• • •

"That shit don't even sound right." Travis complained as he listened to Brielle tell him why the option he picked was wrong.

"Well tell her to come explain it to you 'cause I'm not finna keep saying the same shit."

At this point Brielle figured she might as well be the teacher since Ms Evans never actually taught anything. They mainly worked on computers or in workbooks, doing self-checks at the end to see what was right or wrong.

"Damn you rude today." He observed, "You must be into with ya' nigga or some?"

"And that concerns you how? You can't even get 10 questions in a row right, but you in my business."

Over the course of two weeks, Brielle and Travis had begun to talk more. It never leaned towards personal stuff, only jokes.

So she was surprised when his voice dropped and he told her, "All this shit look the same to me."

She had a small understanding of what dyslexia was but she'd never met anyone who had it. There was an uncomfortable pause before she responded with, "So why you didn't say anything? Now I feel bad."

"Ion know why. Shit it don't stop me from doing nothing I'm tryna do."

Brielle pointed at the book, "It stops you from reading."

While anybody else would've been offended, Travis found it funny, "You wild man. You can't even say nothin' 'cause you ain't in regular school either."

"For some other stuff though."

Travis turned the page in the workbook, "I probably would've graduated high school, but I wasn't even in that hoe. I was locked up for a minute."

Once again taken by surprise at the forthcoming nature of him, Brielle listened while Travis explained to her how he ended up doing 5 years in jail for taking a charge for his cousin.

"So he was 'posed to take half of that, ya feel me? So we would've both did 'bout 3 and been out quicker." Travis explained, "But he ain't wanna do no time and that shit fucked up to me. 3 years ain't shit, and you can't do that for me?"

"I'm not spending a second in jail for anybody so I can relate." Brielle shrugged.

"So don't do no shit that could end up with you in jail then. That nigga wanted to come with me, just to be a bitch when shit went left."

"Maybe he wouldn't have done well in prison. I heard they be doing lil stuff in there:"

After she said that, she made eye contact with Travis, waiting for him to catch on to what she was saying, "Bri Ian never fucked no nigga and don't disrespect me like that again."

By how loud Brielle was laughing, Ms Evans concluded they couldn't actually be working, "So I'm assuming you two can pass the exam then?"

Stifling her laughter, she resumed helping Travis read the paragraphs.

• • •

Grace anxiously wrung her hands together, pacing back and forth in the living room as she waited for the mail to run.

She pretended to have a cold so she would be home to get the mail, preventing her mama from opening the package that was designated for her.

The mail usually ran around 2 but he was late today, making Grace all the more nervous.

"Why you not in the bed?" Monica asked, making Grace jump in surprise."

"I was reading on this doctor website that walking makes you feel better."

Monica shook her head, "Them doctors don't know what they talking about. This tea will make you feel better."

As she was taking the tea from her mom, Monica looked out of the window and saw the mail man walking to put their mail in the box.

Grace noticed too, "I'll get the mail."

"You not going out there and you sick. Sit down and I'll get it."

It felt like her heart was about to beat out of her chest as she watched Monica go get the mail, sorting through it, "You got a package."

"I know." Grace nearly whispered, "Thanks."

Before handing it over, Monica read the address of who it was from in confusion, "What are you ordering from a clinic?"

• • •

It was quiet in Alisha's house, exactly how she liked it to be when she wasn't at work.

The only person home was Darnishia, and she knew to be quiet if she didn't want to have an argument with her mom especially with her being in a bad mood because of Brielle.

Looking across the room at her sister's bed, she shook her head, not understanding why Brielle insisted on doing bum shit.

Even before her dad died, Brielle and Alisha's relationship was strained. It was like she purposely did things to annoy her mother, and her dad, Jerome, would hardly ever correct her actions, just telling Alisha to let it go.

That was one reason Darnishia didn't care for Jerome. He acted like he ran the house, treating everybody who wasn't Brielle as less than.

She was always given special treatment, save for the times he showed special treatment to Darnishia, and it wasn't attention she wanted.

Walking up the stairs, Darnishia dug into her purse to find her key. She was happy to be out of school, and even happier to know that no one was home.

As soon as she pushed open the door, that happiness vanished.

There sat Jerome on the couch, his foot against the end table, watching NFL Network. His gaze went to the girl by the door, seeing her slowly close it and begin her walk to the room. His truck was at the shop, which was why it seemed as if no one were home.

Darnishia tried to calm herself down, telling herself that he'd never actually done anything to her, and her fears of him weren't justified.

Except they were.

It was proven when he rose from the sofa, pausing outside her door to knock, "Nisha?"

"Yeah?"

"Open the door."

Swallowing hard, she only slightly opened it, "Huh?"

Jerome held up a blunt, "You smoke?"

It didn't take a saint to see the inappropriateness in him asking a teenage girl to smoke with him.

Darnishia shook her head, "No."

She went to close the door back, only for his hand to stop her, "Try it with me."

From there, a routine began. She wasn't sure why she never told her mother, or why she never told anyone. She just dealt with it until one day she didn't have to anymore.

The way Darnishia saw it, the money that Alisha put towards her was an apology, a repentance of sorts, for what he'd done to her.

To see Brielle cry over her father as if he were a good man annoyed her, and drove an even bigger wedge between their relationship.

Jerome shouldn't be mourned. He shouldn't be regarded with anything other than disgust, and that still wasn't close to being enough.

Him lying in that casket on the day of his funeral made Darnishia believe that sometimes people do in fact get their karma.

And death is what he deserved.

• • •

"Niggas cheat Bri." Hakeem stated as he adjusted on the bed, "I don't 'cause I'm a man of the Lord, but other niggas do."

She rolled her eyes, "When was the last time you went to church?"

"I drive by there everyday. I make sure to nod my head outta respect."

Surprisingly, Josiah wasn't the one who cheated this time. It was Hakeem's other friend Corey, and now Brielle was convinced the whole circle were cheaters.

"Then why don't you have a girlfriend?" She asked while placing the bottle of leave-in conditioner down.

He met her eyes through the mirror, "What answer you want?"

"Huh?"

"I'm tryna see if you want the actual answer, or if you want me to tell you that I was waiting on you."

Brielle started coughing violently, having choked on her own saliva. When she caught her breath she shook her head, "Dude just answer the question."

"I don't see a point in being in a relationship. My mama cook for me, I can wash my own clothes, I make my own money. All she can offer me is pussy and Ian gotta be with nobody to get that."

She would've preferred the other answer,

What he said made her feel a type of way, and now she thought maybe she was reading what they were doing wrong.

While the cuddling could be seen as intimate to her, he probably just wanted someone in the bed with him. He hadn't made any effort to be anything more than two people who slept in the same bed.

It shouldn't have been any shock to her anyway. Brielle was almost certain that he knew enough of her past to the point that he wouldn't even think of actually being with her.

Had Hakeem thought about it, he would've just lied but he thought of Bri as a homeboy of sorts, so he wasn't concerned with lying to her about why he didn't do relationships.

At her silence to his answer though, he saw that was a terrible decision.

Before he could address it, a phone call from his mama took all of his attention, what she was saying far more important than his conversation with Brielle.

• • •

🌚 now that you know why darnishia doesn't like bri, do y'all still feel the same way ab her? or do you think what brielle's dad did should have no affect on their relationship?

also, i rlly like trav. if this wasn't a hakeem & bri book, it'd def be bri & travis.

thanks for reading 💕