July 11th, 2023 | Tuesday

       With sweaty palms, Jojo's hand struggled to pick up the black phone on the hook in front of her. She was too shaky, her nerves beginning to get to her as she stared back at the face in front of her. The thick transparent glass that was sitting between her and her mother, separating them on each side, felt like it was ten miles long—pushing her farther away from who she loved most.

She willed herself not to cry, seeing her mother on the other side of freedom in a bland jumpsuit that took away from her beauty. "You look exhausted, momma," Jojo finally let out a breath, pulling the freshly disinfected phone up to her ear. Her eyes quickly dropped, having a hard time being in this position.

Olivia let out a short breath that could be heard on the receiving end. "Honestly, baby, I won't lie and say I'm not. I haven't been able to rest while not having the privilege to see you. I just wanna know that you are doing okay." She expressed, trying to catch the gaze Jojo was avoiding.

"Josiah." The stern version of her name being gritted forced her to lock eyes with her mother. The longer she sat there, the more her heart ached. She had no idea how to cope with what she was going through. She never thought the two of them would be in this position. "You know I love you, right baby?"

Josiah nodded her head, quickly wiping a stray tear that fell from the corner of her eye. "Of course I do, mommy, I don't doubt that." The tremble in her voice broke Olivia. "Besides the lack of rest, are you okay in here? Should I be worried for your safety?" She swallowed.

Olivia quickly nodded to put her mind at ease. Seeing her daughter stressed wasn't easy at all. "What about you, you've been staying on top of everything?" She shifted the conversation to focus on her instead. Talking about her situation would only make it more real. Her heart couldn't handle the damage and fear she was putting her daughter through.

Clearing her throat, Josiah fixed her posture. "Yeah, as much as I can, I was more so worried about your trial. It feels so surreal that this is over, and the outcome... I just—" she couldn't even finish at the thought. Her mother would never be getting out.

Olivia cleared her throat. "Right. Well, now that that's over, I need you to be preparing for college, love. Okay? Your life did not stop when I got put away, and I need you to continue living—the sky is the limit." She tried her best to encourage Josiah, who felt helpless.

"My life didn't end?" She reiterated, staring so deep into her mother's eyes she could see her soul. "It feels like it." She stressed. To her, it felt like the walls were closing in on her to end her life. Her throat was closing up. She couldn't breathe in a small compartment of space. At least, to her, that's what it felt like.

Shaking her head quickly, Olivia continued. "No, it didn't. Don't feel sorry for yourself because of my poor decisions, do you understand me?" She brought a finger to the thick glass. "I raised you to be a strong independent woman, and nothing that has happened within the last year alone should change what I instilled in you since a child. Be something, and don't make the same mistakes that I did."

"But mommy," her lip trembled, feeling more like a little girl rather than the strong woman her mother was preaching about right now. "You're my best friend. What am I supposed to do without you out here? I need you." She sounded desperate, knowing deep down her words wouldn't change the situation she was in.

"I need you to listen to me," Olivia redirected. "This is the last time I want you to come here. I'll be getting transferred to prison next week, and the moment I get a chance, I'll be giving you a call." The words broke her heart.

"What? You can't be serious."

"Does this face look like the one of someone playing? I'm serious as a heart attack. I've already contacted your father. Without my resources, he's who you need to depend on. I have no money left," Olivia explained while Josiah intently listened. "The only money you have left is from your personal account. Your college fund is for that only. College," she continued to go down the list of everything she needed to inform her about.

"Your car is paid off. Your father has agreed to allow you to stay in the empty room that is no longer occupied. His home is within distance of Daytona State, so it all works out, okay?" She just wanted her to get away from Chicago and make something of herself. To break the endless cycle that her family had warped her in.

Josiah furrowed her eyebrows. "I barely know that man. How could you make that decision for me?" She frowned.

Olivia could only shake her head. Her daughter just didn't get it. "And I never wanted that for you. You need a paternal figure in your life. Seriously. Just like I can teach you things he can't, it's vice versa. Don't try to spin it like he chooses not to be in your life. He tries. And I can't stand him, so you should know I mean it when I say that man loves the ground you walk on. Don't be dense enough not to accept that love."

Tough love seemed to be the only thing that would get through to her.

With silence lingering in the air, Josiah took a deep breath through her nose to regulate the heated feeling coursing through her veins. "Okay, I know," she accepted the fact that her mother was right. "It just sucks that I had to lose a parent to gain the other." She felt defeated.

"Why—why did you murder that man, mom?" It was no secret. Olivia didn't even fight the allegations. Her fight was a short one because she pleaded guilty the moment she was accused. She was a successful lawyer, she knew how things would work in her favor when she did a sloppy job and she wouldn't even waste everybody's time.

"He played with my livelihood. I warned him, and he didn't take heed," was all Olivia said to explain her actions. Not once trying to justify them. It was an overkill, stabbing him over a hundred times. She stood no chance in court.

Josiah's throat felt extremely dry. Somewhere in her mind, she hadn't fully come to terms with the fact that her mother was capable of such things.

"That doesn't matter though now. My time was given, and now I'll serve it until I'm old and brittle. You, though, will make better of yourself—" she paused at the announcement letting her know visiting time was almost coming to an end unfortunately.

Josiah's heart started to beat quicker, unsure when would be the next time she would see her mom. Especially with plans on being in another state. "My time is almost up, but listen, my lawyer will send you your flight confirmation. You have a total of three days to gather your belongings and say your goodbyes—and remember, I'll call you," she began preparing for her farewell.

Just then, Josiah's eyes began watering again. "I love you, mommy." She allowed her tears to fall this time. She would miss all the love her mother constantly provided for her. Although it would still be there forever, it would never be the same.

"Do not cry over spilled milk. I love you too, with all my heart. And don't forget, baby, every ending is just a new beginning." Olivia spoke her final words of wisdom before blowing a kiss and hanging the phone up, standing to her feet so she could will herself to walk away.

Josiah seemed to watch her up until she was out of sight, trying to regroup herself, but it felt impossible. Her best friend had just been ripped from her arms.

She felt loss.

        "Hello?" Josiah finally answered her phone after the constant ringing began to drive her insane. She had powered her phone off for a full twenty four hours, but that didn't seem to do anything but anger the caller even more. They didn't know where to find her, so they had to result in calling back to back.

"Well hello to you too Josiah, I was beginning to think I this number didn't even belong to anyone anymore." Mary quipped sarcastically. "I won't stand for any form of disrespect." She continued to rant.

Josiah slickly rolled her eyes, putting her phone on speaker before tossing it on the bed of the hotel room she was currently an occupant of. "My apologies grandmother, but these past couple of days have been very hectic and I'm working in a time crunch. I'm just now getting a chance to return calls." She fibbed.

Hearing a subtle hum let her know that her grandmother didn't buy it but would push past it like always because it wasn't her concern. "What's been so hectic. Your mother has been sentenced, a weight should be lifted." She remarked, and Josiah halted her movements. She took the time to look at up at Micah sitting there listening to everything.

Pursing her lips she decided to bypass it, experiencing enough stress for the moment. "I'm leaving for college today, grandmother." She willed herself with all her power to remain calm.

Her grandmother had thrown shade at her mother since the trial began. While she was well within her rights to feel how ever she did, it didn't mean Josiah had to like it, or accept it. Nineteen wasn't that old, but she was a legal adult therefore she felt how she felt, and was unapologetic about it.

"Wow, that was oddly fast. Did they even ship your mother off yet." There was another slick shot, and Josiah couldn't even acknowledge it because the thought of her mother made her knees go weak.

"May I help you? I'm busy." The slickness in her tone didn't go unnoticed, ultimately causing her grandmother to gawk at her over the phone. In her family, she was the head and superior owed much respect. Getting anything other than that never failed to amaze her.

"I guess I was just calling to see where your head was. You're moving on extremely fast though. Shouldn't you be grieving, or even in distress." Mary was on the other line carefully examining her bright red painted nails whilst waiting for a reply. It was crazy for her to say, considering she hadn't even been doing that herself.

Josiah picked her phone up, and swiftly pressed her thumb against the red end button—hanging up in her face. Quickly moving her fingers she made it her mission to block Mary from contacting her knowing she would be getting blown up at any second. "Fuck on." She muttered.

Josiah rarely cursed, only in rare situations where her regular vocabulary wasn't enough to get her strong felt emotions across. "Come on, why you hang up on ya' grandmother, G." Micah finally spoke up from his resting place on the bed that they had shared.

He had been watching her sort her things for an hour, she was silently counting down the minutes until they had to leave to drive her to the airport. They had spent the previous day getting all her things from storage, and setting it up to be transported to her new address.

"You don't even talk like that, so cut the shit." She snapped, unknowingly raising her voice until it was too late to correct. Sometimes she just couldn't stand how much of a try-hard her boyfriend had started becoming.

They had only graduated two months ago, and she turned nineteen only around almost two weeks ago. She had started school early so she was always the eldest in her grade every year. Micah scrunched his face up. "Fuck is yo problem, youn' even cuss." He retorted somehow managing to have the same hostile energy she just gave him.

"I'm sorry, I'm stressed out right now and you're asking stupid questions. You just heard the conversation so don't ask why I won't continue to let her disrespect my mother. Problem?" She raised her eyebrows.

Josiah was so soft spoken, with a natural rasp in her voice that allowed it to come off a little deeper than most people were used to—but in her opinion it only made her more attractive. It was distinctive, and it sent chills through people all the time, especially when she was speaking calmly.

Micah stood from his spot. "I apologize. I just don't think you should be burning no more bridges with the family you have left. In my opinion you shouldn't even be leaving here." He stood over her, placing his hands on her waist before letting them slowly roam to the back of her thighs where he left a squeeze.

"Understood. But this is what my mother wanted, and not to sound like a yes man or people pleaser but I would like to be able to say I tried for the sake of my love for her. I understand if you don't agree but this isn't for nor about you." She shoved his hands off of her, even his intimate touch couldn't make her feel better.

It actually aggravated her.

She felt like she was going through a crisis. It felt like she was restarting her life. And without hands on guidance from her mother, she was doomed.

They weren't lying when they said that your life was just beginning when you graduated.

—

July 15th, 2023 | Saturday

With closed eyes, Dice allowed his head to lean back against the headrest on the seat he was occupying, swimming in the loud-silence. The pill of his choice in hand, rolling between the pads of his index finger and thumb—contemplating on what he wanted to do with it.

He let out a breath before opening his eyes to look ahead of him. Sitting in his car, straight out ahead of him was nothing but the other cars parked around him for the current function he was in attendance to. For the life of him he couldn't grasp why he was there.

Shaking his head he quickly threw the half Percocet in his mouth, swallowing it dry. He knew his limit for tonight, and for once he would keep it in mind and abide by it. Retrieving his phone, he carefully pat himself down as if he was looking for something.

His mind grew blank, having no clue what he intended on finding. After a few more moments he decided to let it go, and if it came back then he would remember. That being said, he opened his car door allowing himself the room to step out. Once he closed the door he hit the lock before stalking to the house where the small but lit party was being held.

His cousin Jordan threw a party almost every other week, and with it being summer they grew even more frequent with people having much more time on their hands. No matter how much he could barely stand it, he always showed up. Pulling the door open, the echo of loud music playing through the home was like a slap in his face.

He licked his lips allowing himself to walk through the door frame, closing the door before he made it across the foyer. He didn't need to stop to know exactly where he was headed. His feet smoothly carried him across the room towards the kitchen where there were many bodies soliciting in conversation.

"Finally, niggas thought yo ass wasn't coming no moe'." His cousin Jordan was the most outspoken out of the trio that consisted of the two of them, plus his best friend since third grade—Trevyon. Dice felt his head grow a little dizzy, and shook his head knowing it was the affect of the drug he had taken.

Dice used his fingers to rub the stubble growing on his chin, he mostly lacked any facial hair besides the dark strip of fine hairs above his lip slowly forming into a mustache. "Real shit, I was finna flake this time, a nigga tired." He rubbed his full palm down the side of his face.

"Stop poppin' them pills and maybe you wouldn't be so drowsy and more aware. Pill head." Jordan's words didn't even cause Dice to flinch. It was a frequent thing for him to think that his words were doing something to make him kick his habit.

Bringing up his middle finger, Dice proceeded. "Fuck you, dick eatin' ass nigga don't worry bout what I do." He picked up the pack of bright red solo cups. Retrieving one, he then went for the half full bottle of the brown liquid substance labeled Hennessy.

Removing the top, his eyes lowered as he started steadily pouring the liquid into the cup, quickly satisfied when he hit the halfway mark of the cup. Putting the cap on the bottle, he picked up his cup bringing it straight to his lips. Taking a sip, it satisfied his quench for the brief time period. "Where that nigga Tre."

Now that he was satisfied and feeling good, he was in search for their third amigo. The three of them were very close and had been for over a decade. You never really saw one without the other two. "Roun' this bitch somewhere. You know his sista came yesterday." He reminded Dice.

"Oh yeah." He was instantly made aware of the circumstances. Tre was in charge of helping his little sister make some new friends before her first semester of college started. Moving to a new state in her situation had to be an awkward reality to face.

Dice didn't really see how a party would be the best place to find a solid friend, but it wasn't his place to voice that to his best friend. It was a sensitive family matter and he knew what boundaries not to cross.

"Yeah. Let's go find his ass PK, he ain't far from here fasho." Jordan suggested, calling his cousin the second nickname he acquired due to the first initials of his first and middle name. Leaning from the granite counter that Jordan was comfortably stationed on, he walked out of the kitchen in hopes of spotting Tre while Dice wasn't too far behind.

The entire house was filled the the stench of marijuana smoke, alcohol, and different fragrances that people were wearing. The different smells were giving Dice a headache as he struggled to move through the sea of bodies that were packed in the main room of the home. His eyes were quickly shifting around in search of Tre.

Feeling the tap on his lower forearm brought him to a halt. Glancing down, to give his attention to the person who was asking for it—he realized it was Lilah. She was often vying for attention, but unlike everybody else he found it amusing to give her the time of day. An ego boost of that matter.

It wasn't anything bad about her. She just carried a title that made people see her as someone who had sex with many people. He wasn't one to judge. He wasn't the most innocent person in the world, and as far as he knew she had never done anything ill towards him. He knew first hand one person in particular didn't feel the same about Lilah. "Wassup?" He had to raise his voice over the music in order for her to hear him.

"Where you been?" She questioned while Jordan continued to walk away from them on a hunt to find Tre. Her hand was slowly trailing down his arms over to his torso underneath his shirt. Her finger tips grazed his smooth skin feeling the thick hairs on his stomach.

Pulling his bottom lip between his teeth he took the time to let his eyes roam over her body. The fitting dress she was wearing helped emphasize her shape that he had no shame taking notice in. As thoughts circulated in his mind, he brought his red solo cup to his lips letting what felt like an elixir glide down his throat.

The burning sensation made him scrunch his face up a slight bit. "I jus' be movin round, why, waddup." He didn't give a straight forward answer because they didn't have the type of relationship where she could be concerned about his recent whereabouts. He knew better than to give privileges like that because she would feel more entitled than she actually was right now.

"I miss you." She retorted with her eyes penetrating him. His smooth, warm porcelain skin that mimicked the color of caramel along with a blemish free face blessed her eyes. She couldn't help but to lust over such a gorgeous man. She sometimes thought it was so impossible to look the way he did.

With his calm demeanor, and his low eyes, it made hard not to intensify her attraction. "So watchu trynna do bout dat." He replied slickly. He wasn't the type to beat around the bush. He wouldn't lie and say he missed her as well—although he was sure she was dramatizing her feelings to seem more appealing.

He would though accept the gratitude in any way she decided to give it to him. She calmly licked her lips, "I can show you right now if you want to." She offered dropping her hand to slip into his free one where she squeezed it. Her eyes danced across his face trying to read his thoughts.

He slowly shook his head, "Nah. Not right now, you betta den that. Get up wit me afta this though." He didn't even have it in him to let her disrespect herself like that—even if he didn't reciprocate her feelings. He wasn't heartless.

She simply pouted at his request. This was the reason alone that she felt something so strong for him. He respected her to his best ability under the circumstances of their arrangement. She failed to realize the bar was already set low considering the position she had in his life. "Alright. Can you bring me home then after this?"

Tucking his lips into his mouth he nodded his head. "Yeah, I'll hit you when I'm leaving baby girl." His deep and raspy voice didn't even make it sound corny like she stressed all the time. Instead it caused her underwear to dampen at the mere thought of having him all to herself.

The entire house was dark , blue lights being the only source of light the crowd had. It had switched from the song soak city—to a slower song, Complicated by Nivea. It seemed that the DJ, was trying to set a mood and people were playing right into it, hugging up with their significant others or friends.

He rolled his tongue over his bottom lip as he leaned into the wall he was standing next to, watching Lilah walk away from him. His eyes were scanning for Jordan who he was sure had found Tre by now. In his search, his eyes landed on the most beautiful girl he had ever seen.

It was like everyone around him seemed to be going in slow motion, before everybody in the room besides her eventually stopped. He felt dizzy, his head was spinning but the world was still. It confused him.

A part of him told him to go up and approach her. He had to know who she was. Dressed in a brown two piece fold over set, it gave him the opportunity to see a section of skin on her torso. Her belly button was blessed with gold jewelry dangling from it, and the dip in her lower back that led to her plump butt.

What stood out the most were her subtle pieces of gold jewelry that seemed to mesh well with her deep rich dark cocoa colored skin. It wasn't much he could see due to the lack of light, but the features that stood out had him captured one way or the other.

He could tell her lips were glossy since they would shine every time the light hit her. He wondered if it was weird to include how it looked like she smelled good. In his mind he was quickly contemplating approaching her, he'd never seen her around and he didn't know if he would again.

He didn't know if he wanted to loose his chance.

Pushing himself off the wall, the confidence he carried never failed him—but he was halted when he felt a soft hand tugging on his. "Hey, I know it's only been like ten minutes but it's just a lot going on. Can you please take me home?" Lilah was back in his face, asking him a favor.

He glanced back to where he was headed, and noticed who he had his sights set on, had moved. "Fuck," He mumbled under his breath. Realistically, at the moment he couldn't even drive. "Ian had a second to sober up lil mama." He replied to Lilah.

Watching her pout made him want to do something to fix it. "We can sit in the back room til I'm cool to drive." He offered watching her face light up in relief. From her facial expressions, he could tell that was their best bet.

"Come on."

I planned on writing this book out then uploading, but commentary while writing is much better to know which direction to go.

Josiah mom locked up, and she already got a man... damn

Dice already want that , what we think of the main characters?

Y'all know I love this trope but I'll twist it around this time to give yall something different.

Try to get this to like 100 votes for a new chapter, and we can get this show on the road.

MYA OUT🫡