Looking Up

"In my world, there is no love." The young urban youth looked inside of what was once his home. The bright light that emanated from the dining room showed his former family all enjoying a warm, family meal, with his mother playing with her grandson and his half-sister and stepfather watching over her shoulder. His mother had love in her eyes, they all did, but their love was lost on him. He was the outcast of the family, the black sheep. Their words were not lost on him. He knew that he was unwanted in their world. His mission was set. He knew that he must find love on his own. He knew that life would not be worth living without love in his heart. He felt soulless watching what was once his family enjoy themselves without him. He gripped on his bag filled with writing supplies, he adjusted the switchblade in his pocket, and he turned around, never looking back on his past, steady looking toward his future.
His first stop was the small corner store surrounded by other dilapidated buildings with various characters all standing around minding their own business, in tune to their own ventures. When the young man entered the store, he was greeted by the store owner, a large man with a nice man and a plump belly and a large laugh. "Hello, young Gavin. How are you doing this fine night?"
Gavin looked upon the store owner with a great sadness in his eyes, one that even a blind man would not be able to miss. With a straight face, he answered, "Fine, how about yourself?"
He wanted to dwell deeper into the truth, but the one thing the store owner learned throughout his many years of seeing young men come into his store with that same look, he knew that Gavin would have to find the answers for himself. "I'm doing fine, my young friend. What can I do for ya tonight?"
He opened his back bag up and answered, "I need some supplies, Gordy."
"Supplies?", he answered back, surprised by the young man's answer.
"Yeah....I'm goin' on a trip out of state and I'm uh need some supplies."
"Where are you going, young friend?", his voice filled with concern.
Gavin smiled and his brilliant smile shone through the bleak environment. "Texas."
Gordy raised an eyebrow and surveyed his young friend. It seemed that the only time this young man smiled was when he mentioned going to this state. "Why Texas?", he asked, heart full of curiosity.
"That's where my best friend is. Maybe that's where my real family is."
"But what about Gina and your mother and father?"
Gavin gave Gordy a blank stare, a stare that told Gordy to not mention the family that had outcasted him. He shook his head and said without emotion, "Supplies, Gordy."
Gordy smiled and reached for a pack of Black and Mild cigars. "How many packs of these do you need?"
Always a stickler for even numbers, he answered, "Gimme five and a blade sharpener and I'm prolly gonna need sone food too."
"Nonperishable, I hope."
Gordy's joke was not lost on Gavin. He chuckled and answered, "But of course. Can't be walking around with a bag full of rotten food, right? The polices would be able to smell me out, fa' sho."
They both laughed for a good while, until Gordy's face became serious and he began to address the young man who stood before him. "Gavin, you know the world is a dangerous place now. What was once up is now down. What was once good and just in the world is now evil and depraved. Just look outside of that store and you can see for yourself. The men that stand outside are murderous men who prey on young people like yourself to enter this store and then leave. You won't make it a whole block before they attack you and kill you, Gavin. You know this don't you?" Gavin had known what these men were. He had felt their evil presence from the first time he had laid his eyes on them. He had wondered how Gordy knew this, but he decided to let Gordy continue. "You can't leave tonight. I can't see your body on the seven o' clock news being found mutilated." Gavin shook his head, determined, hell bent on making it to his destination. "If you want, you can stay here for the night, at least for the night until the sun comes. The sun has a way of weeding out the evil that exists in this world now." Gordy looked out of his store window to the group of evil men who stood outside of his store. They peered at Gavin hungrily, one of them going as far as to lick his large dark lips hungrily. At one point in time, Gavin knew them simply as drug dealers, one who he used to purchase marijuana from, but now, with he loss of the drug trade after The Great Storm, they were the demons of the South, and they lusted for Gavin's soul.
But Gavin held a strong soul in his heart. He also held in his heart a world of pain, and in that moment, he decided that nothing would stop him from getting to the only friend he had left in his world. "I can't, Gordy. Nothing is goin' to stop me from getting to Texas." And with that he attempted to pay for all of his items, but Gordy refused his money with pleading eyes. Gavin knew what those wanting eyes meant. He knew that Gordy truly did fear for the young man's life. It didn't matter though. Death didn't matter. Anything was better than loneliness in his eyes.
Gavin left the store with his mission in his eyes. The predators watched him walk on the lonely road by himself. The hunger in their bellies forced them to follow the young man. He felt them watching him. He felt their hunger as he took his blade sharpener and sharpened his lucky switchblade. He walked past a local Piggly Wiggly and onto a quiet intersection where only broken down houses stood. He knew if the men were going to strike, now would be the time.
"Say lil' cuz? You need some help?" Gavin turned around, still sharpening his switchblade and he saw the group of five watching him intently as he played with the blade in his hand. "What you got their lil' cuz?" Gavin knew not to show any fear to these men, even though their mere presence meant certain death.
They advanced slowly. With a smile, their leader took lead with his hand out, ready to relieve the young Gavin of all of his belongings including his life. He put the blade sharpener in his pocket and waited for the leader to gt close enough to him. The leader was a mere three feet in front of him before he addressed Gavin again. "A lil' man like you don't need to be carrying that book bag there. Why don't you just give it to me and there won't be no trouble." Gavin smiled as the man attempted to come closer. His hand still outstretched, he still felt Gavin was easy prey. Wrong.
Gavin smiled and slashed the man of the shadows' hand clean off. The villain screamed as he watched his hand fall under the shade of a dead tree growing on the side of the road in front of an abandoned house. The four remaining villains rushed to their friend's side but they would prove too late as they saw their leader gutted. His intestines fell to the ground in a bloody mess all over Gavin's black shoes. They stopped short and began to examine Gavin's appearance and they came to a quick realization. They realized the all black sweatsuit the young man wore may not have just been for fashion, but rather, it may have represented the young man's occupation. They realized that the man in front of them may have been a professional killer on the way to complete a mission. And they realized their blunder for stopping an assassin on his way to another kill.
Gavin licked his lips hungrily, the blood lust taking over his body. The anger in his heart had found someone to take out his rage on. They were wrong in ther assumption. Gavin was no assassin; far from it actually. He was just a child born into a neglectful family with a heart full of anger and a soul without love, he was the product of The Great Storm, a demon in himself, a once tender boy who had grown into a cold-hearted man.
He screamed a vicious scream into the wind, cutting into the night, shivering the moon. The four men began to backpedal but Gavin met their gaze with a terrifying calm. "No.", he said sarcastically. "Stay." His smile was the picture of death as the four men were petrified. Their still bodies remained exactly where they were as Gavin slowly approached them with his lonely switchblade. Then something had happened inside of Gavin. His conscious had kicked in.
He stopped at least five feet short of the men and pointed his switchblade at the men. His scowl set an extreme fear in the men's heart, but one of the men decided he was a lot braver than the rest of them. He stepped forward and before he could get any words out, Gavin interrupted him with a harsh voice and answered unspoken questions. "Listen, I don't want any trouble, but I can back it up of you want to bring anymore to me....." He looked in their faces to see if he read fear or contempt. It really wouldn't matter either way, but Gavin knew that if it was fear then he would never have to worry about ever seeing them again but if it was contempt, then he would be constantly looking over his shoulder to make sure danger wasn't there. He saw fear in all of he eyes except the ones that stepped forward. He laughed to himself, thinking, "We have an ambitious one here." He knew this man was looking to prove himself among his group. Gavin smiled at the stupid young man. The only thing he was going to prove was that death came to the dumb and the brave.
Gavin turned around and started to walk away, knowing that the brave one would try and strike him in the back, and sure enough the man of the shadows ran with a breath full of gusto toward the young man. Gavin continued to walk a few steps until the evil man was right behind him. Without looking, Gavin simply flicked his switchblade and sliced the man across the throat. Stuck in the pose of murder, he asked simply, "Do anymore of you want to try and attack me with my back turned to you because if so, I can simply turn around and face y'all, that is if y'all want me to."
Gavin turned around to see the remaining three once dangerous men retreating with their hands up back to the store that they once populated. Gavin had nothing to fear any longer. He turned around and began walking again, knowing that he had became the monster that Gordy had warned him so much about. But he didn't care because he was a monster with a mission. He was going to get to Texas no matter who tried to get in his way, no matter who would prove to be opposition,he would make it to the person who he knew loved him, who he knew he had loved. His mission was to find love and no matter what, he would accomplish his mission.

Golden Rotten Apple

I can't speak on the pain or see through the rain
Just wanna runaway like a runaway train
Got a runaway brain; my thoughts are somewhere else
Helping me to stay sane but shit could you blame me
The same people who made me seem to be out to mame me
I guess I'm just not their dream come true
I guess I'm not the angel who came down from Heaven
On October 23rd, 1987
Maybe I'll never find peace until I'm deceased
It's amazing the only love I get is out on the streets
When everybody could run to they moms or they dads
That's shit I ain't never had why everybody running to me
How could not expect jealousy
When I don't have a family and you parade yours around me
I don't wanna hear about your sister mines dead dog
A drunk driver damn near took off her head dog
I don't wanna hear about your big bro either
When my brother went missing on a mission
When my brother was cooking in the kitchen
When my brother was facing prison and still refused snitching
When my own sister don't want me
This is recent these ghosts don't haunt me
In a family tree that doesn't want me
I'm just a rotten apple with a stomach full of golden seeds
Just wondering what I can grow to be
A Sequoia with a concrete rose on it
A man who faced adversity and rose from it
A double something who kept it one hundred

Failure

Gave all hope when I realized my luck was bad
Now I'm like shit dog bad lucks all I ever had
Now I ain't superstitious but try and understand
If you were shot at and sold grams you were dealt a bad hand
I was born a bad man dealt a couple of aces, I shined in a couple of places
But still I wouldn't wiping tears from my people's faces
They expected a failure......

Still Aint Forgave Myself

Damien woke from his dream in a cold sweat on his leather couch. God had spoken to him and he knew it. He searched the living room for his son then he stood up and searched his house for his only son. He called out his name and when he heard no answer, he fell to his knees and bursted into tears. Diamond came out of her room and rushed to her father's aide. She stroked his shoulders and pleaded with him, "Daddy? What's wrong!? Are you okay!?"
He just kept repeating, "I'm a monster! A monster, what've I become!?"
She continued to wipe the tears from his face, but to no avail. The tears just kept pouring from his dark eyes. She was at a loss. She had never seen her father in so much pain.
Then Young Demon and Don walked into the house with Don's head sunk low to the ground. His heart filled with shame. His father had heard their footsteps and he rushed to face his son. When Damien saw the shamed face of his son, he reached for him and pulled him close. "Son!? My son! What have I done!? Are you okay, mijo!?"
Don shook in his father's embrace as Young Demon watches with a hint of jealousy. Such love he had never known. He would never know what it was like to be embraced in this way. The thought pained him in a way that a bullet could never touch.
Damien began to calm down while he held his son in his arms. He pulled his son at arms length and looked deep into his son's eyes and with Diamond looking over his shoulder, he asked, "Son, please tell me you didn't go through with my order? Please tell me that you didn't kill Rico?"
Don looked to the ground and thought about what had just occured in that apartment, the murders that he had been a part of. He remembered holding the gun to Rico, shaking. His eyes and his curses affecting Don on a level that he couldn't understand. Not at that moment. Young Demon understood, and he knew his friend would not pull that trigger, but Young Demon could not allow Rico to live, not after he had seen both of their faces, not after they had went through so much planning to have his crew betray him. If he had allowed Rico to keep his soul, they would have both been marked men all throughout Harlem. Not only that, but it would have made the Family look weak and Young Demon could not allow that. So he pulled the weapon out of his own jeans and proceeded to empty the entire clip of his Beretta into Rico's chest. Don knew he wouldn't be the same after that.
Afterward, after they had paid Rico's crew, they had left from the apartment, got inside of Don's Cadillac, and left, just in time to avoid the bullets from the assault rifles that filled the remaining members of Rico's crew. In that car, Young Demon had made a promised that if anyone were to ask, Young Demon would tell them that Don had been the shooter, but Don saw it in his father's tear filled eyes that he had wanted, had needed the truth. So that was exactly what he had decided to give him. He looked into his father's puffy eyes and with his own tear filled gaze, he answered, "No."
The happiness that filled his father's heart could be seen by all as Diamond let out a sigh of relief. She was so glad that her brother was unable to follow in her father's footsteps. "Oh son, that makes me so happy! Happier than you will ever understand."
"But pa, I failed you." His voice was filled with shame as he spoke, but the relief in his father's own voice made him fill a little at ease of not a little confused. "How could you be proud of me?"
"Son, you aren't like me." Damien looked over Don's shoulder into Young Demon's eyes and added, "Like Demon....Demon, that is name is not you anymore. You have saved my son again. You are more than Family. You are family. Come here, Dante."
Young Demon had not heard his real name ever since he watched his mother overdosed. Only his blood family ever called him by this name and in that instance, he felt like an orphan who had just found the family he had been searching for his entire life. He walked toward Damien's embrace with tears in his own eyes and Diamond watched as she gained another brother in her father's eyes. "Thank you, Dante for saving my son from the monster I was going to build in him. When no one else, including me, including himself, saw the potential in him, you did. I'm sure you took care of Rico and his crew for the Family and I am sorry for making you do that for me."
Dante looked up into Damien's eyes and answered with crocodile tears, "Anything for the Family."
Damien smiled and patted Dante on his shoulder. "You're right, Dante, so now it is time for me to do something for you."
Dante looked into Damien's eyes, confused. "Pops, but you've given me everything. What more could I possibly ask for?"
"Love, mijo. I've never told you that I loved you like a son. When I first looked into your eyes, I knew then that I should've been your father, a father to you. You were me."
"But you have been. You've given me everything when moms wouldn't even give me attention."
"But I gave you the wrong idea. When I was a little older than you two, I made a promise to myself that my family would never have to go through what I went through. I had forgotten that promise, but I was reminded by you. Not only that, but you saved my son from becoming a monster like his father." Dante nodded his head as he listened to every word. "I promised myself that I would do anything for my family, and you are just family to me, mijo. You are something like a son, no, you are a son to me, so it is time we make this official." He turned around and yelled with a voice filled with happy tears, "Come here, Diamond. I want all my children around me."
Diamond did just as she was told as Dante looked up to Damien. He had heard him when he had said "children" and he thought to himself, "Was he talking about me?"
Damien pulled all of them together as though they were babies waiting for him to tell a story. "Listen. You are all my children and I love all of you very much. I have not been the best father I must admit. I wanted my two sons to follow in my footsteps, but I have seen the light, my youngest son helped me with that." A light began to warm the recesses of Dante's heart. He had never heard someone say they loved him like a son, and it coming from a man he had revered so much, it was almost too much. "But from now on, I want you to find your own paths in life, a better path a better dream, and whatever you need to fulfill this dream, I will be here to help, just be something better than me. Be better than me."
Dante kept his gaze, "But what if I dream to be you, pops?"
Damien laughed but then his gaze became real serious. "Then have another dream, son."

Angel

She was beautiful for all the wrong reasons to the young man. She turned around to see the young man staring at her and with her doe auburn eyes, she examined the young man from head to toe, from his low cut Caesar to his tailored suit back to his handsome face and his well taken care of body. The sight of the handsome, young man in a suit brought a smile to her face. She loved the sight of a man with an edge about him and she could tell he had enough edge to actually speak to her, not cower like the rest of her father's men. This man in front of her was the only one who would ever offer his hand, not a hand, but she was not easy. She would not allow herself to be an easy catch.
She turned around with such grace that the young Damien fell into a trance that had him mystified by her beauty. He thought she was a dream, but the reality hit him hard when she realized who the young woman was.
Her name had befitted her. Angel, the daughter of one of the most powerful man in the Columbian Cartel. She was the daughter of David Garcia, and forbidden fruit to any of his employees, especially Damien, his most trusted hitman. But Damien never thought of anything as being unallowed to him. He remembered everything that he never had access to, and it disgusted him. Ever since his mother was killed by his father and he was left homeless when he was thirteen, he had the mentality that he would have the world and everything in it and that included the mirage that walked up the stairs to her apartment.
So the now twenty two year old Damien took the first step up those stairs, then the first step became a second one, and then his steps became a brisk jog as he chased what would prove to be the only opportunity for him to catch the dream girl who dwelled in the devil's memories when he slumbered. When he finally caught up to her, her brown eyes left him speechless. She was more beautiful than he had expected. His eyes had surveyed her gorgeous frame and her angelic face and he realized that the only thing he wanted to do was make her smile. "Hi."
She smiled and nonchalantly replied, "You mean to tell me that you ran all the way up here to catch me, and that's all you have to say to me?"
He smiled back at her, and she fell in love with his large smile. He realized that the only reason she had been on earth with him was because she was an angel casted down, more than likely because of the jealousy emitting from the other surrounding angels. She had to be the most enchanting being on earth and in Heaven, and she smiled at him. "Well, actually, my only mission was to make you smile. I didn't know I'd be able to accomplish that with just a hello, but I am glad to see you smile, love." She looked up to Damien with her eyes beaming and her smile as bright as the sun magnified. Damien licked his lips and held out his hand, "My name's Damien."
She grasped his hand, knowing in her mind that there was no need for her to introduce herself. "Well," She smiled again, "I am, intrigued."
"Really? Well how far are you willing to take your curiosity?"
She flirted back with the young Damien. "What so ever do you mean, sir?"
"Well to be truthful, I fell for that smile the first time I ever seen it and I would like to get another chance to see that smile, maybe over dinner, a movie, or anything else that may come to your mind, as long as it makes you smile."
"What about what makes you smile?"
"Just your company is enough to make me smile."
"Wow! Good answer. You know if I didn't know any better, I would say that you were a poet."
"I can be many things, but to my understanding of the poet, he usually needs the right kind of inspiration to create masterpieces. I just want to create a living masterpiece."
"Oh!?" She said with a hint of surprise in her voice. "And what would this 'masterpiece' be called?" She smiled, anxious to see if he would give the correct answer.
He looked at her, eyes full of confidence, and summed up as much bass his young lungs would allow, and in his most bravado voice, he answered, "Angel and Damien." He smiled again and asked as smooth as he possibly could, "Interested?"
She smiled and kissed his cheek. "Very." She licked her lips hungrily and answered, "I want to leave right now. Are you under any kind of assignment?"
In his mind, he knew he had to talk to her father, who was just beyond the door. He looked at her smile and it was tempting to tell her "no", but in his heart, he was too loyal to the man who saved his life, so the truth was the only thing he could speak out of his mouth. "Well, actually, I have some business to tend to with Mr. Garcia."
"My father?", she interuppted.
He could sense that this was the wrong thing to say, in an attempt to recover, he added, "Yes, but it's just a how should I say a progress report. The meeting should only take fifteen maybe twenty minutes. Do you think you'll be ready by then?"
Smooth and suave, all of the characteristics of her knight in shining armor and she felt more and more like a damsel in distress. "I like you. You seem to always know the right thing to say to me."
They both smiled, "Well, why shouldn't I? I told you, I'm willing to do anything to make you smile." She opened the door to her exquisite building and she lead him in. Her brother sat on the couch and watched as Damien walked behind her smile. He noticed the large smile on her face and her eyes, and he knew that her heart had just been stolen. He stood up with his gun in hand, a subliminal threat to the young man, who followed behind her telling him that if he broke her heart, there would be dire consequences and repercussions. Damien understood the threat but was not threatened. He looked upon Jimmy with a smile that said bring it on.
She went to her room to prepare for their date and Damien asked Jimmy, "Where's the big man, Jimmy?"
With contempt on his tongue, he answered, "He's standing right here, Young Harlem." They both laughed, Jimmy not letting go of his pistol. Damien simply shrugged his shoulders and he proceeded to David's office, a place where he knew his boss dwelled. He knocked softly, hoping he hadn't disturbed him.
David sat at his large desk in his sanctuary with a nose full of cocaine. He sat up from the white powder and looked up at the door with a scowl filled with anger. "Who is it!?"
Damien spoke with a submissive voice to quell his boss' anger. He knew what he had interrupted, and he knew that of had been anybody else, he would've walked into that office and been offered six shots into the chest. He thought to himself about the lives and Angel and Jimmy. The violence they had to endure day in and day out. The murders they witnessed with their own eyes, and he made a promise to himself that day that his family would never be exposed to such violence. His family would be as far removed from the life as he could possibly have them. "It's me, boss. Moreno Damien."
David shook his nose hoping he could acquire more of the white powder through his nostrils before letting the young man enter. "Come in,Damien."
Damien walked slowly with his head down, feeling as though he were a child in David's presence. David stood and offered his most brilliant smile. "Mijo! Come to me."
Damien walked toward David and his welcoming embrace. They hugged for a minute and David kissed the cheeks of Damien. "How is my favorite soul stealer?"
"I'm good, David. Blessed. How about you?"
David sighed, "Things could be much better, mijo. But then again, I am also blessed. My business is growing exponentially, my children are growing right before my eyes. Jimmy looks to be a fine young man who will follow in his father's footsteps, and Angel? Oh Angel. How her beauty reflects her mother's loveliness." Damien smiled at the mention of Angel, and David did take notice. "But of course, you know that, don't you, mijo?"
Damien was caught off guard and became slightly uncomfortable, not enough for David to notice but enough to make his heart's pace quicken. "Excuse me?"
"It's okay, mijo. I see the way you look at her. I see the happiness in your eyes whenever someone mentions her name." All Damien could do was smile. David laughed, "See, you can't hide it from me, mijo. Have you talked to her?"
"Actually, me and her are supposed to have a date today. I don't know what we're going to do, but....I just wanna see her smile, boss."
David read Damien's eyes to see if there were any lies within them. When he found none, he knew that this was the man for his little princess. He smiled, "I know the feeling. You know I used to try and set up dates with some of the made men's sons and other nice men who I came into contact with, and she would never have anything to do with them after their first phone conversation. At first, I thought she was uninterested in men, but then I began to study her. I took her all around New York, and I learned about her. She's a very cultured girl. I thought she was oblivious to my lifestyle, but she's not. She knows what I do. She knows it's my fault her mother is no longer, God rest her soul." He saw the pain in David's eyes when he mentioned his deceased wife, and he knew had he not been in the office with him, tears would've been shed. That was a pain he had hoped he would never have to experience. "I find that she distanced herself from the men in my life in an effort to find someone who would make her happy, whether mailman or hitman. Do you understand?" Damien nodded his head as David examined the picture of his wife that stood on a shrine like podium that stood in the corner of his office. He reached into his pocket and pulled out five grand and handed it to Damien.
Damien looked at the money as though it were a mistake. "What is this for boss?"
"Take her somewhere nice, mijo. Keep a smile on her face." Damien could only smile as the meeting concluded with the man who had the potential to become his father-in-law. When he left the office, David followed him out into the living room, and when they both caught a glimpse of Angel, they both smiled.
She was beautiful in every sense of the word. Her fitted green dress complemented her large brown eyes. She held out her hand toward Damien and asked him, "Are you ready, sir?"
He looked back at David with a huge smile of endearment toward David. "More ready then you know, ma'am." She giggled as he took her hand. Her laugh reminded David of a time when she was a young child. He had known she was truly happy with the unknown. That laughed mirrored his wife's laugh, the same laugh she would sing whenever she had an ice cream cone or whenever she watched her favorite movie with him. He loved to see his daughter happy. As they were leaving, she turned around to meet her father's gaze. When she saw his approving smile, she knew that she had found someone special in Damien. Even her father had known she had found someone special. She stood on her tippy toes outside of her door and whispered in Damien's ear, "You're impressive.", leaving a heavenly kiss on Damien's ear. One that he wouldn't wash off for years to come. That was the first gift his personal Angel had ever given him.

Beautiful Lie

The beautiful, long white haired woman stood in the face of adversity as she stared into the eyes of Apocalypse itself in the form of a dark knight seated upon a giant steed with massive flames breathing out of it's nostrils. Hope seemed dim for this young woman as the only thing that stood between her and certain destruction was her twin set of long rapiers she held in each hand. She stood in her battle stance with her long swords inverted, touching her elbows, gasping for much needed air. The knight on top of the steed laughed as looked down upon the woman who seemed to be nothing more than an ant to her. People filed out of the surrounding buildings to stare at the face of their champion as she stood her ground. None were brave enough to step out into the battlefield with her, but all were resting their hopes on her shoulders as her resilient eyes gazed upon the dark being that seeked to destroy them all.
It wasn't til' a young man in an all white sorcerer's robe stepped from the masses with only a long, red spear stepped to her side that any hope kind of hope was established. His large, brilliant smile gave hope to the masses as his confidence built confidence inside the heart of his companion. "Wazaam Venus? Looks like you need some help, homie."
The beautiful, blue eyed woman turned and glanced over the dark skinned young man with a small natural and did not offer a reply, only a sigh of relief that reinforcements came in the form of him. The knight on the dark steed laughed a malicious laugh as he saw the confident young man place the spear on his shoulders. He began to taunt the young man, pointing with his magnificent sword, asking, "Is this all that Earth has to offer? A woman with knives and a boy? A boy with a stick?"
His laugh would've shattered the ego of most, but the young man stood, unafraid and unapologetic for his smile. "If you think I am just a boy with a stick, then you obviously have no idea in who Blaze is."
The dark knight grew angry and prepared for his assault. His steed rose on it's hind legs as Venus, the young woman lunged to meet the knight's dark sword with her twin rapiers. Blaze also moved with a swiftness as he ran toward the underbelly of the steed and slashed at it's hind legs. The steed began to collapse under it's own weight, surprised that it had been taken down by such a lowly weapon. Then Blaze offered another smile as a small flame erupted in his hand. He threw the miniature blaze into he horse's belly and watched the flame grow the closer it got to the underbelly until the flame grew into an eruption similar to that of a volcano, destroying the innards of the steed.
The dark knight jumped off of the steed and battled Venus in the air as he he fell to the ground. Blaze stepped to the side and let the remains of the steed fall to the ground with a smile. Venus and the dark knight continued to battle until they landed hard on the ground.
The dark knight backed away from his enemy as he began to reassess his foe. But as he stood with his back toward Blaze, Blaze saw an opportunity that he could not pass up. He took that same spear that the dark knight had thought so little of and stabbed the dark knight in the heart. That same confident smile still fluttered on Blaze's face. The blade was soaked in the dark knight's black blood as fragmented pieces of his heart still hung on the sharp edge.
When Blaze removed the blade from the dark knight's heart,
he offered his charismatic smile to Venus. She looked at him with contempt and asked him, "Why did you help me? I didn't ask you to, why?"
He smiled and replied, "At the times when someone needs the most help is usually when they don't ask for it."

Not Your Ordinary Love Song

This ain't your ordinary love song for a not so ordinary girl
A shining star in dull world
A sharp tack to a smooth cat
A tuna snack for an alley cat plus she got my back
She know I use to sell drugs she alright with that
But she sees potential in me that they said I lacked
She said those are haters don't let them hold you back
Because of that fact I will never give her heart back
Had to steal it from her boyfriend way back
Gave her a dose of black she ain't never going back
At first she had a decision to make whether it was me or him
And of course I had to win
Of course I had to come in first place
But since I already had her heart there was no need for the race
Really there's no need for the chase
Cause her heart's a treadmill and I'm just running in place

The Kill Pt. 2

The young man sat on the old couch in the large trailer and
looked around all of the trinkets reflecting the sunlight from outside
and he thought to himself, "This place looked just like a house in the
hood." This would usually put him in a comfortable zone, but the house
filled with various, large white me did not fill his heart with any
type of comfort. He was afraid to look into the eyes of the men in
that house. He knew evil when he saw it in the eyes of men, and when
he looked in the eyes of his one of his old friend's boyfriend, he saw
the devil in those green eyes. His eyes were the eyes of the Serpent.
His friend stood out in the Crystal Springs sun and soaked
up every positive thought the sun rays could offer her while smoking
her last cigarette. In her mind, this was merely a bump in the road.
She knew the relationship she had with Crystal Springs' biggest meth
manufacture was temporary. Her beauty was too much for him to have
complete control over. Her mind was too beautiful for him to mold. She
would escape and she would escape soon.
The young man who sat in the living room listened to the
men in the house's conversation and it was like being surrounded by
people from an entirely different country. They talked livestock and
crops as though they were gardener, but the small boy who sat on that
couch knew that this was a code. Their words were merely a disguise
for their true meaning and his extensive street knowledge and his
instinct told him he was in the presence of some very dangerous men,
some men who were not afraid to take his life.
He got up without so much as a word and left for the same
positive sun rays his friend had been soaking in. The leader of this
dangerous gang of men watched every step the young man took until he
walked out of the door, and the young man knew it. The devil had
picked his target, striking the nerves of the young man so much, that
the cigar he pulled out of his pocket was like walking toward Heaven
and inhaling the smoke was like walking into those pearly gates.
He looked at his old friend from afar to peer at her
beauty, a beauty as rare as blue rose, or a child with a green and
blue eye, dimples, and brown skin. Her beauty was the lone sun ray
that rose from the earth, and in his mind, it was a shame to see such
beauty entrapped by man made metals. He walked toward her and simply
asked her, "What you finna do?"
She looked up into his eyes and saw the fear that rested
inside of his pupils. Out of all the years she had known this young
man, she had never seen the young man afraid of anybody or anything.
She used to look up to him for it. She seen him go in places where
most were scared to venture. She seen him live in places where even
police wouldn't enter, and she remembered him telling stories of his
whereabouts with a smile. But there was no smiles in his eyes today.
He had been petrified, and it became very real to her the existence
she had found herself in.
A part of her wanted to coax her friend's fear, but she
knew of his pride and she knew he didn't want to alert her of anything
that was going on with him internally. She shook her head simply and
he told her with his eyes to get inside of her car. He hopped inside
of the ninety's model Toyota with her jumping behind the steering
wheel. His voice had no shake in it, but the fear could be heard just
the same. "I have to go." She looked upon him. She had known something
was definitely wrong now, being as they had just gotten back to her
hometown and he was already ready to leave. The young man was the type
to endure a little bit of pain to ensure the happiness of his loved
ones. That was what most of his friends loved about him. His unselfish
nature.
So for him to be ready so quick struck fear in her heart
for her friend, almost to the point of tears. She knew she had no
choice but go get him out of there. She had wished she could have
stayed with him, but the fact that she had to return to her existence
brought a sadness upon her heart, a sadness that would drive most to
the brink of suicide.
She cranked her car as her boyfriend watched from the
blinds. The young man could feel the Serpent eyes burning into the
car, peering at both of them. She drove off and for a moment, they
both relaxed in their carseats, with the young man inhaling the smoke
as though it was just as needed as air. The ride was relaxing. He
wondered where they were going for a second, but he dismissed the
thought, simply happy that they were away from the Devil's Den.
When they pulled in front of what looked like an old county
jail, he gave her this strange look, a look that asked her, "What are
we doing here?"
She answered his eyes, "I have to clean up a set of
bathrooms real quick before it gets dark."
"That's cool." The young man stated, but in his mind it
really wasn't. He didn't want to be there either, but he figured it
was alot better than being at her house.
He walked in with her after they had removed the cleaning
supplies from out of the trunk in her car. The place had reminded him
of the inside of a prison. He saw men losing their souls behind these
walls. She started immediately by spraying urinals with cleaning
solution, probably the same urinals where men had lost their
virginities. She handed him a hose and a container that held the
cleaning solution and without words, she asked him to help her clean.
He had sprayed the urinals next to hers and the
pressured water mixed with the cleaning solution washed away the
grime. This brought the young man a happiness that was much needed.
He imagined what it would be like if he were able to do that with the
world, just wash away all of the evil. This made him work even faster,
cleaning two or three urinals to every one of his best friend's. She
looked over and saw the smile on his face and that in turn made her
smile. She had always loved his smile.
Then his concentration was broken when this broken down
man dressed like a hobo came from behind him, begging for a cigarette.
"I don't smoke cigarettes, homie."
Then the hobo turned around to face his friend. "What
about you, Barbie Doll?"
She gave the hobo a look of disgust. She hated being
called Barbie. Then her face transformed into a look of fear when she
saw her boyfriend standing behind the hobo. He opened a pack of
Marlboro 100's and handed him one of the long cigarettes, "Here you go
friend." The young man looked at her boyfriend and with a smile of
pure evil, he greeted the young man, "Sissy boy!" He placed his arm
around the young man's shoulder and patted his chest. Her boyfriend
turned her attention to her. "You forget something?" He let his
embrace go and shook the pack of Marlboro 100's in front of her face.
He could tell in her face that he was agitating her, but sense that
was his whole purpose, it didn't bother him that anger was rising in
her eyes. He smiled. "I tell you what. I'll give a fifty/fifty deal."
He took out a row of cigarettes and placed them in his pocket and
placed the box in his shirt pocket. He patted the young man on his
shoulder hard, and added, "Give me a few minutes with him."
The evil eye her boyfriend shot her young friend was not
unnoticed. He went back into the building and the young man looked
behind him toward his best friend and asked with a smile, "I guess I
gotta go get those, don't I?" She looked at him with eyes that pleaded
with him not to go back there, but for a moment, that fearless man she
had known for so long had returned as he followed the path of her
boyfriend.
When he entered the first room it looked like a place that
was supposed to be the sink. He looked at the young woman and the
large white man that stood above her. He knew what was going on there,
just like he knew it was none of his business. He kept walking and
passed another white man who looked like a mad scientist. He began to
notice that all of the men looked at him like he was a lesser being,
like a piece of meat. The Serpent's wolves were staring hungrily at
his young frame. He never realized how big the men were and how small
he was.
When he reached her boyfriend, he stood in front of the
large man who was accompanied by an even bigger man and his eyes held
courage for a mere second. The larger man removed a stool from
underneath the sink and placed it in front of the young man. He looked
upon the men as they were trees that only grew bigger and bigger. He
was scared now. The boyfriend looked at his bigger friend and asked
him, laughing, "Your prison or mine?"
The bigger man threw a disregarding gesture, "Oh I'll
just get some later. You could go ahead."
The young man knew what was going to happen now. He had
heard about what had happened to young men in the prison system. He
had seen it on movies and television alike but he never thought it
would happen to him, but here he was standing at the face of his fate
and he still couldn't let a scream escape his mouth. The boyfriend
smiled. "You know you can scream?" The young man's mouth didn't move
an inch and the devilish smile he loved to showcase so much flew
across his face. "Hard ass huh?" He laughed. "You don't have to scream
now....but you will."
The men from the other rooms flooded in behind them and
subdued the young man. The boyfriend bent him over and pulled his
pants down slowly, licking his lips in anticipation. He smacked him on
the ass before forcing himself upon him. Tears formed in the corners
of the young man's eyes and he gritted his teeth in pain as the men
and woman around laughed loudly. His screams soon came as pain
unimaginable filled every cell in the young man's body.
Twenty minutes later, the young man walked down that long
corridor of rooms wiping tears and sperm off of his face as he
listened to the laughter from behind him. He thought about the
boyfriend's last statement, "That'll teach you to come into my house
and leave without so much as a word, nigger. Like you're better than
us! You are a nigger, and will always be a nigger! Tell your nigger
friends what happened to you when you ventured into the white man's
land without an invitation. Maybe that'll teach your kind respect for
the white man." He remembered all of them laughing as he cowered on
the floor, shell shocked from the events that just took place. "Oh
yeah, and if you ever tell my Barbie what happened here, I won't kill
you. I doubt I'll ever be able to find one nigger throughout the
thousands of rats where you most likely populate, but I will kill her,
and I will kill her entire family and their blood will be on your
hands. Hope your day gets better when you leave, fish." He remembered
the horrible laughter that followed when he pulled his pants up and
turned on his heel to leave.
When he entered the room where Barbie stood waiting, she
looked at her friend's distant stare and she knew something drastic
had happened to him. She saw the tearstains on his face and every
instinct in her being wanted to comfort him, but something told her
not to. She could feel the hatred emanating off of his body, hatred
for everybody and everything. "Are you okay?"
He heard the concern in her voice, but it didn't
matter. The hatred in his heart overpowered everything from his past.
It no longer mattered who his friends were. He no longer cared about
people he had known his life. He hated every white person that walked
the face of the planet, including the sun ray that stood in front of
him. He couldn't offer her a smile. His heart was wrenched with pain.
His face was expressionless. With a distant stare and a promise to
kill every man and woman who was in that building, including his best
friend, he answered, "Nothing."

Paying The Cost

It wasn't until early the next morning that Damien had
finally strolled into his home from business. When he entered his
elegant place of residence, he had already knew that Diamond had been
sleep and that Don had finally found peace in his dreams, but when he
walked into the kitchen to find food for their morning meal, he had
saw Lil' D's lanky frame draped in a suit staring out into a view
overlooking the city, smoking a blunt. He had thought to himself, "He
must've inherited the insomnia disease along with me and Don."
He walked slowly toward the balcony with the beautiful view
of the city and opened the door. When Lil' D turned around to see
Damien, a large, youthful smile crept on his face. "Can't sleep?", he
asked softly with a voice full of care.
"Not without my medicine, pops." Lil' D lifted the blunt in
the air to show Damien his so-called medicine and Damien couldn't help
but laugh. Damien held out his hand in greeting and Lil' D took it and
embraced his best friend's father as is he were his own.
When their embrace was broken, Damien asked, "What's going
on, Lil' D?"
Lil' D shook his head and replied, "Nothing I can't
handle, boss."
"That's what I like to hear.", Damien said with a smile as
wide as Lil' D's. He inhaled the smoke into his lungs before passing
the blunt to Damien. Damien gladly took the blunt from his young
protege and laughed, "I don't know how you know I smoked. Very few
people know that."
Lil' D scoffed, "C'mon pops, real smokers know smokers
when they see 'em."
They both laughed as Damien pulled on the blunt and
exhaled the marijuana air. "Ya' know, I have to smoke something before
I could even attempt to sleep. That's the price for the life I lead, I
even passed on the disease of insomnia to my son." He continued to
pull on the marijuana smoke, letting it offer a comfort that no amount
of money could provide. "But you know if I could trade my life in for
a good night's sleep, I wouldn't. I made myself a promise that if I
ever gained a family, I would provide them with a home cooked
breakfast every morning, no matter what I had to do to provide food
for my family, I would do it. So now I have to live with this, the
decisions I made."
Lil' D nodded his head in acknowledgement, "I understand,
pops, and I respect you for it." Damien passed the blunt to Lil' D and
he continued, "I also respect you for making Don wait to be on the
path to take over the throne. I respect that because I see potential
in him too, pops." Lil' D hit the blunt again before continuing. "Alot
actually."
"I know, but it was more than the potential I saw. No
father, no righteous father wants to see his son pass before him, and
in this line of business, it's real easy to lose your life, no matter
how far up the totem pole you are."
"I feel you, pops. I wish my pops thought like you." Lil' D
laughed with Satan's heckle. "Shit, I just wish he was an actual
father to me, instead of abandoning his post, but fuck it though, I'm
eating now ain't I?"
Damien hated seeing the sadness in Lil' D's eyes. It
reminded him too much of his own past. "That you are."
"It wasn't too long ago when I had. nothing, family. Moms
wasn't ever there for me. We lived in the same house a long time when
she was sober." The memories of seeing his mother cracked out on the
living room couch surrounded by other addicts still startled him to
this day. The distant stare in their eyes still haunted him, and
Damien knew it. The stare in Lil' D's eyes were too familiar, and he
hated remembering the times he himself had experienced.
"Word."
Damien wanted to converse about something more present
and more pressing and he knew that Lil' D would have something
pressing to discuss if he had waited all night for him. He grew
curious and wanted to make sure he changed the subject. "So Lil' D,
what pressing matters did you have to bring to my attention?"
Lil' D had so much on his mind that he wanted to address
to Damien that he had forgot that there was a purpose to his visit to
the kingpin's condo. "Yeah, but it ain't nothing I can't handle with
your permission, boss man."
"What's goin' on?"
Lil' D took another hit of the blunt before answering.
"You remember that nigga, Rico over there on 41st in Harlem?" Damien
really couldn't recall the name and it showed on his face. "Yeah you
may not remember Rico, but I know you know about his older brother.
You do remember JuJu, don't you?" The hatred that boiled in the grown
man's eyes gave evidence to Lil' D that he had just reopened a wound
that had begun to scab over. Damien remembered every detail of the
young man who had at one point in time tried to murder his son. He
remembered that moment as though it had happened yesterday. He
remembered his son in tears bursting through the front door,
screaming, "Lil' D just got shot!" It was the first time in a long
time that he had felt like he wasn't untouchable. Had it not been for
Lil' D taking Don's bullet, only the Devil knew what evils would have
taken place. "Well, apparently, Rico got it in his heart that he tired
of you running Harlem. He's still sore about losing his bitch ass
brother, and my little nigga put me on to a plot him and his crew got
cooking up and shit, the way I feel, ain't nobody fucking with my
family, so I wanna handle this shit personally for you, pops. Let me
bring his soul back to you, pops."
Damien was shocked by how commited Lil' D was, but in a
way, he knew that if he would take a bullet for his son, he would take
a life for his family. "How reliable is your source?"
Lil' D caught Damien's dark gaze and answered, "I'd put
my on his info. My little Pablo don't lie. He may do a lot of shit
beyond his age, pop, but he don't lie. One of the realest niggas, word."
Damien nodded his head. "Alright, how you gonna handle it
Young D?"
Lil' D smiled, "Well check this out. Since ya' boy wanna be
a snake ass nigga, I want this suspect ass nigga's own people to turn
their guns around and blaze at him. I want him to feel the pain of
having his homeboys turn on him. I want to see the pain in his eyes
when he realize that he gone leave this earth by himself."
Lil' D smiled while Damien thought to himself, "Look
what the world has turned him into. Young demon." Then at that point,
Damien had Lil' D's new name in mind. "Young Demon." The door behind
Damien had opened to reveal a still sleepy Don. Damien smiled, "I love
the plan, Young Demon. The ruthlessness about it....." His smile grew
wider, inherently proud of his inherited son. "It's sexy, something I
would hav thought myself. I want it taken care of as soon as possible."
Lil' D or now, Young Demon, nodded his head in
acknowledgement and respect. Don rubbed his eyes and watched as his
little brother increase in ranking. Seventeen and Capo status. "I got
you, boss."
Then Damien's evil smile crept on his face, and he was no
longer the loving father figure. He was now the ruthless killer that
New York feared. He had his own malicious plan cooking on the stove in
his brain. "One condition."
Don walked toward the conversation, a move he would regret
later. "What's good, family?"
Damien looked upon Don as though he had looked down on
him, like he wasn't worthy of being in his presence. So in his mind,
he had decided to present his only son a chance to prove himself.
After all, you can't be the King of New York if you have never killed
somebody. "I want my son to go with you." He said with a smile, eyes
analyzing every body movement his son made. He could tell that his son
was truly shocked by the news. He should be. Most kingpins wouldn't
send their sons on the battlefield. That's what seperated him from the
average. Most kingpins climbed to their positions with dilligence and
smarts. Damien climbed to the top by making other kingpins and dons
alike cower in his presence, and Damien would make sure New York
feared Don the same way they feared him. "I want Don to be the one to
place a gem inside of what's his face's heart."
Young Demon looked in Don's eyes to find fear, but he found
none. Don knew that his time to prove himself would come. He knew that
his father would never hand over his throne that easy.
Demon didn't want Don involved. He knew he didn't have a
choice really, but instill he had hoped that the way things were would
last forever. It satisfied Demon just to be Don's best friend and best
soldier, while Don was molded to be a king of diplomatic proportions,
but Demon just guessed that Damien had started from the bottom, he,
himself, had started from the bottom, and Don was to be no exception.
"You wit' that?" Demon asked, hoping he would say "no", knowing he
would say "yes".
Don smiled a malicious smile and replied with venom dripping
from his tongue, "But of course. Anything for the family."
"Good." Damien said with horrible intentions for his enemy.
"I want you two to start on that today, no school. I'll send somebody
to pick up your work and bring your doctor's to your teachers, matter
of fact, I'll just give Diamond the excuses when I drop her off at
school. Demon, I want you to tell Don the plan. Don, take the lowkey
car, take a trip to The Armory out there in Southside Queens, and ask
for the rasta, Banks. I'm uh call ahead and tell him to expect you.
While you guys are preparing yourselves, Demon, I want you to call up
your people and assemble yourselves before setting up Rico. I have
some more business I want you two to come speak to me about after this
is handle." Diamond watched from outside of the clear door and with
her big brown eyes, she watched her brother becoming a man, and the
fear in her eyes reflected back in her vision. The two young men
nodded their heads and Damien added, "And son." Don looked in his
father's eyes with questioning eyes that reminded Damien of the time
when he was just five years old and he had asked his father what he
had done for living. He had never lied to his son, but he didn't tell
him the whole truth either. Now, as Don stood as a man, he was about
to learn the whole truth about what his father had done. His father
had ushered his son to come closer to him. Don's steps were heavy,
cherishing the moment where he was to gain his father's respect.
Demon shook his head and looked into Diamond's eyes with
sorrow. They were both connected by the same pain of knowing that Don
was to become a full fledged killer in mere moments and there was
nothing they could do about it. He smirked, hoping his smile could
ease her pain. Seeing her eyes roll made him shake his own head and
look down at the ground. He thought to himself, "I didn't take a
bullet for him so he could take one later."
He licked his dry lips as the prince came in arm's reach
of the king. Damien reached out and placed his hand on his son's
shoulder. He looked deep into Don's eyes, and told him simply, "Make
me proud, son."
Don nodded his head, and his head fell to the balcony
floor. Damien had picked his head up with his index finger and looked
deep into his son's eyes and he found his son's mission was clear.
Demon couldn't do nothing but look and think to himself, "This isn't
right."

Faith

After Don had dropped Diamond off at their father's condo,
he had doubled back to go pick up Lil' D. While in the busy New York
traffic, he had pulled out his cellphone and dialed Lil' D's number.
It rang twice before a familiar voice came on the other line. "Wassup,
family? You on yo' way here?"
"Yeah, family. I'm on the way now."
Don could hear the approval in Lil' D's voice. "Good, good.
You talk to Pops for me?"
He knew that question was next. Just like Lil' D. Straight
to the point. "Yeah, I talked to pa, he handling some business right
now, but shit he said to just come to the spot in a minute and he'll
be there when in a minute."
"Iight, cool. Well shit doggy, I'll see you in a minute
when you get up here, my dude. I'm uh need you advice on something,
dog."
"Iight love, I'll see you in a minute."
"Iight my nigga, one." Don had hung up the phone and
continued to weave through the traffic in his Murcielago. It was
around thirty minutes later when Don had arrived at
Lil' D's front doorstep. He knocked a special rythym of knocks that
only he and Lil' D knew. In no tine, Lil' D opened the door slightly
with a smile. "Wassup, family!? Come in, fam."
Don entered slowly taking in the plush insides of Lil' D's
apartment. Lil' D threw up his fists mockingly with Don throwing his
own up. They slap boxed for a brief second before Lil' D let his guard
down and told Don to stay put for a brief second with hand gestures.
Lil' D grabbed the lit blunt out of the ashtray and went to the back
room. Don caught a glimpse of the tattoo on Lil' D' naked back with
his name beside of a cross and the quote, "Brother's Keeper", and he
recalled the moment where Lil' D earned that scar that the tattoo
covered. He could still hear the gunshots ringing in his ear from that
memory that happened so long ago. That was the moment where they truly
became brothers. That was the moment where they became Family.
Don shook himself out of the powerful memory and took
notice to the slow music Lil' D had playing in the background, and he
yelled, "Damn, family! You got you a little shorty coming through or
something? What's up with you banging Aaliyah in this bitch, dog!?"
Lil' D came out of the background holding two suits, one
all black and another a smooth beige color and he replied, "You know
that's my angel right there, shorty. Now tell me dog, which suit look
better. The black joint or this creme joint?I like this creme joint
man. It's sexy, ain't it?"
Don simply smiled and replied, "I think the beige one
actually fits you better, dog, but I don't know why you asking me,
though. You know you the slick stylist of the Family, love."
Lil' D laughed, "Yeah, you right, but I needed a second
opinion, ya' dig. You know I like to look my best when I go see Pops."
"Yeah, I know."
"Word."
The morning conversation stirred between Don and his father
stirred in his mind. He yelled in the humble yet lavish apartment,
"You know me and my pa was having a conversation earlier about me
following in his footsteps, right!?"
Lil' D stepped from out of the back room with the blunt
hanging from his lip, clearing intrigued by this new conversation. He
grabbed the blunt from his lip and inhaled the smoke into his lungs.
"Go on.", he stated simply as though it should have been understood.
"Well, he told me nothing would make him happier, but he
wanted me to hold off on my decision until after I graduated. It's
hard to wrap my mind around waiting for something, you know I ain't
patient. I just don't know why he would want me to wait."
Lil' D shook his head. "You really can't see why he would
want you to wait?"
"No."
"You don't realize how blessed you are, do ya'?" Lil' D
said sarcastically.
Don returned his sarcasm with a hint of cynical tone of his
own. "No."
"Look, dog, me and your pops relate on many different
levels, including our pasts. Not taking away from y'all bond that
y'all have with each other, but unlike us, you have opportunity,
opportunity to do something better wit' ya' self, aside from this
street shit. You may not be able to see it, but you do have potential
to be whatever you want to be, no homo."
Don laughed and smiled at his long time friend. His smile
was full of hope when he asked, "You really got faith in me like that
D?"
Lil' D just laughed, "I wouldn't have taken no bullet for
no pooput."
Don laughed and stood up, offering a hand of gratitude to
his oldest friend, his brother. Even though stood a full six inches
above Lil' D and was a year older than him, he still regarded him as
an equal and valued every ounce of wisdom he passed onto him. Lil' D
took his hand and embraced his brother. "I love you, family."
"I love you too, dog, no homo." They both laughed as Lil' D
went to the back room to retrieve his blazer.
Don yelled again over the sultry voice of Aaliyah, "Hurry
up, man! Let's go....", but before Don could finish, Lil' D's outfit
was complete and he was already walking out of the door, anxious to
meet the head of the Family.

Let A * Be A *

That morning when Don and Diamond left their condo in the
sky, Don whipped through early morning New York traffic with his
beautiful, all-black Lamborghini Murcielago. His sister hid behind the
tints of the beautiful car as she peered into the curious faces of the
pedestrians who watched the beauty of a car drive away, and she felt
the tinge of jealousy in their hearts. She looked back at her brother
driving the car with one hand on the steering wheel and the other on
his all black Beretta, gun matching the color of his suit, and she
felt safe again.
When they pulled up in front of the school, she opened
up the Lambo doors, and exited out of the car exactly as a model
should when paparrazzi was waiting outside. Of course there were no
cameras for this princess, only the eyes of the onlookers and students
who took mental pictures of the beautiful Diamond in her fitting, all-
black dress, her outfit also matching the Murcielago. She turned
around when she saw that her brother did not exit out of the car with
her. "I'll be back."
She smiled. Curiousity had bitten her heart, but she
realized that curiousity was unneeded when she already knew what he
was going to do. She shook her head and whispered, "Tell D I said
wassup." Her brother had returned her smile. They always seemed to
know what the other was thinking. The ideal brother and sister
relationship. The yin and the yang. She gave her trademark, four
fingered wave to her brother before adding, "Save me some."
Don had burst out into laughter before replying, "Okay,
shorty." Then he sped off, causing the girls watching from in front of
the prep school to swoon at their singular crush's antics. A group of
beautiful women all approached the gorgeuos Diamond, all envious of
her beauty, all mystified by her brother, all horrified of her father.
Don bobbed his head to some alternative music jamming
out of the speakers, clearing his mind from the New York City noise
and the New York City drama. When he finally reached his best friend's
apartment, a little humble duplex in Brownsville, he saw Lil' D
outside rubbing his face sleepily with school boy uniform pants and a
t-shirt that read, "I Don't Give A F***" and Don shook his head and
thought to himself, "So Lil' D."
When Lil' D saw the elegant sports car in front of him, he
bopped to the car, jamming to music only he could hear. When he opened
the door, he peeked his head in at first and yelled, "Wassup, family?"
Don returned his greeting with his own. "What's good
family? Get in the car."
Lil' D smiled and jumped in the car, hand gripping the
top of the sportscar. He gave Don a look of disbelief and curiousity
before asking him, "I see you already got the la' music on, huh?"
They both shared a laugh as Lil' D pulled out a couple
of blunts and a Black and Mild out of his pockets, and proceeded to
light one of the blunts. "You know I like to relax a little before I
go to school, dog."
Lil' D exhaled the potent smoke and replied with a lungs
full of marijuana, "Yeah, but Incubus though?"
Don shot Lil' D a look of disbelief. "But you know it
though huh?"
Lil' D laughed loudly, "That's cuz I be wit' yo' ass all
the time, holmes." They both shared another laugh before Don switched
to another classic CD of the rap variety. "Now see that's that shit
right there. That real Mobb Deep shit, ya' dig!" Don shook his head
and continued to laugh at his young friend. "But shit son, I got a
story for yo' ass, doggy."
Don looked at his old time friend and smiled. "Run that
shit, son."
Lil' D passed the blunt to his best friend and went on to
tell his anecdote. "Iight, you know that Dominican nigga in yo' grade,
what's his name, Johnny?" Don nodded his head in acknowledgement, and
Lil' D continued on with his story. "Iight, you know his bitch right?
The little, cute ass white girl? The little freshman, you know who I'm
talking about."
Don shook his head, "Sorry, love. I don't."
Lil' D waved his hand and took the blunt from Don. "Well
off that shit, take my word for it, shorty straight."
Don cracked a smile. "I guess."
"Iight, well she always seems to have a compliment for me
everytime she see me, ya' know, like she be feeling me, so one day I
got her numbers, right. So I decided Sunday to try this young bitch,
see what she talkin' 'bout. See if we talkin' 'bout the same thing,
ya' dig. So iight, I call her up to see what she doing. She tell me
she chilling at her cribbo by herself, so I'm like blunted and I'm
like so what's good wit' you? Can I come chill wit' you? She tried to
hit me with the line like, "I'm tired", and you know me, I reverse
that like I'm tired too, I'm just trying to find a place to lay it
down, but I ain't trying to lay up by myself, ya' dig. Maybe I could
come nap up wit' you, shorty. So she like come through. I'm uh shoot
you the address through a text real quick, just hit me up whenever you
get here. So I go to the bitch crib, and the shit is live. She offer
me something to drink, you know my mouth cottoned up by now, so we go
back to her room and I lay on her bed, no permission, ya' know me, I'm
gangster wit' it, thorough wit' it. She standing up, conversating
about this and that and I get comfortable and I told her to come take
a nap wit' me"
Don laughed while hitting the second blunt, "So you was
cuddling wit' chick?"
Lil' D held his hands in the air in a halt position,
"Whoa, whoa, family, let me finish, son. So like we chilling for a
minute, and you know her body all on a nigga, so I start rubbing on
her and I grabbed one of her titties right, I played it off like it
was an accident, ya' know, and she was like that's okay, that's okay,
and I kept it real wit' her."
Don knew Lil' D had to say something silly after that.
"What you said, D?"
Lil' D simply laughed to himself. "I was like even though
I ain't mean to, I ain regretting nothing, love. You feel good to my
hands. She laughed and I was like ya' know if you don't mind, I wanna
run my hands over 'em, if you let me. I was kinda shocked that she let
me get away with that. So I'm playing with the nipples, and they
pretty pink too. My first white girl doggy. Then we took it from
there, put her to sleep, shorty, then two words, I'm gone." They both
laughed loudly. "And the whole time I was coming back to the crib, I
thought about ya' boy Johnny like damn dog, I just got yo' bitch."
"So what's the moral of this story, love?"
"The moral of this story is I'm a dog ass nigga, and I'm uh
stay single forever cause shortie out here is bugging. They ain't
looking for no relationship, dog. They turned on by the money, and you
know the family made of money." Don nodded his head while he
manuevered his car into the school parking lot. "Speaking of the
family, I gotta talk to Pops, dog. I need you to hook that up for me."
Don looked at Lil' D legitimately confused. "What you
need to talk to him fo'?"
Lil' D shook his head. "It ain't nothin', just wanna
check in with him, tell him some foul shit I done heard, and see how
he want me to handle it."
Don wanted to enquire more, but he trusted his friend
with his life, so he decided that his friend had the Family's best
interest at heart. "I got you, family. I'll set that up later, matter
fact."
"Expeditiously." Lil' D added.
"Nigga! Shut up! You ain't even ready for school!" Don
laughed evilly at his best friend's expense. "Get yo' shit on before
we end up late to this bitch, man."
"I'm fa' real though." Lil' D said while putting on his
wrinkled white dress shirt and his green blazer with the school's
emblem on the front. Then he put on his trademark black tie on and his
trademark swag was complete. "Set that up for me, daddy."
"I got you, doggy. Come on before we late to this ma'
fucker."
They walked up to the school briskly, attracting the
attention of the pretty, young stragglers who were also running late
to their first class.

Damien

The smell of sausage and eggs could be smelled all throughout the elegant high rise condominium in the metropolitan section of New York City. The sausage sizzled on top of the beautiful electric stove as the tall, dark handsome man with his dress shirt sleeves rolled up on his arms flipped over the eggs. He had made himself a promise a long time ago that if he had lived through his turbulent life to see the day he would have his own family, he would cook breakfast for them every morning. He had lived long enough to keep that promise, but not long enough to escape the turbulence that was his present life.
He placed the scrambled eggs next to the Cajun sausage on the plates that rested by an all black Beretta. He looked at the lonely pistol on the marble counter top and realized that he would be a gangster for the rest of his natural life. He even knew that he would raise a gangster when he heard his son enter into the kitchen. "Wassup, pa?"
A young, tall replica of his handsome father entered into the kitchen. His father looked into his son's eyes and smiled. Nothing made a father more proud than seeing his son in a suit ready to tackle the day, living up to the success his father had dreamed for him so long ago. He turned his attention back to the ready toast and placed the toast on a plate for his son. He grabbed the plate and handed it to his son. "What's going on, Don?" His son shook his head and rubbed his eyes still recovering from the troubled sleep he has the night before, a trait he had inherited from his father. "Where's your sister?"
Don smiled, revealing a beautiful smile, and he laughed with a hint of malice, not that there was any bad blood for his sister, his soul was just filled with just as many heinous thoughts as his father so his laugh was naturally cold. "You know Diamond likes her sleep. She isn't haunted by her dreams like us, pa."
He shook his head at his son's statement, knowing it to be true. He was definitely the son of a kingpin, the don of the Black Mob. "And for that, she is truly blessed. Go eat your food, son. You have a long day of school ahead of you. My son, a senior in high school. I'm proud of you."
Don smiled his devilish smile and thanked his father, humbled by his father's statement. His head sunk to the floor as his father picked up Don's face with his index finger and looked directly into his laughing eyes. "I know, I know, pa. Always look a man in his eyes."
They both shared a laugh after Don repeated a lesson his father had taught him a long time ago. He patted his son on the shoulder lovingly and proceeded to his daughter's room. As he walked through the hallways, he looked at the family portraits on the wall. His eyes caught the eyes of his wife in still and stared in her beautiful, dark brown eyes and he felt as though he had fallen in love with her all over again. His Angel.
When he reached his daughter's door, he knocked moderately hard, in case she was still sleep. When he heard no answer, he opened her door to reveal the sleeping beauty that laid half naked in her queen size bed. She laid sprawled out on her bed, mouth opened, looking as though she were dead to the world. He crept over to the side of her bed slowly and took his fatherly throne on the side of her bed. He looked at her angelic, smooth brown creamed face and stared at a direct reflection of his wife's face. He smiled, proud of the Diamond that laid in her bed. She truly shined like the most precocious diamond ever pressurized by the earth. He moved the long strand of hair that had found itself inside of her mouth and wiped the sleep around the corners of her mouth gently. Her eyes fluttered and she began to stir, wiping the sleep from her eyes. "Hi, daddy." Her soft voice trailed into his ears. She had the same melodic voice of her mother's she even sounded beautiful in the morning, but her eyes, her big, doe brown eyes were inherited from her father.
He smiled as he wiped more sleep from her face as she relaxed under his hand. It warmed his heart to have a daughter who had loved him as much as Diamond had loved him. "Wake up, sweetheart," Her large bust sat on top of her comforter, but her father's gaze never left her eyes. He had told her a long time ago that if a man could not look into her eyes every time he spoke to her, then he didn't deserve the Diamond of his heart. She was daddy's little girl. "Breakfast is ready and your brother's waiting for you in the dining room. Hurry up and get ready, you don't wanna be late to school do ya?"
She smiled and said softly, "No."
He smiled and playfully tapped her face, "Good. Well your breakfast is waiting for you in the kitchen, okay sweetie?", he said while rising from his throne on the side of her bed.
"Okay, daddy."
Her father had walked to the door and before he turned the knob to exit out of her room, he turned his head and said a phrase he made sure to tell his daughter everyday. "I love you, sweetheart."
She smiled and repeated the phrase to her father. "I love you too, daddy."
It warmed his frigid heart to hear that phrase from the second woman he had ever loved. He turned his head and allowed his daughter to get ready for her own day of school.
He walked to the dining room to see his son scarfing down the food he had prepared. He laughed on the inside and thought to himself, "He even got his father's appetite." He shook his head and took his place at the glass table. He stared at his son hungrily stuffing food in his mouth with thoughts swirling in his mind.
Don noticed that his father had been staring at him for the past five minutes and he began to wonder what was on his father's mind. "Wassup, pa?"
His father only smiled. "You, son."
Don laughed with a mouth full of eggs. He swallowed his food and asked, "What about me, pa?"
His father shook his head. "You a senior now, Don."
Don smiled. "Yeah, so?"
"What you wanna do after you graduate, Don? Yo' time is coming awfully, son. What's your plan after school?"
Don wiped the side of his mouth and formulated thoughts in his mind. "I ain't gon' lie, pa. I been thinking about that."
"So what you been thinking about, son?" His father asked sincerely.
"I been wondering what I could do, ya' know? But then I got this little nigga right, and he just like you in a way. He hungry and I realized I have his same hunger."
"You talking bout Lil' D?"
"Yeah and he got me thinking, this gangster shit, it's in my blood, ya' know. I ain't like Diamond. I don't really have no legit way of getting this money. All I know is crime. The only people I attract is criminal. All I know is trouble. So I thought about college and shit, but then I realized, I ain't no college boy. I'm the son of a kingpin, so for the rest of my life, people gonna be after me, either trying to take me to hurt you or to get close to me in hopes that I'd put 'em on wit you, so like my nigga be saying, why not take these streets and lock 'em, for the family, ya' know. I'm a street nigga going to a prep school, getting an education, and I feel like I'd have more use to the family than to anything else, so why not follow in the footsteps that my father laid out for me?"
His father smiled. "So is this your decision, son, or is this Lil' D's?"
Don looked deep into his father's eyes and gave him an answer that would warm his heart like the last phrase after every conversation they have. "Pa, nothing would make me happier than being a part of the beautiful organization you built from the ground up, and that's real."
His father stood up and offered his son his hand. Don took his father's hand and stood up to embrace his father. His father whispered in his ear, "Nothing would make me happier than to have you a part of this organization, but I want you to wait until after you graduate from high school, just to make sure you don't find another path, but if you don't, I am right here, and there will always be a throne for you, my prince."
Don kissed his father's cheek and clutched his father tight. "I love you, pa."
"I love you too, son."
Just then, Diamond had entered the dining room with a huge smile on her face. "Damn, daddy! Can I get some love too!?" He smiled and broke his embrace with his son, and grabbed his daughter. She kissed his cheek and hugged her father tightly. "What y'all talking bout?"
In an attempt to keep his son's conversation a secret, he switched the subject. "Your food is on the stove, sweetheart. You ready for school?"
Her business woman attire told her father that she was more than prepared to handle business at school. In that instance, he was glad he taught his children how to dress for success. He stood proud knowing that his children would be successful in whatever they had planned on doing. "Yeah l, daddy. I'm ready for school."
She had known that her father had changed the subject on purpose. She had seen him do this many times before whenever he had not wanted them to know exactly what was going on, but the wonderful thing about her father was the fact that he would always tell them what's going on when he felt they were ready to receive the news. So she didn't pay it any mind, knowing she would soon find out. She grabbed her food and stuffed as much as she could in her mouth before she yelled with her her sweetest voice, "Daddy! Could you put the rest in the refrigerator for me? I don't wanna be late to school." He shook his head and began to wrap the food up as she ran up and gave her father a kiss on the cheek. "Thank you, daddy. You know as soon as I get back, I'm uh need my favorite meal of the day."
She flashed her dad her most brilliant smile, "I know."
"Okay. Love you, daddy!"
His smile was a replica her's. "I love you sweetie."
After both of his children had left, his mile had stayed on his face for but a second before his natural scowl had returned. Gone was the domesticated kingpin, and in his place was the evilest warlord that had ever resided in New York. Gone was the loving father and husband and in his place was the ruthless man who had no regards for human life. Gone was a father and a king and in his place stood Damien. He thought to himself, alone in that beautiful kitchen, "At least I am still able to cook for my family."

Concrete Rose: A Tupac Shakur Tribute

The concrete rose concept is a complicated concept
But it applies accurately to the life I lead
Growing up I seen alot of things that would make it hard for someone to smile
At an impressionable age, I've learned the tricks and the trade of crime, learning everything from how to bag up to disassemble pistols
I shot guns, been shot at, sold drugs, done drugs, and held it all inside of my brown eyes
I used to look to the ground and think that I would never make it out of the struggle I myself created
But instead of staying in the confines of my concrete prison, I decided to bloom
I strived to reach the sun and began to climb from the street
The scratches on my petals are the scars I earned throughout my lifetime
I still couldn't quit
When I began to see the light, the seeds who were stuck in their concrete prison attempted to keep me company to their misery,
But I would not defer
When I rose from the concrete, some looked as though I was a miracle, realizing that I was not perfect with my scars
They saw the scars as the battle wounds of a man who would everything to rise
Others saw me as ugly because of my scars, but only if they knew, only of they knew the good I was capable of
I know the responsibility I have now
I know that the concrete rose must pollinate
He must spread the knowledge that he himself had attained
So I spread my petals and let all those who were told were never to bloom,
And I say, "Rise"

Little Poet Girl

Little poet girl a walking melody
A perfect prose of beauty
Little poet girl the way you write in your diary
Makes me feel a hint of jealousy; wishing you was writing about me
Little poet girl, the perfect simile
To the sound of the strum of your pen against your pad, driving me mad
Little poet girl an inspiration and a muse and an artist all in your own
Little poet girl, I just want you to know that your whole being is beautiful

It's Hard Out Here

"This gon' be my last game right here, homie." That was always my least favorite part about late nights at LMU. Since everybody else in the student center actually went to school here, they actually went to school here, they actually had classes in the morning, unlike me. A teenager who just did anything to stay away from home. Mark was always the coolest out of everybody that occupied the student center. He always brought his own stick and he won all of the games he played, even with the pool tables being in such horrid conditions. Out of all the people who played ping pong and pool, Mark is the one who taught me how to play all of the student center sports until I got to the point where I could beat almost everyone there at least one time.
He was also the most understanding. Being from Long Beach, California, he understood struggle, he understood pain. I showed him my own war wounds that I received at home, he told me to be strong in my situation, and when he graduated, he would take me to the hood where he was from. I imagined all of the time what it would be for a white boy from Harrogate, Tennessee to survive in Long Beach. Whatever it was, it would have to be better than staying at that house. To me, living here was like searching for an oasis in hell, and my dad was like the devil, only worse. Only one semester left though, and I'm out of his grasp forever.
I watched Mark leave after he shook my hand and told me to stay strong. That was easy for him. He was naturally athletic, naturally strong, but not me. I wasn't as strong as him, but in a few months, I can change that.
Once Mark left, I played a few games with the other LMU students, but without Mark there, I didn't really see no purpose for being there. He was my angel, and where ever he was, Heaven followed.
I walked out into the cold with some old jeans, the hoodie and the jacket that Mark gave me to protect me from the harsh weather of the mountains. As I looked at the campus walking back to my house, I passed by the fairly new apartments and wondered what it would be like to live in places like this. Dishner, the place that is filled with soccer players and freshmen. I don't really know them but they always smiled at me. One thing they always offered me was joy.
Then there was Mitchell, filled with basketball players. Besides Mark, I had one other favorite basketball player. She was one of the nicest yet strong women I've ever met, so unlike my sister, who was something like a human prisoner in our home. I loved Cena's hugs.
Then there was Pope. Nobody but the second or third best pool player lived there, but I didn't really know anyone that lived there. The last two two dormitories that I passed were LP and Munson. LP was the home of Mark's secret love. I knew about her and I knew how he felt about her, even when no one else did, and I could easily remember why he had fallen so deeply in love with her.She was not only beautiful, but she was also real. She was a truly genuine person and she always had a hug for me every time she saw me.
Munson held a young Hispanic girl from San Diego, California who for some reason whenever I was around her made me feel as though tremors from the earth moved up from my feet to my legs to my stomach and settled in my heart. Every time I saw her, the lump in my throat doubled in size as my eyes surveyed her youthful curves. My ears never perked like they did when I heard her voice. A beautiful prodigy around my age, she was truly a beautiful woman, and I never wanted to be there for another like I wanted to be with her. Too bad I can never be with her. She would never choose to be with a loser like me.
I never wanted to cross the street to Dollar General. I never wanted to walk that long, dark road to my house that sat next to the small general store. I hated to gaze upon the evil house that was my own, but hell I was already here, just a few more months right?
I walked in the house, but I didn't expect a warm greeting that I would receive from LMU. Instead I saw the man covered in Aryan tattoos and toned from head to toe. That was Jordan Sr. and he would never like idea of his son who looked so much like him moving away with a black man, and he would damn sure hate the idea of his son being in love with a Mexican, but the way I saw it, he was beyond ignorance and he would never change. I couldn't let him destroy my plans to move away to California and steal Starr's heart from that Munson house. He stood in his bedroom doorway and stared at me as I went to the refrigerator to get one of the cold beers that stood collecting frost and popped the top. The brew was refreshing to my soul as it eased my mind and allowed me to relax in a situation where relaxation was an impossibility. I sat on the recliner in front of the TV and fell into the television show that could bring no laughter nor joy like my dreams.
My senior retired back into his bedroom and my sister/his sex slave found her way into his former position. I couldn't stand to look at her. It hurt me to know that no matter how much progress I made for myself, she would always be stuck in the same spot. She would always be product of lust and degradation and would never be able to step out of this hopeless situation. She would only be able to watch her younger brother leave her behind with a hint of jealousy burning him in his back with her intense blue eyes.
I was hoping that this night would be uneventful, but with the senior, no night would be uneventful. I guess he grew jealous that Shana's intense blue eyes' attention was drawn on me. He jumped off the bed and pounced behind her and pushed her to the ground in front of me. She was helpless as she knelt in front of me. I tried to act as though I didn't notice in an attempt to hide the guilt I felt, the pain I felt for her. I loved her but I knew that resistance would harm my plans. I would be able to help in mere months. Until then, I could only dismiss this as a sick lover's spat. But I knew it was something more when I heard the jealousy dripping off of his tongue. "So you want your brother now, huh!?"
The sound of anger that came was nothing like I've ever ever heard from him before, and I knew this night would not bode well for either one of us. She pleaded with my senior but he advanced with a sadistic smile on his face, and I knew he was expecting a show in which he expected me to fully participate in. "Well bitch, since you want the young calf so bad.......why don't you taste." She looked at him with pleading eyes as I tried to ignore the situation, hoping they would make up and leave me out of it. When she crawled to his feet and stood on her knees, he slapped her down viciously. Blood dripping down her lip, he ordered again, "Now do as I told you bitch and please your new man since you have no more use for the old bull, you will now be the house whore. Now go over there and suck his dick like a good whore. I want a show!"
She looked in his eyes and when she saw the seriousness in his eyes, she knew there was no turning back. She would have to satisfy the insatiable hunger for suffering the her father had.
She crawled on her knees toward me and my first thoughts that came to my mind was, "What is she doing!? There is no way....." But before I knew it, she had been fumbling with my zipper and I can see my senior thoroughly enjoying the sight of my sister suffering. For some strange reason, anger boiled up inside of me. I thought about what I would have done if it was Starr on her knees instead of Shana. Then I thought about what Mark would do if he were in my position and I knew I would have to do something.
She saw rebellion in my dark eyes and whispered softly, "Just let it happen, Jordan. It'll be over quick and it'll make you feel......." Tears rolled down her face as I realized the only reason she was even in this predicament was because she had been trying to protect me. My mother had died protecting us from the evilness of this man, and now my sister is in danger. Well I decided then I would not be a part of this anymore.
I raised from my seat and pushed her to the side. She tried to grab at my pants, anxious to please our dominator, but I would be dominated no longer. I would save her one way or another.
The senior stormed from his vantage point with anger steaming from his ears. I just turned around and left. I was going to come back with reinforcements. I was going to come back with Mark. I heard him kick Shana viciously into to the TV, the shattered pieces falling on her unconscious body. "I'm sorry Shana, but after I come back, we will never have to worry about the devil again."
I continued to walk as I heard me senior taunt me. "You some kind of faggot now, boy!?" O heard him grab an old shotgun he had used for hunting once. Now I sensed it was me who he seen as prey, but I couldn't stop. My mission was clear. "You too good for us now, boy!?" Just keep talking. The farther I get away from that house, the less chance you have to escape your fate. The less chance you have to hurt Shana. "I guess you're too good for us now huh Jordan!?" He cocked his shotgun and it was then that I realized that I would never see my dream come true, but I knew if I could reach a little farther, he would not be able to hurt anyone else ever again, at least no one who was close to me. "Well how 'bout we let God decide if you're to good for us!!!!!"
And with that the last thing I felt was the buckshots tearing through my back. I saw my dreams leave along with my soul and the last images I saw was the memory of Mark smiling before he had left me, and the image of my sister somewhere happy. I know if Mark were here, he'd be so proud of me. He would tell me, "A coward dies a million deaths, a soldier but one." That's an old Tupac line if I remember right. Maybe I'll get to meet him if I'm lucky. No matter where my soul's destination was, it has to be better than living in hell where the devil is your father and the tortured is your sister. Who knows? Maybe I changed that with my sacrifice, and after that thought, my eyes closed forever.