“Nah.” He snorted. “You couldn’t pay me enough to be quiet right now.”
“You sure about that? Name your price.”
“Nigga, fuck you and your wallet,” he fired back. “You’ve talked so crazy to Shade about him being whipped over Nyx. Now, look at your ass.”
“First off, don’t ever put me and the word whipped in the same sentence. Second, I just want to make sure she’s good before going back home. She deserves to take her time. She’s been through a lot.”
“Yeah, okay. That shit didn’t even sound believable. Look, man, you know you don’t have to keep the real from me. I’ve already gone down this road once with your brother. When his ass got hit with Cupid’s arrow, he struggled to explain it too.”
I frowned. “Whatever. Just do what I asked.”
“Yeah, I hear you.”
“I’m not playing.”
“I said, I got you. Chill.”
“Alright, cool,” I said. “Thanks, man. I owe you.”
“You damn right you do.”
“Whatever, nigga. Bye.”
I ended the call as I pulled into the driveway of a home I’d visited too many times to count.
I stepped out, grabbed the plastic sleeve holding Ol’ School’s newspaper, and headed up the sidewalk toward the porch.
Across the street, the dogs started barking like always.
I ignored their ass.
Barking was the only thing they knew how to do, and they did it at anything that moved. But no one in the neighborhood expected anything different since their owners barely took care of them or the property. Between the peeling paint, overgrown grass, and boarded-up windows, it was hard to believe that anyone even lived there.
I shifted my attention back to the house in front of me, adjusting my grip on the paper.
I knocked on the door. “Ol’ School, open up. It’s me, Ocean.”
Within seconds, the front door swung open, and one of my favorite people stood on the other side, staring at me like I was crazy.
I cracked a smile, knowing I’d played a part in the deep lines carved into his rich mahogany skin and the gray that threaded through his beard. Age had given Ol’ School plenty to complain about, and somehow, I still managed to be the thing that worked his nerves the most.
“I know who it is. You don’t have to announce yourself like I’m senile,” he spat.
“Well, youareup there in age.” I laughed. “I’m just trying to make sure you don’t come at me with a cane or some shit. I like my face.”
“Mmhmm, I bet. How else you going to get the ladies?”
I shrugged. “Well, I have been told I’m charming. So, if you beat me to a pulp and fuck up my good looks, I guess I got a little something to fall back on.”
“I don’t know who told you that lie.” He stepped away from the door and headed toward the rocking chair that wasin his living room. I followed him inside. “Ain’t shit about you charming. You’re an asshole in expensive clothes.”
“Damn, Ol’ School, it’s like that?”
He lifted his shoulders. “Just trying to keep you humble.”
“Well, I’m offended. It’s cool though. Just know, when your time comes, I’m trading out that fancy casket I had picked out for you to a wooden box. I’m not even going to have that shit painted up nice for you. Just straight wood.”
He broke into laughter, and so did I.
