Love Behind Bars

26

* Joaquin's pov*

Here goes nothing.
I knock on the door and step back. That's what Jamar always taught me. It's like a respect thing. Plus it doesn't look like I'm tryna run up on them.

"Hello? Who are you?" This Spanish woman answered.

"Are you Eva?"

"Who are you?"

"I'm Joaquin." Before I could get the rest of the sentence out the door swung open

"Come in." She smiles. I did as I was told. "I've heard so much about you. I've been with Jamil since we were damn near 16 and this this is the first I'm ever seeing any of his family members."

"He never mentioned you either so I haven't really heard anything about you." I shrug "but y'all are family."

"Damn right." I take a seat on the couch. "So you're 13 right?"

"Yeah. How old is Brandy?"

"8." He remembers something. "Oh Brandy. Brandy!" She falls down the hallway. "She's shy at first but then she doesn't stop talking after a while." I smile. I heard foot steps coming down the hallway.

"Yes mom."

"Come and meet someone." He comes next to her mom. She had curly hair that stopped at her neck. You know how some kids look more like one parent more than the other. She looks just like Jamil. Like he had Brandy by himself. "Brandy this is you Uncle Joaquin."

"Uncle? You have brothers?"

"No but daddy does."

"Daddy has brothers?" She looks at me. "So you know my daddy when he was a baby?"

"Not exactly but I knew him when he was 11." I was a baby but I still knew him.

"Was he away?" Away? I tilt my head to the side confused by the question. 'Locked up' Eva mouths. I shook my head.

"No. We used to do everything together. Jamar, Jamil and I."

"Jamar?"

"Your other Uncle."

"I gotta a lot of uncles." She smiles at Eva. "What's Jamar like?" Brandy walks over to me and sits next to me on the couch.

"He's mean and nice." That's how it's always been.
I've always been the nice one. I give people chances and try to understand.

Jamil doesn't do any of that. He's the mean one. Always has and always will be. He doesn't have time to listen to the bullshit.

Then Jamar is the inbetween. He'll be cordial but don't get it mistaken. You are not friends. But if he does have a friend he'll give you his last but don't fuck him over cause you'll regret it. He's just a very 'tough love' type of guy.

"What was daddy like as a kid?"

"We used to always have water fights and he'd always squirt water in your ears. Mar and I hated it but he didn't care." She laughs.

"please tell me another story."

I comb my brain for memories that didn't have stealing and the drugs and all that."

"When I was younger, anytime there was report cards and they were bad, I'd hide them. Don't do that by the way." I smile at Brandy but look at Eva who looked me like 'really' "but yeah I'd always hide it in the same place and Jamar would find it every time and tell me to do better and then lie and tell Jamil it was a good report."

"What would happen if he found out?" Her eyes widen.

"He never did." I mimic her and then we both gasped.

This is so cool. I'm an uncle and my niece and sister are pretty cool. I stayed for dinner but I left afterwards or else Lewis would've had my ass.

Lewis and I are cool. He really does look out for me as if he was one of my brothers. He just wants what's best for me.