Page 86 of Stay Dangerous

Snow was pregnant, and then she wasn’t.

When she moved past me again, I gripped her arm, noting her wincing.

“Let me go, I need to shower–”

“Snow–”

Snow whipped around and slapped the shit out of my cheek.

“FUCK YOU! GET OUT!” I heard footfalls before a slammed door, a broken sob, and the faucets turning.

I thought about staying in her room until she got out, but she needed space. I needed space.

So I left through her window, and caught the bus back to the Birch.

Fredo was on the courts with some of the Babies. One look from me had him abandoning his seat and coming with me upstairs.

Nan was on the couch, watching her stories. She looked up at us when we came inside, her eyes twinkling like the gold piece between her front teeth.

“My babies. It’s some food in the kitchen.”

My heart thumped, though I didn’t deserve the peculiar love of her. Not then. “Thanks, Nan.”

She nodded and reached for her cigarettes as we walked into my room and I closed the door.

Fredo took the chair at my desk, while I began to pace.

“I take it you caught up with Snow–”

“I fucked up, Fred. I fucked up so bad, and now I think… I think we done.”

My legs got weak, and I sat down at the foot of my bed. “Remember when we heard Gee complaining about getting burned by some bitch a few weeks back?”

Fredo’s eyebrows kissed as he nodded his head, before his eyes ballooned. “Y’all sharing bitches?”

“Not intentionally… fuck. Nut took me to see Tiny after Reem got put on. I told her I wanted Reem to get the same deal I got for Ty-Ty. That when they were ready to be out, they could leave without having to be bought out. She agreed… on one condition.”

“Rick,” he sighed, knowing where I was going.

“I wrapped up with that bitch I swear. But I still burned Snow. That’s why she been out the way.”

“Why the fuck you even agree to that?! You really think she gon’ let them out just ‘cause you fucked her?! She just wanted to fuck!”

“It worked for us!” I tried to keep my voice down. Nan may be dead to the world at night, but her hearing was A1 in the daytime. “I fucked her ass, and we don’t have to move work. But Reem and Ty-Ty gon’ run behind Set until they know better, and I needed to make sure that when they know better they could do better.”

“Damn, Rick.” Fredo hung his head until he stared at the ceiling. “Can’t believe you and Gee and whoever else is fucking this bitch. Bishop gon’ kill y’all if Set don’t first.”

“Bishop a cuck and Set prolly fucking her ass too. Either way, that bitch burned me, and got Snow all bad.”

“So… was the baby yours?”

I swallowed, before lifting my chin. “Good thing we wore them masks, huh?”

Fredo brought his chin down to glare at me. “Nigga! She can easily tell them niggas who we is, and then what?!”

“Snow not built like that… she knows telling wouldn’t save her from them or from us. I can’t lie, she pissed. But I think if I give her some time–”

“‘Sometime?!’ Nigga, you sound dumb as fuck. You cheated on her, burned her, and got her pregnant. Then shot at her when she was coming out of the abortion clinic–”