Page 65 of Stay Dangerous

PC’s lips twitched, and I waited on a bated breath as they opened and moved.

“Is that right?” his raspy, perfect voice caressed my ears.

He sounded like he needed a cough drop.

God, I wished I was eighteen.

“Spit something,” he continued, turning around so that he was facing me fully.

“Off the dome?” I squeaked.

“You heard ‘em, unless Freckles cuz is scary,” Trippy grinned. “Here, I’ll even give you a beat.”

He pushed a couple buttons, and a mid-tempo beat began to play on the surrounding speakers.

I’d never in my life rapped in front of anyone. Sure, I made them up in my head, and even performed in my mirror, but not even Rico knew the other side to my obsession with music.

Not even little Shad and Sean had heard me, though I had heard plenty of their raps they emailed me.

I closed my eyes as I let the beat fill the room. Suddenly, I was in my room again, and not in front of my idol.

And I let the words flow out of my mouth.

Sixteen bars feels like a lifetime instead of less than a minute. But I did it, and even stayed on beat.

As the last word left my mouth, I opened my eyes and showed all of my metal covered teeth.I did that.

The way Trippy grinned back at me, I was inclined to think he agreed.

“I guess Freckles cuz got a lil’ something,” Grimey said. I turned and he was nodding his head to the beat as he resumed rolling up a swisher.

“Told you.”

“And yet you being fast instead of honing yo’ craft. So you still gotta leave.” Grimey nodded to Trippy, who stood and stretched.

I looked to PC for help, but he just shrugged, before relighting his own blunt.

Embarrassment began to fill me. My age had never been a problem before, ever. I had been hanging with Rain and Rian since I was twelve, though this was the first time they brought me to East Kenton. But even if I wasn’t with them, I had no curfew. Me and whoever I was cool with at the time got into the hottest parties, and even spots you definitely needed an ID to enter.

Niggas didn’t care. I was cute and different looking, and known.

I didn’t know how to handle being put into a child’s place. So I just went with what felt natural.

I folded my arms and stomped out of the studio.

“This way, Freckles!”

I turned and scowled at Trippy snickering as he walked toward some fancy SUV. “Do I have to sit in the back, too? Since I’m a kid?”

“If you keep having a temper tantrum, then yeah. Worse than my brother on crip.”

I growled as I slid into the front seat. As soon as he turned on the car, Grimey’s latest album began blasting, and he kept the volume high the whole ride.

It took him no time to get to Turkey’s house. Only then did he turn off his music and pull a gun into his lap, since the whole block was outside.

“Um… how did you know where I lived?”

Trippy looked at me like I was slow. “You said you lived next door to the twins, right? I done dropped they asses off more than a few times back in the day.”