Page 22 of Krist and Moanie
“Nah. I’ma go play ball. I’ll be back in a few hours.” He continued to get dressed and I just watched him. His feelings were hurt and his emotions were all over the place. I hated that shit for him, but at the end of the day he had to feel things on his own. I couldn’t experience life for him, no matter how badly I wanted to. I wouldn’t hesitate to feel his pain for him, shit, hewas my brother, my fucking responsibility. Seeing how affected he was had me wanting to pay one of the chicks off the block to go catch Malorie coming out of the house, but she was safe, because I wasn’t that fucked up.
Chapter 8
Moanie
Igot off early today and elected to spend the better half of my day with my mother for Sunday dinner, then the last half leading full on into the morning with Krist. He said he had something he wanted me to hear and I was excited about that. I loved to hear him spit, shit, most of all, I liked to hear him. Who was I kidding? I liked everything about this man, from his incessant smart ass mouth to the way he would bring me breakfast or dinner, depending on the time of my shift, without me even asking. He gave a fuck and it completely baffled me how I had gone from social media stalking to feeling like I had known him my whole life.
“You seem so giddy and happy, baby girl. You want to tell me about him?” my mother asked as she diced potatoes for the potato salad.
I smiled. “There’s really nothing to talk about. He likes me and I like him. We’re feeling one another out.”
“Hmm. Feeling one another out has you home less. Are you sure the correct words are ‘feeling one another out’? Because I can think of a few thing y?—”
“Mama, no. I do not want to have that conversation with you.”
She laughed and so did I. “So when do I meet him?”
“Meet who?” I heard Jeff’s voice before he entered the kitchen.
“Your sister’s new feeling friend. I’d really like to meet him.” She smiled then looked up at me.
“Yeen missing shit. She fucking with a Douglasville nigga. The same one I told her ass to leave alone. She isn’t gonna be satisfied until she finds herself in some mess behin?—”
“And there you go. All that negative shit. I told you once, and I’ll tell you again, my life does not revolve around DP and Bedford’s rivalry. Shit, at this point, neither does his. Why can’t you leave this hood shit alone, Jeff?”
“Because I’ma rep my set regardless, even if you keep forgetting where we fro?—”
“You ain’t repping no fucking set in here. If your sister is happy, let her be happy. Don’t go trying to stand in the way of that because I know she wouldn’t stand in the way of your happiness.”
Jeff smacked his teeth. “You ’ont get it, Mama. How I look letting my sister run around here with a nigga like that.”
My mama’s hand was on her side and she was shooting daggers at Jeff with her eyes. “DP or not, Bedford or not, I don’t give a damn how you’d look, because at the end of the day she is grown. As long as who she’s dating is not hurting her or this family, I don’t give a damn what set he reps and you shouldn’t either.”
Our mother had spoken and Jeff was pissed but he didn’t utter another word. He knew she didn’t play that, and no matter how old he was, he wasn’t crazy enough to challenge her. He could be whoever he was in the streets, but under her roof he didn’t carry that weight. We ate and made minimal conversation, all while he tried to stay mad.
“You really trust that nigga, Mo?” my brother asked.
The early dinner my mother had prepared was over and it was just him and me in the kitchen cleaning up after her.
I nodded. “I do.”
“But you don’t know him,” he countered.
“Neither do you.”
He sucked his teeth. “I know of him, Mo, and his rep ain’t good.”
“Would somebody say the same thing about you?”
He sighed, anger subsiding and worry shining through his eyes. “Yeah, bu?—”
“That doesn’t take away from how I look at you. Because at the end of the day you’re my brother and I know you in here.” I pointed to his chest. “I may not know all there is to know about Krist, but I know enough. Now can you trust my judgment and stop treating me like some lil naïve ass girl?”
He looked at me for a moment, allowing my words to settle. Then he nodded. “Aight, but if that nigga hurts you, nothing you or Mama says will keep me off his ass.”
I nodded. “Understood.”
I spent a little bit longer with my brother before I left to get dressed and ready for the rest of my night. I didn’t know what I was doing with Krist, but he said he had something for me to hear. I was looking forward to it, and him.
