Beans really didn't think much of the phone call. Harlem always had a plan to get some money fast but... he did wonder if this time Harlem was serious about any of what he said. He wondered if his friend really meant what he said about moving out and getting out there.
Beans and Harlem were very close and had been ever since Harlem moved in next door to him. They were always together and so tight that, whenever you saw one, you saw the other. A lot of people thought that they were brothers.
They had a few things in common but not as much as you would believe they did. While Harlem had a rugged charm that finessed the ladies, Beans was the lover.
Slim, fair skinned with soft wavy hair Beans didn’t have to put in much work to catch attention. Many said that he favored rapper, Jidenna. Beans milked that comparison for all it was worth.
Beans was a follower that talked the talk. Everything that he knew about the street, and Tha Streets, Harlem taught him.
Although, they were boys, Harlem never taught him all that he knew. That was something his father always warned him to never do.
Never give up all your secrets, stand-alone and know that it will get complicated holding a spot. Everybody is trying to get on top, which is simply a symptom of owning a throne.
Freeze was street and owned Tha Streets. His name was attached to a lot of different business ventures.
Harlem though, was a born leader who had his father’s swagger and his mother’s determination. He was business minded and an undercover conservative Brainiac who often used his strongest weapon for the wrong things.
Beans was impressed with Harlem's rap but not the idea of hustling. He was always down to roll with Harlem but this plan was crazy to him.
Why did Harlem need to hustle, his mother had a great job and his father left him with some legit money that would set him straight?
Yet, if Harlem were serious, Beans would be serious. They never left each other hanging; at least Harlem never left Beans hanging.
"Now to call, ah...”, he paused allowing his fingers to pick the numbers on the phone. “Eanie, meanie, miney, moe”, he stated as his finger landed on Hope's name.
“Ah! HOPE... that’s what’s up”, he said smiling at her contact photo. Hope was one of those females that always seemed to chase the right guys, for all the wrong reasons and sometimes, the wrong guys for all the right reasons. It was a risky pick but Harlem was always up for the challenge.
"Nothing comes easy for the black man" he uttered. Hope was overly possessive and insecure but more importantly, she had her own place and that was exactly what Harlem needed at the moment; a place to stay.
His plan was to spend a few nights here, a few nights there, each with different females, all the while not getting too comfortable.
His only concern was the emotional part that always came with the women he selected.
Hope was definitely, one of those emotional types but she was also crazy about Harlem. He surmised that for now she would be good enough. He flipped open his phone and dialed.
"Hello!" Hope answered on the first ring.
"Sup! Pookie Bear?” Harlem asked.
"OH MY GOD! Harlem! What’s up baby daddy”, she replied in an extremely excited tone.
Baby Daddy was the name she had given him because she always wanted him to one day be the father of her children. She always expressed to him that she thought he would be a great dad.
"How's my Nubian Queen?", he teased.
"Oh boy please! I wish I were a Queen, I wouldn't be living like this”, she said to him.
"I don't care how you claim you're living, you're a Queen to me, my Queen”, he assured her.
"So does that make you my King,” she asked.
"Nah! I am definitely no King... but if I was, I'd come over there and crown “Your Majesty”, just to assure you that what I feel will not ever change no matter who you fuck with. You know, I am not even fucked up with you anymore about that shit with you and Slim. It’s not all your fault, but for the part that you played, you can make it up to me if you want to”, he said.
That was really all she needed to hear. The two of them had an undeniable chemistry and she appreciated his approach, it was always unique.
"Well, what do you have in mind? How can I make it up to you? And what’s stopping you from coming over here and crowning me”, she asked.
“Why don't you come over and I'll spend the rest of my life with you, or at least tonight making it up to you. It'll be worth your while”, she said as the silence filled the air.
He didn't reply. His plan was in effect. Under his breath, he uttered, "I love when a plan comes together!"
"HARLEM!" Hope yelled into the phone. “I know you heard me”, she snapped at him. “Are you coming over or what? I am trying to get crowned,” she said faking a tantrum.
"I hear you! I was just thinking,” he said slowly considering his words. “You know, maybe we should take our interactions to another level. What do you think about that; you know maybe move in together and everything”, he asked her.
Harlem was milking it for all that it was worth. It really wasn't that hard of a thing to do because even if he had been straight up with her she would have been game, yet he didn’t want to risk anything going wrong.
She lit up like a Christmas tree. “OMG! Harlem please don’t play games with me like that, and don’t start something you aren’t gonna finish”, she warned playfully.
"Now you know that if I start it, it’s definitely gonna get finished. You know, nevermind”, he teased.
“Noooo! Don't do that to me”, she pleaded. “WHAT? Say it Harlem pleaseee”, she begged.
"It ain't nothing to say, I already said it. It’s on you now; only you can create and define our happiness from here. I am on my way over there and we'll talk about it some more then. You want me to bring you anything? You know you can have whatever you like right,” he laughed.
"No, I am good, just bring you, and that dick if for some reason it’s not attached to you”, she joked. “You're gonna need it tonight, please believe baby!” she cooed.
"You promise?" He teased.
"You'll see when you get here,” she said laughing.
"Should I bring more than one change of clothes,” he asked.
"Yeah! If you're gonna be living here, where else are you gonna get dressed?” she asked waiting for his response, patiently.
With that, they said their good-byes and ended their conversation. Just like his father told him, SURVIVING was easy and for the most part, done. Now it’s time to LIVE he said packing his things into his gym bag.
His mind was made and in the morning, he would get up, get out and get on his grind but, for now, he was on his way to grind Hope.
Just like that, he finished packing, and went to his sister Deja's room. He gave her a kiss and told her, "I am moving out and this is where I am going to be”.
He wrote Hope’s number and address down on a notepad and handed it to her. “Call me if you need me for anything. Don't give this to anyone and don't be telling people where I’m staying,” he told her while pushing her playfully in the head.
"WHATEVER! I am telling Mom,” she replied.
After they shared a laugh, he looked around one final time and left.
Deja always looked up to Harlem though, she always acted as if she was his mother. When Harlem left, she felt as if he was taking a part of her with him.
“That boy don't know what he wants to do with himself”, she said under her breath.
As Harlem stood on the corner of Claymont Ave. waiting on a cab or hack, whichever one came first, he second-guessed himself for a minute.
As thoughts raced through his head, a Chevy Tahoe came rolling past him with tinted windows, music pumping and 24 inch rims, snapping him back into his reality.
Finally, a cab stopped, he jumped in and the cab took off headed for Hope’s house, which wasn't that far from his mother’s house.
The cab came to a stop in what seemed like only a few minutes. He paid the cab driver, hopped out, looked up at Hope’s house and took a deep breath, then stepped to the door proudly.
"HEEEYYYY! How's my King?” Hope asked as she answered, the door.
“You ready to do some crowning,” she teased moving back to let him inside. “That don't look like enough clothes for the rest of our lives,” she teased with a smile. “But I am glad that you actually brought some stuff with you. You must be for real, huh?”
"I am as real as they come, Shawty. Don't ever doubt me”, he said to her wrapping his arms around her waist.
"YEAH! But you know, I have been asking you to do this forever and you just kept playing cat and mouse games. I was starting to think that we
weren’t after the same thing,” she admitted.
"That’s because I had to really give it some thought. Living together isn't something you just jump into, but either way don't ever under-estimate the value of our bond”, he said as they embraced and shared a passionate kiss.
That slow, sensual kiss was all the confirmation Hope needed. Her doubts were put to rest and she opened her heart to him.
“Ummmmmm! I Love you, Baby Daddy! Let’s go upstairs,” she said jumping up into his arms.
**********