She’s the one who disrespected me. And she knows my standards. She knows the type of guys I prefer and fuck, so how the fuck she gonna get mad after hooking me up with some wildebeest? Every day we make fun of niggahs like Jimmy, trashing ‘em and dissin’ ‘em...and she had the nerve to bring one to my front door, talkin’ ‘bout he’s cool. Then she says I embarrassed her in front of Cell. Bitch! Who is Cell supposed to be first of all? He’s nobody—just some fool whose dick she sucked to get into a club.
Next thing I know, she’s up on me screaming and yelling, arms flailing like she wants to take a swing at me. Then I get up in her face, and that sets the beef off right there. I punch the bitch in her face and grip her firmly by her hair as we wrestle each other to the ground. I continue punching her in the face, and then we scratch and tear at each other. It seems like the whole neighborhood has come out, crowding around us to watch. “Yo, ain’t they best friends?” I hear someone in the crowd ask.
I’m wearing a pair of Sean John jeans and a blue Gap T-shirt. My Nikes are laced up tight, and my hair is swept up in a ponytail; so it’s hard for her to get at it. But her hair is loose, hanging down past her shoulders. I yank it, snapping the bitch’s neck back. Her nose starts to bleed, and I pin her to the ground and hit her some more.
“Stupid bitch!” I scream out. Sasha’s smaller, and I’m stronger, wilder and faster than she is. Nobody attempts to break up the fight until blood is drawn; somebody comes up and grabs me from behind, pulling me off of Sasha. A few niggahs cop a feel on me as we’re broken apart, but I think nothing of it. Now a few people are holding each of us as we threaten and curse at one other.
“You gonna get yours, bitch!” Sasha repeatedly shouts.
“Fuck you!” I reply.
“Get the fuck off me!” she yells. “I’m gonna kill that stupid bitch!” People continue to hold us back, keeping us from tearing into one another. I struggle fiercely, trying to free myself.
“Take her home!” I hear a woman shout. I see a man carrying her off my lawn and into the streets. He drags her down my block as she continues to curse and holler at me. Her car is still parked in front of my house. I hope she leaves it there; I guarantee that her shit will be demolished by tomorrow morning. But, oh well…someone got a hold of her keys and they drive her car down the block to where she’s being dragged away to.
“Stupid bitch!” I scream out one last time before going into my house mad and heated, slamming my door shut.
I look in the mirror and notice that the bitch scratched me over my right eye. Then I look out my window and see a crowd still standing out front, excited over what just happened. Some are even playing out how it all went down. I close my blinds and go to my room. Damn, she was my homegirl, one of my best friends. Now we’re against each other over some silliness.
Nighttime comes, and I cry myself to sleep.
4
SHANA
It’s been a week since my fight with Sasha. The day after it happened, everyone around the way knew about it. Word spreads around quickly in the hood.
Jakim came by the very next day after it went down. He asked if I was all right, like I was the one who got fucked up. I didn’t flip on him for once, and it was kinda cool to see him. Ten minutes after Jakim stopped by, Tyrone drove up. My heart skipped a beat when I saw his black BMW pull up with Jakim sitting outside on my front porch. I know they’re boys, but how would Jakim have reacted if he knew his man was coming to check me? I just sat there next to him as Tyrone came walking up. This is how it all went down:
“What up, Ty?” Jakim said. He got up and gave his man dap and a hoodly hug. I smiled and stared up at Tyrone. I played it cool. I knew he would.
Tyrone and Jakim began to talk. Then Tyrone asked me what happened with me and Shana. I explained. He laughed. “Yo, Shana, you be trippin’,” he said. I just sat there staring at the two of ‘em; they both were looking good. Jakim, he’s my sweetheart, but Tyrone is my freak thing. He can put a hurting on some pussy, I thought to myself. I couldn’t help but clock him even more.
Tyrone had a bag of weed on him and we went through that in no time. We sat around just smoking and talking for the next hour or so. My uncomfortable feeling was relieved when I started getting high; I forgot about my worries and chilled out. Jakim tried to push up on me with Tyrone still present. “You know I still love you,” he said.
Tyrone gave me a look. It was sort of unpleasant, but he didn’t say anything since he already knew the situation between Jakim and I. He appeared to relax a little and continued to smoke. It started getting late and Tyrone decided to leave, but I knew he wanted to say a quick little something to me before he left; I could tell by the look in his eyes. But I did-n’t want to have a private conversation with Jakim still around. He’s not stupid, I thought to myself.
“Yo, Ty, jet me to my crib real quick so I can pick up my whip,” Jakim said. His man dropped him off earlier. His Maxima was parked at his father’s house.
“C’mon, niggah, I should charge you for gas,” Tyrone joked. They both walked toward his car. I followed behind them. As Jakim went around to the passenger side, Tyrone gave me a look. He quickly whispered in my ear while Jakim was getting in the car. “I’ll be back around tonight. Be here.” He was smooth with his.
Tyrone then got in his car and drove off. I stood outside for a moment, collecting my thoughts, until the cool October wind picked up heavily, causing me to run back into the house.
My mother came home later that evening with Danny. They had just come from Kentucky Fried Chicken. She was staying over at his house when I had that fight with Sasha. I swiped a leg, two thighs and a couple of biscuits, and ran my ass to my room. Naja gave me a call. She wanted to know the deal between me and Sasha. Latish called, too, wanting to know the same.
Tyrone, just as he promised, came back around eleven that night. I brought him into my room where we talked for an hour, then fucked our brains out. He wanted to know if it was really over between Jakim and me. I told him yes, but that he still had feelings for me.
And that’s how that went down. Tyrone’s feelings for me have grown even more now. But he knows what it is between us—just sex. We even had a quick talk about it. We agreed that if our feelings got involved, it would fuck up everything. Tyrone continues to see other people. I do the same, but when we’re together, we both get what we want.
There’s a rumor spreading around the neighborhood that Sasha and a few of her girls are planning to retaliate and jump on me. But that’s a rumor I heard a week ago, and there still hasn’t been any action. And I haven’t seen her since our little incident, so I’m not sweating it. I’m just going on with my life.
My girls, Naja and Latish, are planning on going out to Manhattan to check out Club New York. I decide to roll out there with them and get my party on, too. My plans change when Jakim pulls up. He insists that I go out with him tonight. He says he wants to talk to me about something serious. I tell him yeah; I’m really in no mood to travel out to Manhattan anyway.
I remember how sweet he can be when he opens the passenger door of his car for me and carefully lets me in, shutting the door behind me. I inform him that this isn’t a date; we’re just hanging out together. It doesn’t mean that we’re getting back together. He agrees.
We stop at a Burger King and then he drives out to Coney Island in Brooklyn, where everything is closed down for the winter. He parks the car, and we get out to walk across the boardwalk.
We discuss old times, and I gaze out at the ocean, arms folded across my chest. I try to keep warm as Jakim makes conversation with me. “I’m surprised you’re not cursing me out,” he says.
“No reason to right now.”
“You