Tryouts #2
“Fuck y’all. I think I peed a little. I just got my permit,” she whined, shifting gears as we followed the back streets.
“Coulda fooled me. Left them niggas in a haze, both times,” I remarked.
Ty-Ty turned in his seat, just as Peanut slapped my chest and snapped his fingers.
“That’s it! Haze! Man, I know Turk gon’ be mad as fuck he missed it! You fasho caught–”
I elbowed Peanut and shook my head. Ty-Ty turned the radio up as I whispered, “She barely holding on. Do not tell her she killed them niggas.”
Peanut glanced up at her before nodding his head.
Poor Haze was trying to breathe through her mouth.
But she was thurl as fuck. She didn’t stop until we were at the underpass by the riverwalk. Ty-Ty loved getting cars from there, so it was nothing for him to hotwire another car, torch the wrangler, and have Peanut drive us back to the Birch after we watched it burn for a while.
It was quiet as Peanut drove us back to the Birch. Autumn was in the back, wrapping a bottom strip of Ty-Ty’s shirt around his arm. The adrenaline was seeping out of me, and I sagged lower and lower into the passenger seat.
“You think the others are good?” Ty-Ty asked as we pulled into the parking lot.
“Fredo still alive,” I muttered, heaving myself out of the car.
We hobbled inside Tower Two. Peanut had been staying at his grandmother’s crib, and since she couldn’t leave her bed, it was easiest for all of us to meet there.
“You all are crazy,” Autumn huffed, leaning into the bar in the elevator car.
“How the fuck you even get in this, Haze?”
Ty-Ty shook his head, while Autumn averted her eyes from me. Normally, I wouldn’t even say shit, but Fredo wasn’t here to be our mouthpiece, and she was an accomplice anyway.
“Prolly following Turkey ass around. I see you took out that bulldagger shit. Or is it just flipped?”
Autumn glared at Peanut, before unflipping a septum ring from her nose. She wiped it off, then tried to wipe her fingers on Peanut. He cackled as he fought her off, dodging her nasty ass fingers.
“How was I supposed to know when Tyree and Turkey tell me they’re going toy shopping they meant grand theft auto?! I thought we were going to the mall! Believe me! I’m staying home next time.”
“Fuck that!” Ty-Ty barked as we exited the elevator. “Yo ass Foe Dub, too, Haze. You ain’t gotta shoot nobody, but you got whips, and we need that. We’d be dead without you.”
“Fasho dead,” Peanut agreed. “I guess you cool, for a female. But you a dyke, so–”
Peanut grunted as we cackled, while Autumn spedwalked away from us. When she saw we stopped by a door, she huffed and came back, rushing in as soon as Peanut unlocked the door.
“Thank the Lord,” Turkey said as he stood, but Autumn just stormed over to him.
“You told Peanut?!”
Slap!
Peanut cackled as he moved Autumn toward the bathroom. “Go wash them grubby hands. He ain’t tell me shit. I been knew as soon as you got that damn ring, girl. Waddup, Big Turk?”
We all dapped him up, and surprisingly, Ty-Ty and Turk hugged the longest.
“I must say, you a fool wit’ it,” Turk cheesed.
“And ain’t even need all that psy-op shit. But you a beast, too.”
“Well, glad you’re both besties now,” Autumn spat, taking Turk’s spot on the old ass floral couch while Peanut went to check on his grandmother.
Turk’s smirk left his face as Ty-Ty reenacted everything he missed. That time, Autumn let Turk pull her to him so they could talk in the kitchen.
We all knew that “best friend” shit was for her benefit. That nigga was overly gone on her. He didn’t talk about her, but he didn’t talk about no other females either.
She dressed weird, with baggy jeans, chains, and striped socks and shit. With hella eyeliner with the septum ring, she wasn’t masculine, but she did give off like we liked the same shit.
That night, she had on leggings and an old flag football shirt that was probably Turk’s. And I seen why she wore baggy shit and why Turk wanted her to.
Haze was built like Buffy the Body. The complete opposite of Snow.
“She been stacked like that since middle school,” Ty-Ty whispered to me, following my gaze.
“You think she like girls foreal?” I asked, instead of bringing up Snow. Ty-Ty could hold water fasho, but I knew they were beefed out, and I couldn’t promise I wouldn’t tell Turk to get her ass when I was still thankful for her.
“I’on know,” Ty-Ty pondered, pulling on his imaginary chin hair. “Ay, Haze. You a lesbo?”
Turk sighed, while gesturing for her to answer my dumb ass cousin.
She lifted her chin. “I mean, I guess. Y-yeah, I’m a lesbian.”
“Now why when I call you a dyke it’s fucked up, but you out here telling my young bull you gay as fuck? Whatever man. Set called. They on they way to Raleigh Park.” Peanut walked out of the back with a girl holding onto the back of his shirt for dear life.
“Why they heading there?” Ty-Ty asked.
“Sean and Reem already at Wynter Ho’s house–”
“Hey!”
“Be nice, Peanut,” the little girl said, pinching his side.
“Damn, Heidi! You on my side! Come lock the door behind us, and tell ya mama Peanut said stop hitting them Zzzquils so damn hard.”
We filed out, all of us too damn tired to ask who the girl was, or why she and her mom was staying there, too.
“That’s still my sister, dick,” Autumn hissed as we descended to the first floor.
“Fine, whatever,” Peanut sighed. “Sean and Reem ran into some shit in East Kenton, and my nigga Grimey got to them and brought them to your house. How she knows the First Nations? You tell me.”
“She be with my sisters and they know them,” Turk replied.
Peanut shot a look to Ty-Ty, before we all filed out. Before we got outside, I raised my hand and smacked the back of Peanut’s head hard enough to sting, but not hard enough for a friendly fade.
He just laughed, rubbing the hot spot. “I forgot, that’s yo bottom bitch. My bad, Dub.”
“I fucking hate you. And I’m not calling anyone that.”
Autumn flinched at Peanut before getting in the back with Turk and Ty-Ty.
“Not everyone is a fuckin’ warrior, Haze,” Peanut quipped, as we both got in and peeled off. “They not down, so they not Dub. And they not family, so they not Foe.”
“So what are they then? Oh wise one?”
“Bitches,” Ty-Ty answered, making us laugh.
It didn’t take long for us to make it to Snow’s house, and sure enough, when we walked in, the others were sitting around the living room.
“This it?” Peanut asked, taking out his phone.
Set dapped us up before plopping back down. “G and Slime got called home to watch they sister. They said next time they killing it. Marshawn and Oliver got knocked in the Pueblos. I thought you seen that shit; it’s all over the internet.”
“Damn. Why the fuck they was even over there?” Peanut asked.
“They got into a wreck trying to outrun the cops. Ain’t yo fault niggas was on the other side of the street.” Fredo shook his head as Autumn went into the kitchen, where Snow was.
I wanted to go to her, but she and I knew what was up. Claiming her wouldn’t stop the jokes. Peanut ain’t understand shit about females. Half the time he talked about his lil’ crush on Tatiana, he acted like he hated liking her.
“Where Reem and Sean?”
“Reem’s in my parents’ bathroom, while Sean’s in our bathroom. I got towels and new shirts and shorts and socks in the bathrooms. If you got sticky fingers, don’t use my parents’ shit. My dad isn’t stupid.”
“Thank fuck. I need a hot shower bad.”
“You do. You fuckin’ stink,” Ty-Ty said, mushing Turk.
“I call next, since I won’t take long,” Autumn said, disappearing to her room.
Peanut stood, counting us as we lay around the room.
“Aight, so ten. That’s straight.”
“Ten?” Fredo asked, wrapping his arm around my neck in a half headlock.
As we got older, we were better about being separated, but not being able to call whenever got to him like it did me.
No matter what we were doing, if we needed to get in touch, that was one call neither of us ever declined, especially after Ma.
So I let him hold me in a headlock, if only so he knew I was there, and we were good, even if we were stank and dirty.
Peanut grinned. “Y’all fucking missed it. Autumn ass was playing bumper cars! Murked at least three Tree bitches, lowkey saved me and Rico life. Rico named her Haze.”
“That true?” Fredo asked me.
I nodded, grinning at the look in her eyes when she was hyperventilating. “She thurl as fuck.”
“But when I asked–”
“AHNT! Back up. You ain’t ask me shit, Freckles.” Peanut tried to palm Wynter’s face but she dodged him to glare at Set.
Set sighed. “If I told you no, why would I tell Autumn yes? You gotta talk to Turk.”
Sean chose that moment to emerge from the bathroom. He went straight to Snow, hugging her waist. “You still cooking for us, Freckles?”
Wynter glanced at me, softening for a moment before she rolled her eyes. “Fine. Tell Auty the bathroom is open.”
Sean winked at me, making Fredo snort, before going to do what Snow said. She left us to go in the kitchen, and when Set got up to follow her, Fredo tightened his hold on my neck so I wouldn’t follow.
But I could see them from where I was. It was the first time I really saw them interact, just them two. Set moved some mail off the end counter and hopped up, while Snow began to mix flour and shit for pancakes. They spoke in low tones, but I could tell Set was apologizing for excluding Snow.
Like I’d ever let her ass be a part of anything Peanut planned. But she didn’t tell me she’d asked Set, too.
Once she was done mixing, she set the large bowl on the counter and folded her arms at Set. He smiled at her, showing dimples, and she shook her head before she smiled too.
They did some dumb ass handshake that they probably came up with when they were kids.