𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐋𝐢𝐟𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐓𝐢𝐦𝐞𝐬: 𝐂𝐀𝐑𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐌𝐄𝐊𝐇𝐈

03. | 2 T R A I N

THE LIFE & TIMES OF
C . R . MEKHI |

{*author's note: Unless otherwise specified, these adds will be telling the story of Carter's life up until his murder. There will be flashbacks of Carter when he was in his younger years as well as Carter as an adult; I may skip around. Just so there's no confusion; flashbacks will be in italics.}

𝙲 𝙰 𝚁 𝚃 𝙴 𝚁 𝙼 𝙴 𝙺 𝙷 𝙸

The sounds of the tracks colliding with the metal of the subway car were all the passengers of the Q train heard as they sat, some quietly, others listening to music, and some sleeping after a long graveyard shift at work getting their pockets picked by pick pockets that waited for them to hit the snooze. Everybody knew that you never did something as stupid as that on the subway - - especially in the big apple but sleep was calling their tired eyes.

Then there was eighteen year old Carter who sat with his U.S. History binder in his lap drawing on a clean sheet of white paper when he should have been getting a head start on his homework. Beside him sat his younger brother Judas, sixteen at the time - - with his head resting against the window, sitting on the inside of the seat. Usually they'd sit further apart but the subway was crowded getting through Brooklyn this time of day so they were forced to share the seat like it was intended. Carter would have preferred to have his size twelve sneaker in the opposite seat but he got over it, knowing he couldn't have his way all the time.

"Son I'm telling you," Carter said as he sketched the eyes on the page of a woman whom he didn't think he knew but had remembered from somewhere, "I got fifteen dollars that Reggie is gonna get his ass handed to him tomorrow at lunch. You don't talk shit bout nobody ma' dukes like he was doin'. That nigga was straight goin' in on son's fam like that shit wasn't nothin today in gym," Judas licked his lips and laughed a little, "You saw that shit too."

"Who is that?" Judas said, looking out the corner of his eye at the woman that Carter was sketching on the page, "You always draw her but who is that?"

"Man I'ono know," said Carter as he shrugged passively, nodding his head to the music that Judas was listening to in his headphones, "I just saw her once I guess. Shit," he shrugged, "She could be anybody."

"You had to have seen her more than once," said Judas as the train slowed down to an approaching stop, "That shit is mad detailed for you to have only seen shorty one time - - or none - - you gotta know her," Carter shook his head that he didn't and Judas rested his head against the window again as the sound of the metal beneath them on the tracks screeched.

The doors opened on the train and inside walked a familiar face that caused Judas to slowly raise his head from the window and look at her. She walked in with a dark coat on - -heavy because it was January in New York and the winters there were crucial at about that time - - and her hand wrapped around the metal standing pole almost unknowingly erotically with a sweet caress that even she wasn't cognizant of as she made her way from the platform onto the train. Carter was busy looking down at his paper to notice what Judas was staring at but Judas noticed - - he always noticed her wherever she happened to be.

She always wore the same gold earrings, bamboo with her name in the middle of them and a necklace to match it and she always had gloss on her lips. From what Judas remembered about her - - which was pretty much everything - - she always wore a passion fruit scented flavor. He could remember sitting behind her in class and smelling it as she put it on in her small compact mirror waiting for the teacher to come into class during third period. Third period was what he lived for because that's when he'd see her everyday but that was all it was - - just seeing - - Judas was too timid, too shy to ever say anything to her besides the time that she dropped her pencil and he handed it to her and heard her sweet 'thank you.'