The TV was loud. The couch had trash on it, and I had to move it aside to take a seat.
“Boy, don’t be coming in my shit calling me like you’re the fucking police. What you doing here this early?” she fussed, dragging her feet as I heard her coming up the hallway.
“Why the fuck the house nasty? The maids were here yesterday.”
“Hell, if you really wanna help, send me a live-in maid.” She flopped in her chair, sitting on top of papers underneath her ass.
I shook my head and pulled the blunt from behind my ear, lightning it and inhaling a bit before passing it to her.
“What you need a live-in maid for? You got a part time nanny too. The crib should be good.”
“I got your sister. She tries to help, but with school she can’t. Another who comes by on holidays, three teenagers who think their grown and them little ones tear up the damn house the moment they see its clean. What you offer ain’t enough, Devin,” she explained.
I was the oldest of nine kids. What the fuck was Janice thinking having all these little mothafuckas, I can’t even tell you. Before I came up, we stayed in a three-bedroom apartment for long as I could remember. Living on top of each other. Me and my younger brothers shared a room- bunked beds, living out of trash bags before I moved to the living room. The girls had to do the same until more kids came along.
I hated going in the crib and shit, so I stayed outside. Soon as I could, I jumped off the porch and got in the field with Ma.
She juggled two jobs and I had to get her out that struggle. It took me a minute, but I made shit move. I always made sure that they had whatever they needed.
When I came into my first big bag, I got a livable house for space. Then a year later, I stayed behind at the house and moved them into a bigger one. I kept it for another year before moving.
Now they were in a mansion, living comfortably.
I put my next to oldest brother in college out of state. My sister didn’t want to go away, so she’s still home studying law. Had a sister, junior in high school. Then I have three teenage triplet brothers, and my younger siblings were twins.
“You need to be making sure everybody put a hand in. I told you about that shit.”
“Look, I know your money might’ve bought it, but my name’s on the deed. Let me handle my house how I wanna, hea?”
“Yeah,” I scoffed.
“Now what brings you by? I know you didn’t come to fuss at me.”
“I had some shit to do ‘round the way. Damn, I can’t come see my family?”
“Anytime you want to. You know the door’s always open.” She looked at me like she was trying to read me.
“What’s up, Janice?” I chuckled.
She threw her shoe at me.
“What I told you about calling me by my name?”
“I just be doing shit.” I chuckled.
“Gone make me bust them golds out your mouth, file them down and make a gold bracelet with them. Stop playing with me, Devin,” she called me by my first name. “Now what’s got you?”
Running my hand down my face, “Nothing, Ma, damn.”
“Aiight then. Don’t tell me but you bet not end up in a cell behind it,” she warned.
“Why I gotta end up in a cell?”
“Because that’s your home away from home.”
“I ain’t been locked up in years, Ma.”
“It was just over a year ago.”
