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| Painting by: Amani Lewis |
She never planned out her outfits but always got dressed like she was under assignment. There were a few potential late night propositions in her texts. Ignoring the text messages gave her Leo ego the full body stroke it needed.
Her style was a vibe though.
Eclectically symmetric.
It was a slightly see-through bandeau top, with paper bag waist tribal print gaucho pants, paired with custom graffiti Vans kind of evening. She adorned her neck with Ankara balls and chains. She threw her blonde locs up into a messy ponytail, grabbed her jacket, skateboard and keys. She looked at herself in the mirror by the front door for a final check in, and headed out the door rubbing her dark purple matte lips together.
Before she hit the corner...
“Amber Alert! Amber Alert!” Drunk Eddie yelled when he saw her. Every time he saw her.
“Each day through my window,” he sang, “I watch her as she passes byyyy."
Azarri smirked and rolled her eyes simultaneously.
“Won’t you bring Eddie a little somethin' somethin' when you come back out beautiful Zarri?” Drunk Eddie asked.
"I'll see what I can do," Azarri replied. They both knew she'd bring him a 5th of Jameson out like she did every Friday.
The corner store was packed with its usual hood rich suspects. Mr. Farmer stood at the counter meticulously filling out his lottery ticket like he was filing important paperwork.
"Azzari Renaye Brinkley!" Mr. Farmer was the only one around the way to call her by her full name. She let him cook because he was old, harmless, and used to "tickle her grandmother's feathers."
"Give me two numbers, any numbers" he said.
“94 and 7” Azarri said without hesitancy. She had the number 94 tattooed on the back of her left shoulder and she had 7 piercings. These numbers were more than just numbers to her.
"Good numbers, good numbers" he smiled his denture-less smile and eagerly wrote them down.
Azarri went to the cooler and grabbed a water. When she came back to the counter, Saalim had already pulled her White Grape Swishers and a 5th of Jameson from behind the counter.
"Let me get a lighter too."
"What color?"
"Purple."
She looked through the big tub of Now & Laters and pulled out 2 banana flavored packs.
"$24.50, I give you lighter free."
"Thanks Saalim, see you next week."
"Bye Mr. Farmer."
"Bye Baby."
“Amber Aler-" Drunk Eddie couldn’t get it out before Azarri handed him the Jameson bottle. He popped it open, leaned back against the bricks and took a long gulp. Azarri kept walking down the street.
She loved Brooklyn on Fridays in the summer. Even though the city was changing, she was grateful that some of the same people still lived on her block from when she moved in with her grandmother in '94.
She got a text, it read:
We under the bridge.
She popped a Now & Later in her mouth, hopped on her skateboard and took off. Skating was her thing. In high school she started an all girls skate crew, Bitches Ridin' Concrete Waves, or B. Crew for short. The group held on strong until senior year when it kind of disintegrated, like most things do senior year in high school. Azarri still had her skateboard garnished with B. Crew stickers. She even had her grandmother sew B. Crew patches on her jacket in high school which she still wore till this day. The rest of her crew, Blake, Tanisha, Chrome, and Mandy had real grown-up lives and skateboarding wasn’t a part of it. They still got together every other Friday under the Kosciuszko Bridge to watch the sunset.
“Be an angel and say your prayers at sunset so God can bless your demon time at dusk.” Blake always said.
She slid up to the spot just as Mandy was climbing up on the hood of Blake’s Dodge Cutlass and started yelling, “Happy Friday Earthlings! We androids hate it here!”
“Speak for yourself, Mandy!” Azarri said as she approached her friends.
"I know you better get down off my car!" Blake commanded.
"Ain't nobody gonna hurt this old ass spaceship!" Mandy rebutted.
They all surrounded Azarri and gave her their B. Crew hug and secret handshake.
“The only reason you think you're an android is because you moved all the way to Long Island.” Azarri teased.
“Touché my nigga, touché. But at least I ain’t out here smelling like a Hotep Banana Split!" Mandy always came with a comeback.
They all laughed.
"It’s the Now & Laters."
"Oh we know, and whatever oil you bought from the oil man on the R train." Chrome chimed in.
"You an android because who the hell eats banana Now & Laters? Gimmie one!" Mandy added.
"You got the Swishers?" Blake changes the subject on a mission.
"Yep!" Azarri hands them to Blake.
"White Grape! That’s my dawg."
Blake takes the Swishers and gets in her car.
Azarri leans on the car with Tanisha and Chrome while Mandy attempts to ride Azarri's skateboard laying on her belly.
"Weeeee" Mandy squealed.
"She childish," Chrome said with a side eye.
The sun began shifting.
The sky turned burnt orange with faint streaks of yellow, blue, and purple.
“Oh this some Arabian Nights shit!” Mandy took out her phone to capture the moment.
“Don’t forget to say your prayers!” Blake shouted from the car window.
Blake turned up the Gospel music in her car.
“Here she go with her Bishop Desmond Tutu bullshit.” Tanisha said.
They all laughed.
Except for Azarri. She instead closed her eyes and began praying internally.
“God, it’s me Azarri…Zarri for short. You knew that. Umm…I need you God. Please tell me what to do."
"Zarri is you praying for real?" Mandy asked.
Azarri quickly opened her eyes.
"Nah just thinking."
They all looked at her skeptically.
Blake passed a blunt to Chrome out the window.
They all smoked and laughed.
Blake sang along to Marvin Sapp's, Never Would Have Made It, and leaned back in her car seat.
"Blake you're high my guy!" Chrome laughed.
"I'm closer to God when I'm high sis." Blake explained..
Azarri leaned back on the hood of the car and looked up at the sky.
She closed her eyes.
“God…me again. I’m scared. I’m really scared.”
"Zarri, don’t let the Kush push you to sleep. Fight the temptation. You’re a conqueror beloved.” Blake said.
They all laughed.
Except Azarri. She opened her eyes and sat up.
“I’m pregnant ya’ll and I’m scared. I can't believe I finally said that out loud.”
Wait. What? By who? Blake gets out of the car.
"I’m gonna be an auntie? Yes! Bitch let me Google matching outfits for me and my nephew! Yaaasss!" Mandy takes out her phone and starts her Google search.
Dawg, you definitely shouldn’t be smoking pregnant! Tanisha criticizes.
"Or skating!" Chrome adds.
"Did you hear me Zarri?" Blake asks, "Who is the guy?"
"Eduardo." Azarri confesses.
DRUNK EDDIE?!?!? They yelled.
"Yea, girl you definitely need to pray!" Mandy always came with a comeback.
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