Chapter 1

August 1994

Down the Hill

 

I couldn't believe I was finally sixteen. I was hyped! My mom woke me up bright and early that Saturday morning. She was about to work a double at the nursing home as usual. Still, she came in my room with a card and balloons.

“Hey, baby, wake up. Happy Birthday!” she said.

 I pulled the covers from over my head. I was trying to act as if I was just waking up. Truth was I had just hung up the phone with Spinx. Soon as my mother left he was taking me to Six Flags. I hadn’t told her about him yet and I wasn’t sure if I would any time soon. My sister talked so dirty about him and the guys out here, and she would have flipped if she knew I was dealing with him.

I sat up in my bed and said, “Thanks, Ma,” in a groggy tone. “What time is it?” I yawned.

“It's a little after 6 am. I have to work a double tonight and then I’m going to stay with Mr. Dave since I don't have to work tomorrow.”

She looked tired. I wish she didn't have to work like that. My mother was strong. She was a single mother of three. My sister Katina, aka “Queen Kat,” was the oldest. I came next and my brother Nelson, aka Stack, was last. My father was in Jersey doing whatever it is he did. We would see him on occasions, but not like that.

The reason why she worked so crazy was because she was handling most of the bills by herself.  Kat’s man, Rashawn, always looked out when she came up short. She refused to get state assistance because she didn't want to be a statistic. That’s why we moved from the city to the burbs, or at least what we thought were the burbs. Serenity Hills was not serene at all. It used to be when we first moved down here, but like a year later it became a drug zone. People tried to sale their homes, but no one was buying so they were stuck.

What happened was the state tried this new program. You know… let's take the people out of the city projects, give them a Section 8 voucher and move them to the suburban areas. They thought if they changed their environment the people themselves would change. Yeah right! Alls they did was adapt and kept doing it like they knew how. Serenity Hills was the first and last development they tried that with. So we were stuck like Chuck. Now my mom knows why it was so easy for her to get a mortgage.

That’s why we barely saw our mother. She had to work enough jobs to cover things. But we know she is trying to hold it down for us. So we’re cool with it.

She gave me a hug and said, “I'm sorry that I couldn't give you a party or a car like your other little friends have.”

I could see the sorrow in her eyes. She was so beautiful, and they said we all looked just alike. I couldn’t tell. My mom, Stack and Kat had sandy brown hair and light brown eyes, and all were little a darker than me.  My hair is jet black and I am a redbone, as my pop-pop used to say. I almost favored a beautiful Latina.

“So enjoy your day, sweetheart. Mr. Dave is going to take us out to dinner tomorrow to celebrate, ok?”

“Yeah, that's cool,” I said. I wanted her to leave a little quicker.

She gave me another hug, yelled something at Stack and left out. I ran to my window and watched her pull out the driveway. When she was out of sight I left Spinx a message on his Sky Pager letting him know I would be ready in an hour. On my way to the bathroom I heard Kat talking to Stack. I was nosy so I wanted to know what was up.

I opened her door, and she was sitting at her vanity table looking at herself as usual. Stack was standing next to her bed. No one was allowed to sit on her sacred bed. She barely let anyone go into her room. I didn’t want to be in there anyway. It made me sick. Everything was pink and lilac. She was a real girlie-girl. I stared at them both for a second. She watched me as I came in.

“Happy Birthday... jail bait,” she said with a smirk.

I hated when she did that ‘cuz I’m not a kid. Kat didn't like any of the guys out here at all. Especially Spinx! She told me he was a molester and that he had a real girlfriend who was grown. She said I was just the little whore he was screwing. She only said these things because her man, Rashawn Gibbs, aka Ra-Ra, was from the city and he was really running things.

Ra-Ra was only nineteen and he was already pushing crazy weight. I guess she figured nobody else could stand up to him. Kat was his girl since the eighth grade. He loved her to death and all them city bitches knew it. They thought when we moved to the Hills he would have a change of heart since its enemy territory. If you ask me, I think that just made them stronger.

I gave her the finger. “For your information, skank, I ain't give him no pussy yet so nobody’s jail bait. He ain't got no other girl. He is always talking to me, and he’s takin’ me places introducing me as his young joint.”

I guess I told her because she stopped brushing her hair and smiled at me. “Are you seriously retarded or something? Did you just hear what you said?”

I was puzzled.

“Never mind, you'll learn. Go have fun with Chester-The-Child-Molester… by the way; I got you a little setty. It's in your closet.”

 

I ran to my room and checked the closet. I saw a bag and smiled. I quickly removed the outfit and looked at a cute little black skirt and a black and gold T-shirt that had “Prada” written across it. I looked at the skirt tag and it said the same thing. Prada? I thought. What the hell is that? I went back to Kat's room; my nose was turned up.

“What is Prada? And why didn't you buy me some Hilfiger or Nautica or something?” I said ungratefully.

Both her and Stacks laughed at me.

Stacks spoke up, “Dumb ass! That shit right there is way more exclusive than Tommy and Nautica. I’m a dude and even I know that.”

Now I felt stupid. And my sister, who was sitting on the sidelines giggling, didn’t make me feel any better. I could feel my face heat up from embarrassment. I stormed out of the room pissed. That’s how things always went with those two. Especially Kat, she was so stuck up. She thought she was better than everybody because of her man.

All I had on my mind was getting up with Spinx. I looked at the clock and it was damn near 7:15 am, and we were leaving at 8 am. I ran the water for my shower and undressed.

I was checking myself out in the mirror. I looked at my breasts and ass. Body wise I could pass for a grown woman, including my 36C breasts. My stomach was flat as a board thanks to track. But if I had to pick, I’d have to say my ass and hips were prominent. There was no way they were going anywhere anytime soon. And to think… all of that was fitting in a junior’s size 8.

I brushed my teeth, washed my face, covered my head with a pink shower cap and jumped in the shower. Once I was finished I threw on my outfit and waited by the window. A couple minutes later I heard the horn beeping outside. Anxiously, I grabbed my purse and ran to the truck.

We were riding with my best friend Kee and her man Bo. Bo was Spinx's right hand. He was a little nutso, but quiet. He had a peculiar look about him. I mean, he was cute, but something just didn’t fit. Kee thought I was being mean because he was light skin. Maybe that was it, because I loved me some chocolate and he was far from it. I slid in the back with my man, and he gave me a kiss on the cheek. I said hey to everybody and then we were off.

When I turned around I saw that we had three cars following us. Spade and all the young boys and their girls were in the other cars. Bo was blasting this new CD by a group called Bone Thugs-N-Harmony. After five minutes I couldn’t help but say they were hot. I was feeling their sound. I was all hugged up with Spinx when I saw him looking at my outfit.

“Prada?” he said with his face bunched up. “Where you get money to buy that shit? You know how much that runs?”

“My sister bought it for me. It’s for my birthday.” I cheesed.

He turned his head and asked, “You like that shit?”

“Yeah, I like it. It's different. No one else out here rocks it so I got to like it.”

Not responding, he dug in his pocket and pulled out a lighter and a dutch. He sparked it, took a long pull and bopped his head to the music. He was silent for the rest of the ride. I couldn’t help but wonder what was on his mind.

++++++++

 

We had a ball at Six Flags. I swear we damn near rode every ride twice. If it had been up to me I would have stuck with the water rides. It was so hot and sticky out I thought I was about to faint a few times. Everyone was coupled up so we pretty much did our own thing. Spinx won me so many stuffed animals that we had to take several trips to the truck to load them. Everything was just perfect. He treated me like a princess. I wish Kat could have seen this. Maybe she would finally see that he really loved me.

When we were leaving Kee pulled me over to the side and hugged me and said, “Happy birthday, girl! You ready to go down the Hill?”

“Yeah! I’m tryin’ to see how big the house is!”

She put her hand on her hip and rolled her eyes. “Girl... it's not about being at his house, it's about what goes down inside.”

I was silent as she continued.

“It's just like Meekie’s house except it’s real nice. His mom and brother live there too, and everyday niggas be there.”

I wanted to say that the only nigga I was thinking about was Spinx, but I let her continue.

“You hear about everything that goes down there, but once you’re inside you see so much shit its unreal,” she said. It seemed as if her mind had drifted to the Hill.

“I’m not dumb, Kee. I can handle it,” I told her.

“I know… but what you see down there stays down there. To be honest, I’m a little shocked he’s trusting you there already. ‘Specially since your sister is damn near married to our arch enemy,” she said switching the subject

Our? I thought. “Girl, you’re being way too serious about this down the Hill thing.” I laughed.

“I’m just making sure you’re ready. Because once you’re there, there’s no turning back,” she said, as she got in the front seat and shut the door.

I got in and Spinx asked me what our conversation was about. I told him she was just wishing me a happy birthday. On our way home I tried to figure out what she was talking about. She made it seem liked they killed people down there or something, and it made me nervous. Maybe I really didn’t want to go down the Hill after all. I sat back and closed my eyes. I was getting sleepy.

Spinx whispered in my ear, “Pull your skirt up and take your panties off.”

I opened my eyes and turned to him. “What?” I responded back. “Don't you see them in the front?”

“Just take them off,” he demanded.

I did as he requested. I was a little scared because I didn't know what to expect. I was still a virgin, and he never asked me to do anything besides a few tongue kisses. He took my legs and placed them over his. Then he turned sideways and pulled me closer to his body. I was frantic. I didn't want to lose my virginity in the backseat of a Blazer! He gazed at my pussy for a minute then took two fingers and spread my lips apart. My heart raced. It was beating so hard I wondered if he felt it. Still on a mission, he rubbed on my clit with his thumb. I felt myself getting wet. I thought I was about to piss myself it felt so good. Too good. What was this feeling?

 I felt his thumb slip into my pussy. It wasn't that bad because I got pap smears, and the doctors stuck their fingers in me all the time, but never like this. He continued to do this while adding an additional finger with each stroke. I became so wet that the fingers just started sliding in with no problem.

He started kissing on my neck and whispering that he loved me. At this point I didn’t know what to do. My heart was beating faster. I thought it was going to jump out of my chest. Plus, I was tingling everywhere. I felt myself tense up when he went to unbutton his shorts. He stopped and laughed; then he pulled my panties back up. I didn’t understand what was so funny, but I was relieved that my first experience wasn’t going to be in the back of a truck. There was a look that spread across his face and I wondered what it meant.

A few moments later we pulled in front of Spinx’s crib, around 11 pm. I couldn’t wait to get out of the truck. It was filled with smoke and I was feeling woozy. I must have caught contact from all the weed smoking. When I reached for the door handle he stopped me. I faced him to see what the problem was, and a serious look spread across his face.

“Look, Nyse, you know after tonight shit is going to change. Whatever... and I really mean whatever you see, hear, or smell down here, stays here. You got me?” he asked.

I really didn't know what all the fuss was about, but I agreed anyway. “I got you. I can handle things, Spinx.” I smiled, hoping I could. “You can trust me.”

“Ok, now that we straight you can come on in.”

I hopped out the car and went to the passenger side to wait for Kee. I stood there for about five minutes while Bo and Spinx were in deep convo about something. When I noticed she wasn’t getting out I moved closer to the window and motioned for her to let it down. She rolled down the window and gave me the “what the fuck do you want?” look.

“Why ain't you getting out the car?” I asked.

She sucked her teeth. “Because I'm not going to the Hilton tonight,” she said as if irritated. “Bo taking me to the Courtyard Marriott instead.”

I was confused. “What? The Hilton? Who said anything about a hotel? I want to know why you ain't coming in here to chill with me on my birthday!” I was feeling some kind of way about it too.

She waved me off.

“Nyse, come on! We out,” shouted Spinx.

I rolled my eyes at my so-called best friend and followed behind him, after watching the car pull off. Spinx opened the door and the house was filled with smoke. I tried to wave some of it from my face, but it was too thick. I looked around and from what I could see the house was sharp. The living room was painted a deep cranberry color with accents of gold. A matching leather furniture set and gold mirrored tables dressed the space. I noticed the gold coffee table had a glass bottom with an aquarium. I expected to see fish; instead there was a big ass nasty snake. A few guys that hustled for Spinx were playing Super Nintendo on the fifty-two inch TV.

He led me into the dining room where his mom, aka Ms. Nett, had a card game going on. They were cussin’, fussin’ and drinkin’. Ms. Nett was yelling across the table at some lady about her cheating. The lady got up and told Ms. Nett she better sit her drunken ass down before she whipped her ass. Ms. Nett snatched the lady up from across the table and flicked a blade from out of her mouth.

“What you say, bitch?!” yelled Ms. Nett. “I’ll carve your mutha fucken face like it's Thanksgiving!”

I tugged Spinx’s arm and whispered for him to do something. He just laughed and said that shit happened every weekend. The woman was still talking cash shit to Ms. Nett. Finally the woman pulled the cards that she was hiding out, and Ms. Nett let her go. She looked at us and walked over.

Ms. Nett was a big woman. She was real pretty, with smooth chocolate skin. She hardly looked old enough to be Spinx’s mom.

“Wassup, Nett?” Spinx said.

I couldn't believe he just called his mom by her name. She gave him a pound and looked me up and down.

“So, I see you finally got your happy young ass down here.”

I didn't know if she was being sarcastic or not so I just smiled.

Spinx grinned. “Stop trippin’, Nett. You scarin’ her,” he said.

She smirked and replied, “I don't want no shit out of her. You hear, Braxton?” she said, pointing her finger in his face. “I told you her ass is still a baby, and your old grown ass is twenty-two! You can get locked the fuck up chasing some young pussy.” She looked me over again and said, “But I have to admit, she is cute. She got a nice little shape on her too.” She leaned over to me. “Don't go and get knocked up. Your ass will spread across the country like mine did.”

With that she went back to control her card game. We were heading towards the stairs and she yelled, “You clean your own bloody sheets when you’re done.”

Spinx bagged up laughing. I was totally embarrassed.

We went upstairs to his room, but before we got there I heard all this deep moaning and bed squeaking. Spinx paused before going in his room and opened the door across the hall where all the noise was coming from. Spade was in the room, and he was pounding away at some chick. Sweat ran down his back, and the girl’s legs were opened like a pair of scissors. Who ever the chick was, it was not his girlfriend Vanessa. I stood there in shock and Spinx moved in unnoticed. Spade made it known by his actions that door wide open or not, he wasn’t stopping his flow.

Spinx walked back out of the room with some incense and shut the door behind him. He gently grabbed my hand for me to follow.

His bedroom was nice. He had a king sized black lacquer bedroom set, and there were mirrors on the headboard. Matter of fact, there were mirrors everywhere in the room. I stood there looking around while he busied himself with a pack of White Owls.

He patted the side of the bed. “Get comfortable.”

I timidly made my way over to him.

He turned his light on. It was blue and it made the room look real nice. He cracked the Owl open and emptied it in the ashtray. He then filled it with some weed. I sat there not knowing what to do. He lit it, took a few puffs and passed it to me.

“I thought you said you didn't want me smokin’ this stuff,” I said nervously.

He nodded. “Yeah, I did. But you can smoke with me though, I can protect you.” He took another hit and passed it my way.

I tried to inhale and started to cough out of control.

He laughed.

I smiled.

“Slow down, Nyse…. Take your time.”

He showed me how to do it, and three blunts later you would have thought I was a pro at it. I was feeling loose by then. No longer nervous, I lay on the bed cheesing. I was so messed up that I didn't realize that I was in just my bra and panties. When did he undress me? I thought.

Spinx had also stripped down to his boxers and was messing with the radio. He popped a tape in and came back to the bed with me. He climbed on top of me and kissed me. Then the song “Just Me and You” by Toni! Tony! Tone! came on. He started kissing on me and sucking on my nipples. I just lay there enjoying it all. This was going to be the night I would lose my virginity, I knew it. He unsnapped my bra and engulfed each breast in his mouth. My panties were soaking wet. He must have read my mind, because he reached down and slid them off.

He began rubbing between my legs and whispered, “You ready to be my woman, Nyse?”

“Yes,” I moaned.

“You sure?”

“Yes,” I said flatly, although anxious.

He got off the bed and pulled off his boxers. That’s when fear set in. I came face to face with his big fat pole. My eyes nearly popped out of my head. He took my hand and ran it up and down it. He told me to not be afraid because it was my friend, and friends don't hurt you, they make you feel good.

He got back on the bed and opened my legs. To my surprise I was really relaxed. He pulled me closer to him and I felt my leg begin to shake. He leaned over and kissed me and said it's gonna be all right. He rubbed the head of his dick against my opening and slowly inched his way in. It wasn't that bad, until after a while, when he forced the rest of himself in me. I felt something rip. I screamed and tears fell from my eyes.

He kissed me and told me not to cry, the worst was over. My insides were stinging for a while, but eventually it did get better. Matter of fact, I loved it. Silk's “Loose Control” was playing now and that's exactly what was happening. I was losing control. Things were happening that I never felt before. My pussy seemed to have a mind of its own. Weird feelings were coming back to back. Am I having an orgasm? I wondered.

Spinx really got into it and started to speed up. I could feel his dick inside of me swelling. Then, something happened that I couldn’t explain. All this stuff came flowing out of him and into me. I thought he pissed inside of me. Afterwards, I lay in his arms trembling all over with excitement. He gave me a tight squeeze.

“Are you ok?”

I couldn’t speak. I gave a quick nod.

“You officially belong to me. You better not neva, eva, give yourself to another nigga. I love you girl.” He gave me a kiss on the lips and rolled off the bed.

I finally managed to pull myself up. All of a sudden I felt shy. I pulled the sheets up to my neck and whispered, “I love you too.”

He smiled. “I know you do, Nyse.” He put his boxers on and disappeared into the bathroom.

Although my coochie was throbbing with pain, I managed to put a smile on my face. I was finally Spinx’s woman. My throat was a little dry. I looked at the nightstand on my left and noticed that there was still a little juice left in my bottle. That’s when I noticed the time. 3:15 am? It was just a little after 2:50 am when we started, I thought. I shrugged my shoulders. What seemed like an eternity was just a matter of minutes.

I took a sip of the juice. I got up and switch on the regular lights. Once the lights were on I noticed myself in the mirror. I dropped the blood soaked sheet from around my body and screamed.

Spinx came running out of the bathroom. “What’s wrong?” he asked. He looked at the sheet lying on the floor.

I pointed at the sheet. “Why… why is there so much blood? It’s too much, isn’t it?” I said fearfully. I could tell he was trying to hide his laughter.

He grabbed me by the hand and led me to the bathroom. “Baby, it’s all right, those things are supposed to happen. Didn’t your mom school you about this?” he asked while running the shower water.

I put my head down in shame. I didn’t feel like a woman anymore I felt like a stupid little girl. The truth was I didn’t know that this could happen. My mother never told me about sex. The only thing I knew was what Kat talked about, and her stories didn’t come close to this experience.

“Yeah, we talked about it… I guess I just forgot.” I lied.

He handed me a towel and rag. I got in the shower.

Before he left out the bathroom he said, “After you’re done you better go downstairs and wash those sheets before Nett gets in that ass.”

After I was done taking a shower I threw on one of his T-shirts and a pair of too big gym shorts. The worst part is over now, I thought. I opened the bathroom door and alls you could hear was Spinx laughing loudly with someone on the phone. I hoped that he wasn’t talking about me. I felt my cheeks turn red. I hurried to the room and gathered the sheets. He smiled my way and continued running his mouth. I took the sheets to the laundry room and noticed that there were just a few people left in the house. Ms. Nett was handing my English teacher, Mr. Knotts, a bag of crack. Mr. Knotts had a huge grin on his face.

“Thanks, Ms. Nett. I’ll see you later on today to show you that,” he said happily.

Ms. Nett nodded and showed him out the door. I didn't know what to do. I was stunned. Dang, Mr. Knotts gets high! I thought. I couldn't believe it. I put the sheets in the washer and left out. Ms. Nett met me at the steps.

She stood in front of me with a stern look and seriousness in her tone. “You know the rules, right?”

I looked her in the eyes when I answered her to let her know that I was trustworthy. I was always told if a person can’t look you in the eyes then they’re either up to something and can’t be trusted, or insecure. I was neither of the two. “Yeah, I won't say anything.”

A warm smile spread across her smooth chocolate skin. She shook her head in agreement and turned to walk up the stairs. A feeling of relief came over me. I think she accepts me now, I thought. Halfway up the steps she came to a stop. She turned around and looked me over and snickered.

“You look a little flushed, was Braxton too much for ya?”

I felt my face go from pale to beet red. I was totally embarrassed, but I laughed it off with her. I could see that I was gonna have to get used to her sarcastic humor.

On the way up the stairs she yelled back, “Welcome to womanhood!”