I shouldn’t trust him?” It seemed like he knew something I didn’t, and if that were the case, I wanted to know what it was.

“One thing about us Suttons, we have a keen sense when it comes to people. We’re observant, and we can spot a snake from a mile away. All I’m going to say is that circumstances can alter a person’s loyalty. Just because you’re solid no matter what, it doesn’t mean everyone will remain the same. Keep your eyes open at all times, and don’t put anything past anyone. We’re in this sinful flesh, which means we are capable of anything.”

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