I'll Ride For You, Homie

t w e n t y - s e v e n

January 1, 2000

Delontae

I unlock the door to my house and walk in with Arique trailing behind me around nine a.m. I hear DeArique whining irritably as soon as I walk in the door. I follow the sound of his voice to the kitchen where Ericka has a bottle in a pot on the burning eye of the stove, rocking DeArique in her arms. Bugg is sitting at the kitchen table eating a bowl of oatmeal. Bugg is the first to see me out of the two of them.

"Pops!" He hops up and runs to me hugging my legs. I pick him up and kiss all over his face. Ericka turns around with shock written all over her face clinging to DeArique like I'm a stranger after her baby.

"Wha'sup lil man! You been bein' good?" I hug him to me tightly.

"Yeah. Untle Weasa said you was going away for a long time. Mommy did too." He hugs my neck tighter. "Are you going away for real, pop?" He asks sounding sad.

Damn, my little nigga sounding hurt is fucking me up. Then he just confirmed that his mama and Weasel is fucking around. Not that I doubted Arique, but the confirmation from my son solidifies it. "Yeah lil man, I'ma be gone for a lil minute. I'll be back eventually though."

"For a long time?" He pouts, eyes watering as he asks me.

"Yeah, lil man. For a long time." I sigh pulling him to me even tighter. "Don't cry, lil man. It ain't like I'll never get to see you again." I sway him lightly, they same way I would when he was a newborn waking up in the middle of the night.

"I know, pop. But you said a long time. I'ma be yo' size the neh' time I see you." He sniffles, gripping my neck in a tight, squeezing hug.

"I know, that means you gonna have to remember all the stuff I've talked to you about, aight?"

"Yeah, pop." We squeeze on each other for a little while longer. I fight back my own tears from seeing my son so heartbroken about me having to leave. I don't know if I'm more sad about me having to leave him for more than a week, or the fact that he is so torn up over me leaving. I'm sure it is a helping of both scenarios. "You take care of your hygiene yet?" He shakes his head, which is still buried in my neck. "Go on and handle that then, Smuttie. I'll be here when you get back downstairs." I place him down so he can get ready for the day ahead of him, and he runs off to do so.

"What's up, Ericka? How you doin'?" I play nice, acting as if I don't know about her fucking with Weasel. What I do want to know is, if she helped him set me up. "I missed y'all." I wrap her up in a hug, mindful of my other son that she is holding. I'm surprised he isn't wailing right now. Let that had been Smuttie, I would have been able to hear him from the driveway.

"I missed you too, babe." Is her reply. Ericka's voice is steady and calm. All the shock from earlier, left almost as quickly as it appeared. "Bubba, I told you that he would be out in no time." I hear a genuine smile in her voice, and no response from him. "It was some small shit right, baby?" she asks in a voice that only allows my ears to hear. I shake my head in response.

"Naw, I wish. They caught me with some shit." I tell her pulling back from the hug. "I signed a plea deal, they only let me out for the next two days. I want to spend it with the people I'm closest to."

"Are you serious?!" Ericka pulls back from me looking worried. "How much time did you sign for?!"

"Eighteen," I exhale after I tell her. I don't want to specify whether it is years or months in fear of her running her mouth to Weasel.

"Eighteen what, Delontae?!" Her face holds a look of horror right now. I'm not going to even lie, I kind of want to laugh.

"What you think, Ericka?" I answer her question, with a question to avoid answering truthfully.