Chapter Twenty-One

I watch Kendyl’s eyes as she gawks at Storm’s interior, and I think it’s safe to say that she’s impressed with all the work Squad and I put in on the mods.

“Damn, boy, this is one of the nicest Jeeps I’ve ever seen!” she says as she continues to run her fingers along the seating and the doors.

With the deep-purple neon accents that match the undercarriage neon, she’s a sight to behold. How can she not be? She’s the one thing I get to brag about, and I do it at every opportunity.

The only reason Kendyl’s able to get the full effect has everything to do with Kyle calling me to ask if I could pick his girl up and bring her to the party with us. That isn’t even a question, especially when he’s been true to his word about having my back. Besides, I knew it would put a smile on Zahra’s face.

Now, if I can keep from being so obvious about it.

Zahra turns to face Kendyl, still smiling while the wind blows through her hair. It’s a clear night, perfect for the top to be open. “Now you see why she’s half mine, right?”

“Chica, like, this thang is pretty, pretty.” She keeps playing with the neon on the door panels, then leans forward into the front seats, planting her elbows on the middle console. “You might have picked up some cool points with me, Yasir. How did you put all this together? It had to cost a few stacks, at least.”

“Well, my Squad in the A helped with a lot of it,” I tell them as I pull out of her subdivision. Okay, so I’m feeling a little showy tonight, and I’m in a good mood, so why not? That whole situation with Zahra earlier in my studio has me buzzing. “We learned from the boys at the customs shop my ace’s uncle owns.”

“Speaking of your Squad in the A, you haven’t mentioned them much.” Kendyl switches up the flow, ramping up her interrogation and cutting her eyes at Zahra the whole time. “Do you still talk to them? Do they know what you got going on down here?”

“Kenni,” Zahra warns.

“I mean, come on, Z, you gotta admit it’s the first time he’s said anything about his life before he got to Oakwood.” Kendyl turns toward me and jumps back into her bag of questions. “So what’s good, bro? You gonna let me dig or nah?”

I tighten my grip on the steering wheel as I drive, tapping my thumb against the gearshift. Okay, so she wants to be the big bad bestie, huh? “I know why you’re digging, but you wanna play, so let’s play. Let’s start with my ace, Dante. He’s been like an older brother to me. Then there’s Caleb, and his older brother, Malik, and, well, there’s Alyssa and Dominique.”

“Oh, now we’re getting somewhere.” Kendyl rubs her hands together like she’s struck gold. “So what’s up with the girls in the Squad? Anything we need to know about?”

“Okay, Kenni, you’re getting a bit wild. What’s up with you?” Zahra’s trying to slow down the freight train before it starts to slide off the rails, but I’m with the shenanigans. “Are you kidding me with these questions? Like, for real?”

“He doesn’t seem to have a problem with it, do you, Yasir?” Kendyl smirks as she looks into the rearview mirror, and she cracks up when she notices my face. “See, he’s even trying not to laugh in the mirror. I’m doing you a favor, chica.”

I’m having a ball watching them argue back and forth. Real talk, I’ve been waiting for Kendyl to bring the smoke. I glance over at Zahra, then back at Kendyl, and I pull the car over so I can really get the laughter out of my system. “Kenni, you’re wild, I swear. Ally is bisexual, and Nique is a lesbian, for the record.”

“TMI, my boy, TMI.” Kendyl leans back in the seat, crossing her arms over her chest. “I didn’t ask for all that.”

“Nope, but you didn’t ask for specifics, either, chica.” My turn to apply some pressure. “Man, this is too funny. Do you want me to call Nique real quick? She loves girls who have a little fire.”

Zahra bursts into laughter. “Aww, come on, babe, you know you belong to me. I’d never let anyone take you from me.”

Kendyl takes her hand and pushes it off. “So I’m trying to protect my girl and I’m being treated like the bad guy? Mhm, I see how it is now.”

“You’re the one trying to find drama where it ain’t. It’s not my fault it backfired on you.” I finally pull off and back on the road, shaking my head and chuckling while driving. “I get it, though. You’re looking out for your ace, and you should. Hell, Dante’s dying to figure out who I’m trying to holla at so he can give her the third degree. Squad takes care of its own.”

“I’m glad you see things my way, unlike my bestie over there sitting in the girlfriend’s perch,” Kendyl teases as she lunges forward to kiss Zahra on the cheek. “You’re all right with me, my boy, but you’re not off the hook. I got a lot more questions to ask before we get to Kyle’s house.”

“I kinda figured as much, and you’re about to find out I’m not as thin-skinned as you might have guessed,” I warn her. “You might wanna prepare for the answers to those questions, too. I’m learning you just like you’re learning me, as friends, girlie.”

“Yeah, that reminds me.” Kendyl taps against her temple as she ponders her next inquiry. “You’ve gone through a whole makeover from what we saw when you first got here. You’re from the A, but the way you wear the oils and scents and the way you have your hair cut, it’s screaming something from overseas. Where are you from, for real?”

Zahra almost queues the record scratch. “Wow, would you look at the time? We’re almost to Kyle’s anyway. I think we can pick this up another time, okay? Besides, I’m supposed to be the one asking these questions, remember?”

“Ugh, then you need to get to asking, chica, because if my inquiring mind wants to know, others are gonna want to know, too,” she stresses. “He’s a mystery to all of us, and you seem to be the only one he’s willing to open up to, so yeah, I’m gonna need y’all to get that handled and soon, okay?”

“It’ll get done when we say it gets done, sis.” Zahra rolls her eyes over the hypocrisy of it all. I’m not gonna lie, she’s being nosy for the sake of being nosy. “When did you become Oakwood’s Tamron Hall?”

“There’s a method to my madness, chica,” Kendyl points out as I turn into Kyle’s neighborhood. “First thing they taught us in the journalism club: if you can control the narrative, you do it before someone else does it for you.”

“So pause, stop the presses, I’m confused.” I slow down long enough to locate the street number of Kyle’s house since the GPS says we’re already there. “One minute, you’re in protective mode over your bestie, and the next minute, you want to help me control the information that gets out to the school? What gives, shawty?”

Kendyl sighs as we finally arrive at the long driveway that leads to the estate. “Okay, here’s the real, playa. My girl likes you, and you like her, too. I’m willing to give you the benefit of the doubt because you’ve opened up more in the past few days. If you were still the brooding loner, things would be way different, trust.”

“Fair enough. I admit I could’ve been a bit more open with people, but everywhere I’ve gone to school, whatever I’ve told has been used against me.” I put Storm in park, then open the door and hop out. I slip around to the passenger side and open the door for them to get out. “Since you’re talking about controlling the narrative—I like that, by the way, I’m gonna have to borrow that—if anything comes up, I’ll make sure you and Z know about it first. Sounds like a winner?”

“Deal, my guy. Now, let’s see what’s going on. I need to see about my baby before things get too wild around here.”