Bailey is a teenage girl just trying to live life and make some fun memories along the way with her friends, but what happens when a handsome boy appears next door?
Key is just your local boy who found himself a little too deep in the game, but wha...
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Saturday, 3:10 am
"I am very disappointed in you two." My mother said, sitting at the kitchen table. I was beyond embarrassed.
"I'm sorry mama," I said.
My mom rubbed her forehead and sighed. "I understand, y'all have feelings and hormones and urges. You can't just act on these things." She said, before taking a sip of her wine. "There are consequences. Are you guys at least using protection?"
I looked at her in shame. I didn't want to answer the question, but I'm guessing the face I made told her everything.
"Keyaun, what would your mother say?" She asked Key, whose face dropped.
"With all due respect, Ms. Nette, I'm grown. I don't care what my mother would say."
"And that's another issue in itself. She's seventeen! She hasn't even finished school yet."
"Maaa. I'm not dropping out of school just because I'm having sex." I told her.
"Are you on birth control?" She asked.
"No, but I can get some, mama. We haven't even been doing all that."
"That's not what I hear when I walk through the front door. Y'all in my house fuckin like y'all own it. Key, you know Jah jah has to sell the house. Where y'all gonna live?" My mother asked, which caught me completely off guard. I looked over at Key, who looked at me with guilt written across his face.
"What is she talking about?" I asked him.
He looked at my mother as if she shouldn't have said anything before turning his attention back to me, "My mom is forcing a sale on the house so they can split the money and be done with my grandmother's assets."
"Why? All this time Ms. Johnisha's been there. Why now?" I asked, confused.
Key pulled on his hair nervously for a minute before responding, "Because she don't want me over here wit you." He confessed.
"Why? What did I do?"
"Because bein witchu made me weak." He said standing from the table. "I told you her plans Bebe, and she not gon quit til everything is the way she wants it."
I stand up and walk closer to him, "But you don't have to listen to her. You're your own man. You can have a future. We can have a future." I told him, on the verge of tears.
"Not when us being together hurts the people around us. If I leave you alone, Jah jah can keep her house, you can go off to college and make a life for yourself. Find you some big head boy who's going something going for himself."
"Why are you sayin all this?"
"Because, we live two different lifestyles. Everything I have is because I sell dope. I have a record. How am I supposed to provide for you? Flipping burgers?" He scoffed. "Imma get outta here. I'm sorry again Ms. Nette." He said before walking out the door.
I couldn't believe what I was hearing. Once the door shut, I realized he was gone.
I turned to go after him but my mother spoke, "Bailey, don't." I turned to look at her and the sadness on her face told me she wasn't upset with me anymore. "I taught you better than that. Don't ever chase after a man."
"Mama, I love him," I confessed, as my voice cracked.
"I know, baby. But he's being honest with you."
I sat down at the table and cried.
•••
I woke up the next day around 4 in the afternoon. I checked my phone and had no messages from Key, at all. Jazzy and Araceli were in the group chat going back and forth about nothing.
When I got up to go pee, I heard my mom downstairs cooking and watching tv.
"Hey baby. How'd you sleep?" She asked me when I walked in the kitchen.
"Okay."
She nodded, "Dinner will be done in a second. I made smothered pork chops."
I gave her a small smile then went into the living room and laid on the couch.
I guess I started dozing off again because I jumped out of my sleep when the doorbell rang.
My mother came from the kitchen and opened the door and in walked Araceli and Jaz.
"Hey, Mama Nette," Araceli said.
"What y'all doing here?" I asked when they came inside with duffel bags.
"Sleepover. Come on." Jazzlynn said, grabbing my hand and pulling me upstairs.
We got upstairs to my bedroom, and Araceli shut the door. "So what the fuck happened B?" She asked me.
"What you mean?"
"Your mom called and said you needed some girl time. What happened?"
"Key...broke up with me I guess." I shrugged.
Their eyes went wide so I told them how my mom caught us in the act and then everything after.
Araceli sat down on my bed looking like she was deep in thought. "Well, he's not completely wrong. His delivery was fucked up, no lie, but girls like us don't really mix with guys like him."
"But we just talked about all this the other day. We were going to go to college together, and start a life away from his family bullshit."
"Maybe he thinks you're too good for him." Jazz chimed in.
"Why even come back into my life just to do some shit like this?" I said aloud, talking to myself more than anything.
