As you walked down the street, you squinted to see the crowd of people in the distance. You sighed, knowing that there was no way around them. You were going to have to walk through this group of people that were blocking the sidewalks, and you were sure their intentions would not be pure.
Michael's P. O. V.
"Man, you don't know nothin'! Get on outta here with that BS boy!"
"And you think you 'bout to catch something with yo dusty crusty as--"
"Man, Shalamar lookin' mother fuc--"
"Shalamar? You're the one that looks like James Brown on crack!"
I stood to the side as I watched the guys go at it. Truth is, I didn't know what I was doing out there. Trying to be them? I wasn't sure. At that point in time, I didn't know who I was. Yet for the time being, becoming someone like them seemed to be the best option---or the "coolest" option. It would help me fit in out here.
A slender girl walked through a group of us. One of the guys tried to grab her arm and she shook him off. He began blocking her path, trying to make her stop.
"Get out of my face!" She yelled at him.
"Oh baby, c'mon. Don't be like that. Don't be stuck up!"
Another girl walked by, and she was grabbed as well.
"Get outta here, man!" The young Latina exclaimed, pushing someone off.
"Check out that rear end!" One of the guys yelled, trying to grab her behind.
As I glanced across the street, I noticed a group of guys talking to a few police officers.
"So you've never been arrested?"
"No."
"Well, I have record that you've been to the joint. What were you in there for?"
The man being questioned hesitated.
"Murder."
"When to when?"
"'83 to '86."
The group I was with continued to argue.
"Don't touch my hair!" The one in the plaid shirt spit.
Looking back, I saw the group continuously harassing the Latina.
"Get out of my way, you here me?" She yelled.
The oldest of the group turned to me and began to shoo me away.
"What are you doing out here, boy? You don't wanna watch them! Go on home! All these boys out here chasin' and can't catch nothin'! Go ahead home, man! You don't wanna be hangin' with these hoodlums!"
I tried to argue back, yet there wasn't much I could say. I couldn't justify my presence there, because I had no reason to be there.
Shaking my head, I decided to comply and walk away.
As I slouched in my step, I passed an elderly man.
