Chapter 11
The Monday of Thanksgiving week was just like any other day leading up to a holiday.
Traffic filled the streets as people ran errands before their families arrived in town.
The grocery stores were crowded, and every restaurant seemed packed right after lunchtime.
The weather had finally started acting like fall, too.
Gray clouds hung low over the KC skyline, while cold wind blew leaves across the pavement.
Heavy drove with one hand resting on the wheel, with his phone perched on the portable mount. His truck faintly smelled of Cyren’s perfume. He’d just dropped her off at work and was headed to the community center. It’d been a few weeks too long since he’d stopped by.
Every time he thought about the building, he thought about Gramps, then Dre, then all the pressure that came with finally doing something with it.
The shit felt heavier now that both of them were gone.
Like if he failed, he wouldn’t just be disappointing himself.
His eyes drifted to the incoming FaceTime call from his mama.
“What’s up, Ma?” he answered.
Lisa’s grinning face appeared first. Her hair was wrapped in a silk scarf, and she wore oversized glasses low on her nose. Mesha’s face popped up a second later from another square while she sat at her dining table, eating breakfast.
“There goes my son.” Lisa immediately smiled. “You finally decided to answer that phone, huh?”
Heavy chuckled. “I was sleep when you called yesterday and forgot to call you back.”
“You always sleep,” Mesha cut in, “or ignoring people’s calls.”
“I ignore yours, specifically,” Heavy corrected, teasing.
Mesha rolled her eyes, dramatically. “See how he treats me, Mama?”
“Mhm. Leave her alone.” Lisa laughed. “Where you headed?”
“To the center,” Heavy answered.
That caught both their attention.
“The community center?” Lisa asked, sitting up straighter.
“Yes.” Heavy flicked his right blinker on, turning at the light. “I got some contractors meeting me up there. I’m thinking about finally getting everything started back up after the holidays.”
A heartfelt smile appeared on Lisa’s face. “Really?” she softly asked.
Heavy nodded once. “Yeah. I think I’m ready.”
Truthfully, he didn’t know if ready was the right word, but he was tired of letting the building sit untouched while life kept moving. His talk with Cyren in the kitchen had also given him an extra boost. He was tired of walking around with Gramps’ dreams hanging over his head unfinished.
Lisa slowly shook her head with pride written all over her face. “That’ll be a beautiful way to start the new year off.”
“That’s what I was thinking,” Heavy admitted. “Get it running by January if everything goes smoothly.”
“And it’ll give you something positive to focus on,” Lisa gently added, her voice carrying that motherly tone that always made him feel younger than he was.
She was scolding him the way she knew how before taking it a step further. Lisa knew her son was in the streets, but he was also a grown man. All she could do was give him advice and continue praying for him. The same way she did Mesha.
Heavy knew his mama meant well. She also wanted him to focus on something other than his grief. Besides simply surviving. Life would drain him and pass him by if that was all he did, and she didn’t want that for him or Mesha. Lisa didn’t even want that for herself.
Mesha snorted loudly. “Or something besides the girl he’s been booed up with.”
Heavy immediately frowned, then chuckled. “Man, here you go.”
Lisa’s eyes widened with interest so fast that it made Mesha burst out laughing.
“A girl?” Lisa repeated. “Wait a minute. What girl?”
Heavy regretted answering their call now.
“Ain’t no girl,” he muttered.
“Oh, please,” Mesha said, after finishing a bite of her waffle. “He was just over here the other day, grinning all into his phone. It’s somebody.”
Heavy shook his head while Lisa smirked, waiting for him to give her some details. But, of course, he didn’t.
“What’s her name?” she asked.
“Mama…”
“What is her name?” Lisa repeated.
Heavy sighed, dramatically. “Cyren.”
Lisa instantly smiled. “Oh, that’s pretty.”
“Mhm,” Mesha agreed. “And she’s real cute too.”
Heavy’s eyes tightened at the corners. “How you know what she looks like?”
He knew for a fact that Cyren didn’t have social media anymore, so either Mesha had done some deep investigating or she’d sneakily gone through his phone.
Mesha instantly smirked, already knowing he was about to be irritated. “Because she called while you were over here, remember? Her picture popped up on your screen.”
Heavy frowned harder, then recalled her bringing him his phone while he was feeding KJ.
“You nosey as hell,” he said, shaking his head.
Lisa laughed, but couldn’t help but defend her. “Well, it was on the screen.”
“Right, Mama. And you secretive as hell,” Mesha shot back without missing a beat. “So now we’re even.”
Heavy chuckled under his breath. She was always going to get the last say, like the little sister she was.
“Well, what’s she like?” Lisa asked, amused.
Heavy glanced out the windshield for a second before answering. “She cool.”
Mesha almost choked on her apple juice. “Cool? That’s it?”
“Right,” Lisa added.
“What y’all want me to say?” Heavy asked, laughing now.
“I don’t know. Something besides that. I haven’t seen you smile like that in a long time. She gotta be something special.”
Heavy cleared his throat, hesitating briefly as he thought about what he felt comfortable sharing with them.
Honestly, Mesha wasn’t wrong. Cyren had brought a softness back into his life that he hadn’t realized was missing, even though he didn’t know he needed it.
It wasn’t just about sex or company. It was about peace.
Their conversations weren’t focused solely on money, or survival.
Cyren was different from what he was used to. Her softness and optimistic spirit, even with her grief weighing on her, were admirable. She made him crave more of her, but also more of life.
Lisa immediately noticed the change in his face. “You really like her,” she said, softly.
Heavy faintly smirked. “Yeah... I can’t even lie. I’m feeling her.”
Mesha gasped dramatically. “Oh, my gosh. Did y’all hear that? He admitted it.”
“Man, shut up.” Heavy laughed.
“Nah, this is serious,” Mesha continued. “Because usually, women are just ‘cool’ and ‘straight’ to him.”
Lisa shook her head with a smile. “Leave him alone.”
She was just happy to hear him talking about someone. The last time he brought a woman around was before he went to prison, and she was now married with a few kids. Lisa felt it was only right to be in his business.
“What does she do?” Lisa questioned.
“She works at a bank,” he answered. “Real sweet. Got her head on straight.”
“Awww,” Mesha cooed. “Look at you. I love this for you, brother. For real.”
The corner of Heavy’s mouth slightly lifted. “‘Preciate that.”
“Mhm. You’re welcome,” Mesha said, standing from her chair.
“So, when do we get to meet her?”
Heavy barked out a laugh. “Slow down.”
“Oh, now we gotta slow down,” Mesha teased. “But you over there playing house and shit.”
“Lamesha,” Lisa scolded.
Mesha slapped a hand over her face. “Sorry, Mama! It slipped.”
“Yeah, and I’ma slip a belt over your ass. Don’t play with me.”
Heavy chuckled, knowing his mama didn’t play that. “Ain’t nobody playing house.”
“Mhm.” Mesha grinned. “Not yet.”
Heavy shook his head again while turning onto the street leading toward the community center.
Despite all the teasing, the conversation had made his morning.
It’d been a long time since talking about a woman felt light instead of complicated.
And hearing his mama laugh, while Mesha joked around with him instead of talking about grief or stress, reminded him how much better life could get.
Lisa noticed how he’d dazed off, so she pulled him back into the conversation. “I’m proud of you.”
His eyes flicked toward the screen. “For what?”
“For trying.”
That one word carried more weight than everything else she’d said.
He’d been trying to heal while trying to build on something that felt impossible, all while striving to become more than the streets expected him to be.
It was a lot to handle, but knowing his mama was proud was all the motivation he needed to keep going.
Heavy swallowed hard through his emotions. “Thanks, Ma. You know I’ma always give it my all if nothing else.”
“And that’s all you can do,” Lisa gently assured him.
The conversation eased up after that. Mesha began discussing Thanksgiving plans and if Lisa was finally coming into town sooner, like she had promised. Lisa complained about airports during the holidays while Heavy listened, chiming in here and there as he drove through familiar streets.
By the time he pulled up in front of the community center, the contractors were already there, walking around the parking lot. Heavy stared at the building for a second before climbing out of his truck.
The place still looked solid despite sitting untouched for months.
Heavy still had the lawn care people come out and take care of the grass, but the inside hadn’t been maintained.
The sign across the front still read Mr. G’s Community Center, but it was so much more than that.
It was a legacy. It was years of Gramps dedicating himself to the people he loved and a community that had been deliberately deprived of services.
The exterior needed some work, fresh paint, and a few repairs, but the structure was still solid, much like the man who built it.
“You there?” Lisa asked.
“Yeah. Just hopped out.”
“Let me see. Turn the camera around.”
Heavy flipped the camera while walking toward the entrance. Lisa smiled once the building came into view.
“Oh, I know he would be so happy,” she whispered.
Heavy looked down for a second, swallowing around the sudden lump in his throat.