Page 37 of Dionysus
“You won’t know until you try it.”
“What I do know is I saw that goofy ass nigga on the side of my house climbing my tree. I wonder where the fuck he was going.Strike two.”
A lump formed in my throat. To know Chevy knew about Keith made me nervous because I still hadn’t said anything about him, and I was going on a date. It was coming up soon, my birthday to be exact and neither Chevy nor Zaria knew about it.
I didn’t have money to get what I needed for my birthday, and I wasn’t sure how to ask. I slowly walked around the counter and stood in front of him. He bit into his apple as he glanced at me. “What?”
“I need a favor,” I mumbled.
He took another bite of his apple and raised his brows, “I’m listening.”
I sighed, “Why you have to be such an asshole? Chevy, look, all I need is some time, and I will get out of your house.”
He stood towering over me. “I never said you had to leave. Just because I’m not prancing around this muhfucka smiling doesn’t mean it has anything to do with you. Zaria enjoys your company and—”
“What about you?”
He paused. I could see him swallow deep. “You straight.”
“So, you’re only tolerating me because your wife likes me. Got it.”
“I saw where you were living,” he blurted out.
My eyes shied away.
“Nah, we not doing that. You should never be ashamed of where you came from. It makes you who you are. All you needto know is that you will never be in that position again. Look, I may not seem like I’m the nicest nigga and that may be true, but I’ve been through shit, but how I am has nothing to do with you. I want you around. You’ve grown on me, and I couldn’t see you anywhere else, so relax. Now, what is the favor?”
I smiled. “Oh, so you’re saying you’re like my dad. Got it.”
He waved me off, “I’m not saying all that. Why? Do you want me to be?”
I shrugged. “Can you gain a new dad at nineteen?”
He laughed. “You a trip. I will be whatever you want. I just need you to tell that little nigga to keep his bitch ass on his side of town,” he said as his smile became serious.
“My birthday is in a few days and—”
He glanced at me, surprised. “What’s a few days?”
“Uh, two days.”
“Interesting. Do you need some money?”
“Yes. I will pay you back, I promise.”
He stuck his hand in his sweats and pulled out his wallet. He tossed me a black card, “Keep it. Spend smart. Don’t worry about paying me back. I want you to go to school.”
Him saying that reminded me of how I had gotten rejected from TSU and how his grandad showed up here. I went to head out of the kitchen, “Your grandfather showed up while you were gone.”
His head snapped my way, “Fuck did you say?”
“He came here looking for you. I don’t know why, but I got a feeling whatever y’all are going through is why I got rejected from TSU.”
“Wait you applied?”
“Yes, and they rejected me and, it’s ok.”
I didn’t even want to go into detail because the thought only made me feel like I wasn’t good enough. I made it to the stairswhen Chevy came around the corner. “I don’t know if you know, but you and Dio have the same birthday.”
