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Buzz, buzz, buzz.
Aleesha heard her Blackberry vibrating and could hear the muffle of music coming from somewhere in the room. She got out of Savage’s bed, flipped on the light, and looked for her phone. She found it under her clothes near the dresser and seen she had a missed call from her mom. She looked at the time and knew her mom was calling because she missed her curfew. It was nearing 4 o’clock in the morning, and her curfew was 2:30 a.m. on the weekends. Where the fuck is Savage? she thought as she hurriedly got dressed. She called her mom back as she was on her way out of the house.
“Mom, I’m sorry. I lost track of time.”
“You get a pass this time, but next time I won’t be so nice,” Renee threatened.
“I know, I was sobering up so I could drive—”
“I don’t want to hear it, just come home,” Renee said strictly.
“Yes ma’am.”
Aleesha got in her Kia. She drove home in record time and luckily for her, her mom wasn’t in the living room waiting for her when she got there. She went to her room, changed into her pajamas, and got into bed. She texted Savage to see if he was alright, but didn’t get a response back. She figured he must’ve passed out at Marcus’s, so she put her cell phone under her pillow and went to sleep.
Buzz, buzz, buzz.
Aleesha could feel the vibrations coming from under her head. “Ugh,” she groaned as she started waking up. She could tell it was still early outside, because the sun’s morning rays were shining bright through her window blinds. She reached for her phone and peered at the name on the screen. It read “Mother in Law,” meaning it was Savage’s mother Debra calling. Why is she calling me so early? she thought as she sat up and answered the phone.
“Hello?” Aleesha said with sleep still in her voice.
“Aleesha, what the fuck happened with my son last night?” Debra asked angrily.
“Huh, what are you talking about?” Aleesha asked, now fully awake.
“I’m sorry, sweetie, I’m not tryna yell at you,” Debra said as she softened her voice. “But I just got a call from the juvenile hall about Savage. He got locked up this mornin’ and all they told me was that he violated his probation.”
“Oh my God,” Aleesha said as she started trembling. She couldn’t get any more words out because a lump had formed in her throat.
“What happened last night?” Debra asked, trying to see why her son had a run in with the police.
“I don’t know,” Aleesha began to explain. “Before he left me last night he told me he had to go get Marcus ‘cause something happened to him.”
“Damn!” Debra exclaimed, disappointed. “It’s always because of that nigga. I told his ass to stay away from him. That boy is no fuckin’ good.”
“I know,” Aleesha agreed, “I tried to tell him that too.”
“Yeah, that’s what his dumb ass gets. He knows that being anywhere near Marcus is a violation of his probation.” Debra took a long pause. “But okay, thank you sweetheart. I’m goin’ up there today and I’ll let you know how it goes. Sorry if I woke you.”
“It’s okay, Ms. Debra. And you’re welcome,” Aleesha said before she hung up the phone and laid back down. She tossed and turned for a few minutes, trying to go back to sleep, but to no avail. She kept thinking about Savage and when she would hear from him, via letter or telephone.
She decided to call Marcus’s girlfriend, Dior, to see if she knew more information than Debra had.
“Hello?” the female voice on the phone said.
“Dior, please tell me you know what happened with Marcus and Savage?” Aleesha asked her in a hopeful voice.
“What happened to Savage?” Dior questioned, sounding confused.
“He got locked up, and I’m guessing so did Marcus,” Aleesha replied, getting sadder the more she thought about it.
“Woooowwwww,” Dior exaggerated. “How?”
“I don’t know. I just got a call from Ms. Debra and she told me Savage was locked up. I was calling to see if you knew why ‘cause last I seen him he was leaving to pick up Marcus.”
“Well last night me and Marcus stopped and put some gas in the car and as soon as we left the gas station, some dudes started followin’ us. So we stopped at this liquor store and he had me drive home. He told me he was going to stay in the store until Savage got there, so I don’t know what happened after that.”
“Okay,” Aleesha sighed. “Thanks, D. If you find out anything else, please call me.”
“I will,” Dior responded before she ended the call.
Aleesha knew there wasn’t anything more she could do about the situation, besides wait. She got dressed for church in a powder blue sundress and pearl white pumps, with a pearl necklace and pearl white clutch to match, and went into the kitchen to have breakfast with her mom and younger sister, Laila.
“Mommy,” Aleesha whined as soon as she entered the kitchen.
“Yes, daughter of mine?” Renee asked, putting the final touch on the meal she just made.
“Savage got locked up,” Aleesha said with a pout as she sat at the table.
“I told you that’s what comes with the lifestyle he’s living. If you want to be with him, that’s what you have to learn to deal with,” Renee told her. She knew exactly what her daughter was going through because Aleesha’s father, Darion, was the same way.
Renee met Darion when she was 17 years old, and a year later they had Darion Jr., or DJ for short. Darion had never had a job in his life, because he always hustled and lived the fast life. But with that, he was able to put Renee through nursing school, and still provided for his family. It didn’t become a problem until he first got locked up when DJ was 3 years old. He got caught up in a bad drug deal and was sentenced to 6 years in prison. Renee stayed faithful and held him down, and a year after he was out, they had Aleesha. He tried looking for a job, but ended up getting restless and went back to slanging.
Right before Darion went back in on a gun charge, which he ended up having to serve 3 years for, they ended up having Laila, who was a year younger than Aleesha. A few months after he was released, he went right back to drug dealing. He spoiled his family and had them living the lavish life, until Aleesha turned 11. He was pulled over one night for speeding, and ended up assaulting the police officer, getting sentenced to 7 years in prison. He was expected home in a year and had the possibility to get out earlier if he kept up good behavior, which was highly unlikely. Renee never wanted her daughters to date the same type of guy as their father, but she could only give them so much advice and restrict them from so much. They had to learn the lessons from their own life experiences.
“I know, it’s just messed up that he didn’t even get to enjoy the rest of his birthday,” Aleesha responded sadly.
“I know, baby, what did he go in for?”
“I don’t even know, I’m waiting on Ms. Debra to call me back.”
“Well just wait on it, baby. He didn’t do anything too bad because it would have been on the news,” Renee said as she prepared their breakfast plates. “The most he’ll get is a year or two.”
“Damn, sis. You sure you can wait that long?” Laila asked. “I know I couldn’t. My nigga ‘ah just be assed out,” she said with a laugh. Laila looked more like Darion than Renee. She had his smooth mocha complexion, with his slender face and nose, and slanted dark brown eyes. But just like Aleesha, she was real eye candy for men. She had a coke bottle shape, with melon-sized breasts, meaty thighs and an apple bottom. Her dyed honey brown hair accentuated her face, giving her an older more mature look.
“Girl, watch your mouth before I slap the taste out of it,” Renee warned.
“And that’s why you don’t have a man now. These hoes ‘ah neva’ be loyal,” Aleesha uttered to Laila.
“Aleesha, didn’t I just tell your sister to watch her mouth. Y’all both about to get my foot in y’all asses,” Renee threatened as she carried all three plates to the kitchen table and sat down.
“Sorry, mom,” Aleesha said, putting her head down.
“And I am loyal,” Laila said as she stood up and grabbed her plate. “I’m just not stupid enough to wait for a jailbird.” She rolled her eyes at Aleesha and exited out of the kitchen.
“Whatever, bitch,” Aleesha mumbled under her breath.
“Let it go,” Renee told Aleesha, trying to avoid any escalating drama between her daughters. She said grace, and she and Aleesha ate breakfast at the table in silence. After they were finished, Aleesha did the dishes while Renee got ready for church. By the time Aleesha finished straightening up, Renee and Laila were ready and they all headed out.
***
After the church service the women went home and, less than an hour later, Aleesha was getting ready for work. As she was getting dressed, she received a call on her cell from a number she didn’t recognize. “Hello?” she uneasily answered.
“Hey, babe,” Savage said cheerfully into the phone.
“Oh my goodness, babe! What the hell happened?” she asked as she took a seat on her bed.
“I got pulled over for suspicious activity, and they got me for a probation violation. I don’t know exactly how long I’ma be in here, but I need you to do me a huge ass favor though babe,” he said apprehensively.
“What is it?”
“I wrote you a letter. You should get it in a few days. If you don’t understand somethin’, take it to Mac, aight.” Savage didn’t want to say too much over the phone.
“Okay,” she replied simply.
“I’m already knowin’ I’m ‘bout to serve some time. My P.O. made that shit loud and clear that if I get caught up, I’m fucked. So I really need you to do this for me and hold me down, mommy.”
“Okay, babe,” Aleesha said, getting emotional.
Savage could hear her sniffling and knew she had started crying. “Babe, don’t be sad man. I ain’t gone be in here for too long. I need you to stay strong for me.”
“I’ll try,” she said, trying to hold back the tears.
“You can do it, babe,” he said, trying to encourage her. “Just hold me down, ma. I promise this will be the last time I leave you like this.”
“It better be, Savage, I don’t need to be going through this.”
“You won’t, baby,” he said as he let out a sigh. “Man, I know you have to go to work in a lil’ bit, so I’ma let you go. Focus on the positive shit and just be on the lookout for my letter. I love you.”
“Okay, I hear you babe. And I love you too,” she said before hanging up the phone. She finished getting dressed, throwing on a black Juicy Couture sweat suit with the snow boots to match, and then headed off to work.
Two days later, Aleesha received Savage’s letter. It was waiting on her dresser for her when she got home from school. It was written in street code, but after she read it, she knew exactly what it was telling her to do. He informed her that he wanted her to take over his operation. He told her where his drug and money stash was, and how to get in contact with his connects and clientele. She wrote him a letter back, then was out the door to start grinding.