I did braids on the side for extra bread, I’m not gon lie I was one of the coldest in the city on doing braids, I had a real talent for that shit. My appointment book was full weeks in advance. I even had rich white girls from the North Side as my customers; they would pay top dollar for box braids and faux locs. I was three semesters away from finishing my veterinary technician program at Malcolm X College. I was working part-time at Dr. Walker's clinic in Bronzeville whenever my schedule allowed. I had the dream of opening my own animal hospital in the hood one day, somewhere people could afford to take their pets without going broke.
I loved animals since I was a little girl. Especially when the world around me became chaos, Animals didn't care where you came from or who your family was. They just loved you unconditionally.
I had two cats that were Persian, they were brother and sister, and I named them Bonnie and Clyde. Then I had two dogs, a blue nose pitbull named Coco and a Yorkie named Cookie. Yatta pretended to be annoyed by them, but I caught his ass plenty of times sneaking treats to Coco or petting her. I knew CoCo was his favorite.
My phone buzzed with a text as I pulled onto our street. It was Rah.
Rah:a nigga still thinking about how good you looked pulling up today. You get everything straight with Yatta about Friday?
I smiled to myself as I parked in front of our house. The same narrow driveway where my Daddy used to park his old skool cutlass.
Me:I just got off the phone with him. He's on board for the meeting. Thanks again for setting this up.
Rah:Anything for you, ma. You free tonight?
Me:Nope, not tonight I got plans with my sister, but you can come through tomorrow morning once Yatta leaves for Detroit.
Rah:Aight bet. I'll bring breakfast. Your brother still acting funny about me coming over there?
I laughed out loud at that. Yatta didn’t care who we fucked around with, but he was strict on us not bringing niggas to the crib and me and Yah-Yah respected it.
Me:You know it! LOL, everything gon be all good, just don’t show up while he's here, unless you want a problem.
Rah:I ain't scared of Yatta.
Me:You aint gotta be scared for shit to become a problem, and we don’t want any problems babe. See you tomorrow.
I slipped my phone in my pocket as I headed up the front steps, immediately greeted by Cookie barking excitedly on the other side of the door. When I opened it, he jumped around my ankles while Coco approached more calmly with her tail wagging.
"Hey mommy babies," I cooed, bending down to pat them. "Y'all miss Mommy? I know, I know."
The house smelled like food, Yah-Yah must have been cooking. I followed the scent to the kitchen, where I found my older sister at the stove, stirring something that smelled like heaven.
"What's good, chef?" I teased, hopping onto one of the counter stools.
Yah-Yah glanced over her shoulder and grinned. "Look who finally decided to come home. How did everything go with Rah?"
"Smooth. I just got off the phone with Yatta, so I'm guessing he's on his way back too." I leaned forward to peek into the pot. "That better be your famous gumbo."
"You know it." Yah-Yah was the only one of us who could really cook. She had been watching my Mama in the kitchen since she was tall enough to see over the stove.
"So..." Yah-Yah stirred the pot slowly, not looking at me. "You been on that nigga Rah bad, huh?"
I rolled my eyes. "Don't start. He’s cool."
"I'm just saying." She shrugged, her long braids swaying with the movement. "I heard that nigga got a reputation for being a compulsive gambler and fucking with a thousand bitches, they be saying he be fucking up out here."
"He has a reputation and so does Yatta. So do you." I crossed my arms. "You act like I don't know who I'm dealing with."
Yah-Yah turned to face me fully, her expression serious. "It's different for you, Mya. You're our baby sister."
"I'm a grown-ass woman."
"Look, I'm not telling you who to fuck with. Just be careful mixing business and pleasure, that's all. Especially when it comes to connecting Yatta with Rah's people."
Before I could respond, we heard the front door open, followed by Yatta 's voice calling out.
"Yo! Where my lil’ sisters at?"