Tone glanced out the back window of his girlfriend’s blue Honda Accord. It finally dawned on him that he had really made it to Baltimore. In the backseat his girlfriend was pressed up against him, her head resting on his chest, her eyes glancing up at him almost in disbelief.
“What you staring at,” he gently asked.
“You,” Sonya admitted. “I can’t believe you’re here.”
“Believe it or not, here I am,” Tone joked.
Sonya continued to stare starry eyed at her boyfriend. Her thoughts were solely on Tone as she romanticized their reunion. Now that they were together, Sonya couldn’t imagine it playing out any other way. Something bad happened in New York with the shooting, but something good came out of that, they were together. Sonya prayed Tone wouldn’t get homesick and return back to New York. She feared if that happened she’d lose Tone to the system for a few years or worst. In her mind, that was the only thing that could break them up. So she planned on doing everything in her power to convince him to stay.
The car slowly came to a stop at a red light. This gave Tone the opportunity to do something that should have been done from the moment that they entered the car. Unfortunately, both their minds had been elsewhere. However, now he had the chance to make things right. Tone had been so preoccupied by the thought of being arrested and Sonya had been so infatuated with his physical presence that they both neglected to make a formal introduction.
“Tone,” he said, extending his hand toward the driver as they exchanged a formal greeting.
Her first words to him were, “So you’re Tone, huh?”
She said it with a hint of seduction in her voice, as if she had heard so much about him. Maybe Tone’s reputation may have preceded him. The thought made him smile and wonder what had been said between them. Tone was well aware how spicy females could talk about their boyfriends.
“I didn’t wanna say nuttin’…. I was waitin’ to see if Sonya would introduce us. But the bitch is so sprung she can’t even think straight,” she remarked in a northern accent. “Brianna, but people call me Bri.”
From the soft grip of her handshake, Tone became aware of femininity. He was staring at a very attractive light skin female with light brown eyes and juicy bubble lips. He held the grip a little bit longer than necessary, as he locked eyes with Bri. It was a covert flirtatious move, done right in front of his girlfriend.
“Aiight bitch, that’s enough,” Sonya playfully stated. “Let go of my man’s hand.”
“Bitch please,” Bri responded. “Ain’t anybody thinkin’ bout him except you.”
“Yeah, right,” Sonya joked. “I gotta keep my eyes on you Morgan State hoes. I know how y’all get down.”
As soon as the stoplight turned green, Brianna continued to cruise the streets of downtown Baltimore. As she drove she talked, carrying on a conversation almost exclusively with Tone. She badgered him with silly questions as she drove, as if she’d known him well.
“It feels good to be out of New York right? You like it down here? You happy to see Sonya?”
A couple times Tone had to catch himself. He was on the verge of saying something smart, like shut the fuck up. He knew that wasn’t the nice thing to say, so he didn’t. He knew it would kill the vibe. But he was growing increasingly annoyed by her questions. For the sake of peace, Tone remained polite and continued to enjoy the ride. Soon he realized it was just talk and Brianna didn’t mean anything by it. She was just running her mouth.
“Where you from,” Tone wondered, picking up on her accent. “Brooklyn? Queens? You can’t be from the Bronx.”
“I ain’t from the city,” she stated strongly as she drove. “Why do people always say that?”
“Then where you from?” Tone reiterated
“The Bricks!” Bri responded.
“Fuck is that?” Tone commented.
“Newark,” Sonya interrupted.
“Oh, Jersey. Got you,” Tone acknowledged.
“What you know about the Bricks, huh? New York niggas don’t come over there for some strange reason. We party in the city, but y’all don’t come to Jerz,” she stated.
“Pppllleeeeeaaaassssseeee,” Sonya cried. “Don’t get this bitch started wit’ that geographical nonsense. Okay, okay you from Newark, we get it. You rep ya city hard, we get that too. Let’s not turn this into a New York vs. Newark conversation. End of story.”
“Ooooohhhh, you so salty,” Bri told her. “You hate when I rep my hood.”
Sonya replied, “No, I don’t. I heard this shit from you so many times… Don’t forget we lived together our freshman year of college. This conversation is gettin’ old.”
“You just mad cause Newark better than New York, that’s all,” Brianna fired back.
“Just drive bitch!” Sonya joked.
Tone found Sonya and her friend amusing. Underneath the playfulness he could tell that the two were close. In his book Bri was very hittable. So he immediately scratched Bri off his short list of chicks he wanted to fuck in Baltimore. He knew it would kill Sonya if he had sex with her friend.
Eventually the group conversation died down and Tone and Sonya were back in their own little world, communicating without saying a word. There was a touch here and a kiss there. It was the language of love that they were communicating to each other. Sonya was so head over heels in love with Tone. She was lost in his arms. She snuggled close to her man, inhaling his masculine scent.
Meanwhile, Brianna drove around downtown Baltimore aimlessly. She was content with playing the role of chauffeur, despite the fact that the lovey-dovey vibe inside the car was making her feel more than a little uncomfortable.
“Can’t y’all wait til y’all get home?” she remarked.
“Just shut up and drive Bri,” her friend told her.
Tone ignored the exchange as he busied himself with examining his girlfriend’s physical features. It was obvious that he liked what he saw. It was even more obvious that he was into her. Even Bri could see that as she looked at the lovers from time to time through the rearview mirror.
Lots of discreet touching of the private parts was exchanged between the couple in the backseat. They alternated between rubbing, squeezing and caressing each other’s private parts. Quickly Tone turned his attention to her breasts while stroking her inner thighs. The more Tone did it, the more sexually aroused Sonya became. In turn she gently rubbed his penis until it was rock hard and bulging out of his jeans. Sonya’s touch aroused him, but what really turned him on was that dreamy look in her eyes. The one that seemed to say that she was his for the taking. All of this seemed like foreplay to him, the calm before the storm. He couldn’t help but think how bomb the sex would be tonight.
Soon the aroma of food infiltrated the car. The scent reminded Tone just how hungry he was.
“Yo, Bri,” he began. “Pull over, I gotta get somethin’ to eat. I’m starvin’ like Marvin back here.”
Bri did as she was told and pulled the car smoothly to the curb. Sonya rose up from the backseat to check on their whereabouts. The neon lights and bright flashing signs advertised illicit businesses, peep shows, bars and strip clubs.
“Where we at?” Sonya wondered.
“The Block,” Bri replied. “Baltimore Street. I was tryin’ to give Tone a lil tour of the town, but obviously y’all weren’t payin’ attention. Too busy back there lovey-dovey.”
Bri was right, the couple hadn’t noticed a thing until now. It didn’t matter to them where they were or where they went, as long as they were together.
“Yo, this shit look like 42nd Street Time Square out here. All I see it bright lights, prostitutes, drug dealers, junkies and perverts. It’s goin’ down out here, huh?” Tone observed.
“You could say that again. But the food spot is right there,” Bri pointed. “Crazy John’s.”
Quickly both Tone and Sonya took note of the yellow restaurant sign and began to exit the car.
“You want somethin’ Bri?” Sonya asked before closing the car door.
“Yeah, you can get me a large order of fries,” Bri said. “I ate already.”
Sonya continued, “That’s it? Bitch ya greedy ass don’t want nuttin’ else?”
“Nah, I’m cool. I got some leftovers in the microwave,” she responded. “I’ll eat my food at home after y’all drop me off.”
After getting her friend’s order, Sonya closed the car door. She took hold of her boyfriend’s hand and together they walked to the fast food restaurant holding hands. Each time Tone held her hand, images flooded her mind of all the times they went out on dates in high school. Sonya couldn’t help but feel safe in Tone’s presence.
Men looked lustfully at Sonya as they walked down Baltimore Street. Tone mean mugged a few, those whom he felt stared too hard or too long at his girl. The look on his face said, she’s with me. One by one they got the message and diverted their stares elsewhere.
They entered Crazy John’s and quickly placed their order and paid for it. Then the couple returned to the car with multiple bags of food. After reclaiming their original seats, they began eating. Sonya handed over the fries to her friend. Slowly, Bri pulled the car back into traffic while enjoying her food.
As she nibbled on her French Fries, the scent of fast food begins to fill the car, getting Bri’s full attention.
“Damn, that cheeseburger smells good,” Bri commented. “Who eatin’ that?”
“Me,” Tone replied between bites of his burger.
“Don’t start that lemme get a bite shit. Ain’t nobody eatin’ behind ya nasty ass,” Sonya commented. “Bri, I asked you what you wanted and you said some fuckin’ fries.”
“I did,” Bri stated. “But that was then. I suddenly changed my mind when I smelt that burger.”
“You the worse, Bri, you can never make up ya mind,” Sonya added.
“I’ll tell you what. I gotta deal for you Bri,” Tone announced. “If you show me around the town, not downtown, but the hood, I’ll give you one of my burgers. How that sound?”
“That’s a bet,” Bri assured him. “Gimme my burger.”
Tone went in the bag and handed over the cheeseburger, but not before Sonya could interrupt.
“You ain’t gotta give that bitch shit,” Sonya insisted.
“This an A and B conversation,” Bri replied, “C ya way out.”
Tone laughed at the childish statement. He hadn’t heard that in a while. The rapport between these two was comical, to say the least.
Sonya urged, “Please, Tone don’t encourage this heifer. It’ll only get worst.”
“Ha!” Bri laughed as she took a bite of the burger and drove simultaneously.
“Anyway, can’t that shit wait till tomorrow?” Sonya asked. “I’ll show you around then.”
“Nah, I need to see B-more the hood tonite,” Tone insisted. “Need to see what I’m dealin’ wit. I wanna see how different this hood is from mine. You know they say if you ever want to really know about a neighborhood, go around there at night. It’ll tell you everything that you need to know.”
Truth of the matter was Tone was on a scout mission. He was trying to locate a drug block where he could set up shop and sell his product. What he said out loud was misinformation. He knew he had to conceal his true intentions from her. He didn’t know if Bri knew he was a drug dealer. In case she didn’t know, he wasn’t going to tell her. That was none of her business.
“Bust that move, Bri,” Tone called out from the backseat. “Take me to the hood.”
“This nigga,” Sonya complained, rolling her eyes.
“I got you, kid,” Bri announced.
Since the city of Baltimore wasn’t big, the proximity from downtown to East Baltimore wasn’t far. Before Tone knew it the vehicle he was riding in arrived in the hood. The stark contrast between downtown Baltimore and East Baltimore was like night and day. He went from the clean, well-lit avenues of downtown to the dark, rat-infested streets of the hood. On almost every corner, Tone noticed a cut-rate liquor store or a Chinese carry out. It was like if the powers that be couldn’t kill black people with one form of poison, then they’d kill them with another.
“Fuck is wit’ all these fuckin’ cut-rate liquor stores? This how they livin’ out here?” he observed.
No one else in the car bothered to answer. If Tone didn’t know the level of affliction in Baltimore’s inner city, then he was about to see for himself. It was deeper than just liquor stores. Here Heroin was the black peoples’ Achilles Heel.
Tone didn’t know what to expect when he hit the hood, but this wasn’t how he pictured it. The hood was depressing. He had seen bleak and impoverished neighborhoods before in New York, but it seemed like Baltimore had its own monopoly on urban decay.
As the vehicle rode from hood to hood, Tone got a good gauge where the money was, which blocks were popping and which ones were dead. The streets of East Baltimore felt so vibrant to him. North Avenue was like a car show. He saw young dudes such as himself driving expensive foreign cars accompanied by some good-looking women. That sight seemed to repeat itself at every light.
Just a few blocks over on Greenmount Avenue, he had to admit, he never saw such a great disparity of wealth in one place. Tone saw luxury foreign cars parked in front of rundown row houses. Still, he got the idea from the looks of things that there was a lot of money to be made out here.
The tour of the hood continued, taking Tone pass infamous Baltimore housing projects like Latrobe homes and Lafayette Courts. These projects were much smaller than the one’s he was use to. But from what Bri was saying, they were no less dangerous. From what he was seeing, Tone couldn’t help but think that this might be his kind of town. Danger was like a rush of adrenaline to him. He was far too reckless to be afraid. Tone felt New York City had prepared him for everything and anything. He felt he had seen it all and been through it all.
In comparison to his hometown, physically the landscape was different. In terms of size, one could fit a few Baltimore City’s inside New York. Yet the hustle and bustle seemed to be the same. The streets of Baltimore were about a dollar. It just so happened that coke and dope were the main commodities on this market.
Tone’s brief tour of East Baltimore sobered him quickly to the harsh realities of the streets of Baltimore. The sights and sounds got his mind where it should be, into a hustler mode. He could envision himself getting money out here.
They drove through a few more crime ridden corridors and hotspots, places like Eager Street, Hoffman and Holbrook, Ashland Avenue. On these blocks Tone got to see large congregations of people and open-air drug markets that ran around the clock. He burned all these locations, streets and avenues into his memory bank. The information might be useful to him at a later date. He vowed to return to these blocks soon, next time without his two chaperons.
Bri continued playing the role of gracious tour guide, driving the vehicle at a moderate enough rate for Tone to scope the scene.
“I usta date a Baltimore guy from around here,” she admitted.
“Where’s here?” Tone asked, looking around for a street sign. “What’s the name of this block?”
“Federal and Chase,” she told him. “The nigga was major. One of the biggest d-boys in the city. I don’t know where he was gettin’ his shit from, but he was gettin’ it.”
“What happened?” Tone asked.
“What happened to what?… Oh, he got like fifteen or twenty years,” she replied nonchalantly. “Feds indicted him. He was under investigation, from what I understand.”
“Word?” Tone responded.
“That’s how the story goes out here,” Sonya hinted, as she looked at Tone. “It ends one of two ways, dead or in jail.”
Tone didn’t care what Sonya said. He had already sold himself on the idea of hustling drugs on the streets of Baltimore. He knew he was going to take that leap again, and dive head first into the drug game out here. Even if he had to launch a small scale drug operation and go hand to hand himself. So be it.
“Yeah, he got busted wit’ a whole lotta dope A couple of kilos if I remember correctly,” Bri admitted. “Yo, I’m just glad I didn’t get caught in that mess. My parents would have killed me. They didn’t send me way down here to school to become a drug dealer’s girlfriend. Shit, I could save they ass the tuition and did that shit back home.”
“Word,” Tone groaned. “I hear you.”
Bri continued, “I ain’t gonna lie. It really goes down out here. I ain’t just talkin’ about the drugs. I’m talkin’ about the shootings and killings too. These b-more streets are like the wild wild west.”
To her the streets were wild. To Tone the streets were typical. He was in his element. This was his domain. He spoke the language of the streets fluently, violence.
“Oh really?” he said aloud. “You think New York is a joke? Ma, it’s goin’ down everywhere. No disrespect, I ain’t worried about none of that shit you talkin’.”
Bri replied, “No, its cool. I’m not sayin’ you can’t hold ya own. I was just tryin’ to put a bug in ya ear.”
“Good lookin’ out,” Tone acknowledged her.
Tone tried not to take her comment personally. After all, she didn’t know him. Bri didn’t know how he got down in the streets. She was just like everyone else, they didn’t know what he did until he did it to them. With that thought, he shook off the irritation that the conversation caused him. There was no need to get mad at Bri for her so-called good intentions.
Momentarily, Bri took her eyes off the road and glanced into the rearview mirror. Her eyes met Tone’s. He gave her a serious look, which she returned. Neither person said anything. On that subject, what else was there to say?
That's why God made guns, Tone found himself thinking. It was a saying his deceased friend was fond of saying. God made guns for wild niggas, hot blocks and hostile environments like Baltimore, Maryland.
He went back to looking out the window and eating his food. Bri’s horror story about her boyfriend had done little, if anything, to deter Tone from hustling on the streets. Instead of being scared off by the danger, he thought the fate that befell her ex-boyfriend wouldn’t happen to him. Tone focused on all the money he could possibly make. He had a vested interest in making this situation work for him.
“I’m ready to go home now,” Sonya stated, interrupting his thoughts.
“Me, too,” Tone added. “I seen enough for tonite. Tomorrow’s another day.”
“Good,” Sonya said, clearly frustrated. “Bri, drive to ya house so we can drop you off.”
Bri nodded her head in response. The car fell silent for a few minutes as Sonya continued to enjoy Tone’s company in the backseat.
“Baltimore, the city that reads,” Tone mocked a sign he saw at a nearby bus stop.
“Niggas out here call it, the city that bleeds, Bri retorted.
By the time they arrived at Sonya’s off-campus apartment, she was already hot and bothered. Soon as they closed the apartment door, the couple engaged in a long, deep sensual kiss. Sonya’s hands were like an octopus, roaming freely over every inch of his body. She gripped his rock hard dick with one hand, while unfastening his belt buckle with the other. All the touching and kissing was a lead-up to more serious matters.
“Chill,” Tone cautioned his girlfriend as he felt his pants becoming undone. “Yo, I need to hit dat shower real quick. That bus ride got me sticky.”
Sonya didn’t like the idea of postponing their sex, not even for a few minutes. But since it was a hygiene issue she understood.
“Lemme get you a clean washcloth and a towel,” she told him.
She returned quickly with a big, fluffy white towel and a matching washcloth.
“The bathroom is in the back, first door on ya right,” she explained, handing the things to Tone.
“Thanks,” Tone said, with a devious look in his eyes.
“Don’t take long.” Sonya warned. “I been waitin’ on you all day.”
“Then a few more minutes won’t kill you,” Tone shot back.
Although she wanted to join him in the shower, Sonya made no move to follow her lover, instead she watched him disappear down the hallway, into the bathroom. Seductively, she bit her bottom lip with a nasty grin on her face.
“I won’t,” Tone promised as he closed the bathroom door.
Sonya entered her bedroom and went to open her top dresser drawer. She put on a t-shirt, minus the bra, and sexy lace hot pink boy shorts on, then returned to the living room and waited for Tone to exit the shower.
“How was ya shower,” Sonya asked.
“Good money,” he admitted. “A nigga really needed that. Yo, I was sticky as a motherfucka. Word!”
Tone headed straight toward Sonya, bare-chested and naked, except for the white towel that donned his waist. This was the first time today that Sonya could fully admire his chiseled physique. His well-defined upper torso glistened with small beads of water. Walking straight into Sonya’s arms, the lovers picked up where they had left off.
Their lips locked in a kiss as their tongues swirled inside each other’s mouths. After a few passionate minutes of that, Tone maneuvered his lips from her mouth to her neck area. She trembled as the hot, wet, tingling sensation of his tongue traveled down her spine. Sonya threw her head back, exposing more of her neck. The good feeling was going directly to her head. Her body hadn’t felt this aroused in months. All she wanted was for Tone to continue to touch her, keeping up the foreplay. Sexually she was his for the taking.
Tone placed his hand near Sonya’s private area. Her legs quickly spread to give him full access to her vagina. He rubbed her clit through the thin material, discovering just how wet Sonya was at the moment. Slowly, Tone began to nibble on her earlobe before shoving his tongue into her ear. He receive his own sense of enjoyment from just the thought of knowing what he was doing was pleasing her.
“Damn, ya pussy is so fuckin’ wet,” he whispered.
Suddenly Sonya ripped off Tone’s towel, flinging it to the floor and grabbed a handful of his manhood. In one motion she pulled away from Tone and dropped to her knees. Sonya began sucking Tone’s penis, using both hands. She bobbed her head back and forth with such ferocity Tone’s toes curled. He had to do everything in his power to keep from cummin’. The anticipation was driving him crazy.
“Yyyyeeeeaaaahhhhh…..” he moaned. “That’s what I’m talkin’ bout. Suck that dick like you love me.”
Placing his hand on the top of her head, Tone help guide his dick deeper and deeper into her mouth. He forced so much of himself into her mouth that Sonya gagged a few times, forcing her to stop temporarily. He pulled Sonya to her feet and tongue kissed her deeply as he removed her panties, then her t-shirt. After that, Tone dragged her to the living room floor and immediately began eating Sonya’s pussy. He had done this a million times, performing oral sex on her wasn’t just standard practice, it was mandatory. Sonya really got off that way.
“Oh, you shaved this pussy, huh?” Tone stated as he came up for air.
“Just for you,” Sonya confessed.
Like a madman Tone went back to eating Sonya’s pussy, with the intent on making her cum. At this pace it didn’t take long to make that happen. Sonya’s body began to twitch violently as she clamped her legs around his head.
“I’mmmmm ccccuuuuummmmiiiinnnn’,” she cried out.
Hearing those words made Tone go harder. Sonya desperately tried to pry his head from in between her legs as she climaxed. Successful, she moved her vagina away from Tone’s mouth as she savored the moment.
“Good, huh,” Tone bragged, looking up at her.
“Yyyyyaaaassss!” she raved.
Sonya may have gotten hers, but Tone had yet to get his. Earlier in the car, he had whispered in her ear that he was going to fuck the shit out of her, now he was going to make good on that promise.
Tone got on top of Sonya and slid right inside her. He began fucking her missionary style. As their bodies pressed together, the heat and friction that they were producing caused the couple to sweat profusely. Perspiration came with the territory as they ignored it and continued having sex.
“Turn over!” he commanded her.
Sonya followed his orders and flipped into doggy style position on all fours on the floor. Immediately Tone inserted his penis back inside her vagina and began jamming away. Loud sounds of skin smacking together, combined with the sight of Sonya’s round ass, sent Tone into a sexual frenzy. A few seconds later, he busted a nut and collapsed on top of her.
That first night together they had sex all over the house; the living room, bathroom, kitchen, and finally the bedroom. There was no limit on what they did sexually or where they did it.
After taking a shower together, the couple called it a night and went to bed. They were both sexually satisfied and physically exhausted. Sonya lay in the bed underneath the down comforter, spooning with Tone. This was the happiest she had been in a long time. Her mind, body and soul were in a good place. She began to drift off to sleep.
“Yo, what’s up with ya cousin Stew?” Tone suddenly inquired. “Wasn’t you suppose to call him for me? Huh?”
“Yeah,” she mumbled. “I’ll call him tomorrow. It’s late right now. His ass not home. He probably out runnin’ the streets.”
He replied, “Yo, I’m really tryin’ to see son.”
“Tomorrow baby. Tomorrow,” she assured him. “When I get up and go to the bathroom in the middle of the night, I’ll leave his number on the dresser for you so you can call him as soon as you get up, if I’m not up.”
“Aiight, cool,” Tone commented, satisfied with that.
Within seconds Sonya was sound asleep. She went to bed with the notion that every inch of Tone belonged to her. On the contrary, Tone fell asleep thinking about the streets of Baltimore and all the promise that it held. Clearly they had two different agendas.