Page 27 of Dionysus
I quickly stopped her. “No, we didn’t. Dio and I accepted our friendship. Did I like him? Yes. Do I love him? Yes. Zaria, I’m trying not to think about him because every day without him here, deep down, I don’t believe he’s coming back, and I’ve accepted that. I’m just trying to find some normalcy in my life.”
She wanted to dig in more, but decided against it. I had turned to leave, and she stopped me again. “If you feel that way, then give that boy a chance. I know he’s been sneaking into my house. Don’t let Chevy find out, but if you’re looking for peace, that is something only you can give yourself. Whatever you choose, I’m here for you. Samara, you’re like a daughter to me. Chevy and I care about you, and we want nothing but the best. Dio would want the best for you; otherwise, you wouldn’t be here.”
With that, I walked out the door. I knew Zaria and Chevy were trying, and maybe she was right. A smile eased on my face as I hurried to my car, hopped in, and sped off. It took me thirty minutes to get to the other side.
I saw a burger place I wanted to try, and stopped there to grab something to eat before I hit up Keith to meet me. The place was packed. There was a group of people who looked about my age hanging out. I exited the car to walk inside and spotted Keith hanging amongst the crowd. When his eyes landed on me, he walked around a few people and approached me. “Sup, pretty girl.”
“I was going to text you,” I smiled.
He gave me a cute grin. “Oh yeah?”
“Yeah.”
Keith’s phone rang as we were talking. He placed the phone on speaker when he answered. “You are receiving a collect call from Kareem at Toussaint State Penitentiary. Please sayyesif you accept this call.”
Keith’s eyes landed on me. I could tell he wanted to see if I would judge him, but I knew everyone had a backstory. It was just a matter of me learning his.
“Yes,” he said.
When the phone connected, the guy came in rapping:
I been getting to the bag
Making this money solo
Doin’ what I gotta
to up my account total
I’m my mama son
So I do this for my bro bro
I stay on the grind
Like a lesbian porno
We gotta get the bread
No more top ramen for us
We tryna have wagyu steaks
Flawless diamonds untouched
I'm on the rise so getting money’s a must
And if you standing in our way
then little nigga good luck
Keith smiled proudly. Although this person was in jail, he still admired him. “Yo, my brudda,” Keith called out.
“Sup little nigga. You like those rhymes? That was from the top of the dome.”
“Yeah, that shit was fire. How you holding up?”
“Shit, making it. I have a hearing coming up and shit. Nigga been in here putting words to the paper and staying out of trouble so I can get back to the Cove. You good? Bop and Bleek treating you well?”
