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“Didn’t happen here.” He touches his wounded lip delicately. “Happened near campus while I was waiting for the bus.”
“Fuck.”
“I’m okay, Bro. They just roughed me up a little.”
“How many were there?”
“Three. White guys. Then when I got on the bus and it was heading down Broadstone, we all heard gunshots. It’s wild out there tonight.”
“We should leave this city. It’s not safe.”
Nick shakes his head. “It’s the perfect place for my field when I graduate next year.”
“Right.” Inner cities and social work go hand in hand. “Can I get you anything?”
“Nah. I’m really okay. Swear.” He gets to his feet. “Gonna take a shower, then I can help with Robbie.”
“He’s fine. He’s going to bed soon.”
“Okay, B.”
Nick walks away and I pace the living room in frustration. I know he’s a grown man, but he’s not the most assertive guy. He probably screams victim potential in a city like this. Unlike Matty. If three guys tried to mug him, they’d be the ones coming home with busted lips. I need to get Nick into some self-defense classes or something.
About twenty minutes later, I’m getting Robbie tucked into bed when the front door opens again. That must be Matty. Moments after that, I hear my brothers’ raised voices. Matty’s pissed and I’m sure I know why.
I come out to the living room to find them arguing. Matty has his arms crossed, standing over Nick.
“You need to carry the pepper spray we gave you.”
“I had it but it was in my bag. They came at me too quickly. I didn’t have time to get it.”
Matty looks at me, motioning towards Nick. “This is bullshit, B.”
“I know. I already logged in and disabled the phone so it’s just a brick now.”
Matty nods and exhales slowly, sitting next to Nick and pulling him into his arms. “Sorry this happened to you.”
“Thanks, but I’m okay. Just pissed off.”
Matty looks up at me. “Where’s Shelby?”
“One of her friends got her a cleaning job at an office building.”
“Alone?” Nick asks.
“No. One of four. Do you think I’d let her work late at night by herself? I didn’t want her to go at all, but she insisted.”
“We could get jobs too,” Matty says. “They’re hiring at the campus bookstore.”
I shake my head. “No. We’ve been over this. You boys need to focus on school. I can cover the rest.”
“We could get a bigger place,” Nick says. “And everything wouldn’t be on you.”
“The money you two could bring in part time wouldn’t be enough to move and not worth the distraction from your studies. This is what I signed up for and it’s what I want.”
My brothers exchange glances but then nod. They already know arguing with me about this is useless. They bring it up every few months and we end up in the same place.
Yeah, it’s a lot to support four people and myself. It’s a lot living in this too-small apartment in a not-great area. But the alternative is not an option. I’m not letting my family fend for themselves just because we don’t fit the mold our conservative parents wanted for us. Shelby got kicked out for getting pregnant out of wedlock. I found her seven months pregnant in one of the city’s shelters, too thin and in need of prenatal support.
