Page 152 of Own It

I wasn’t a cocky nigga; it just wasn’t in me. I had confidence, but it didn’t stem from what woman liked me better than the next nigga, my clothes and jewelry, or my bank balance. That was some immature, high school shit. My confidence came from within, and Ayan’s was the opposite. He based his worth on how many fights he won, what women liked him, and how much money he had, and that was why he was essentially worthless no matter how much he tried and strived.

Even still, a woman like Daylin being mine was still brag worthy.

“Man, fuck you!” Ayan snapped, tossing his glass full of liquor at me like a bitch before charging my way.

I dodged the airborne drink and blocked his punch before sending one into his stomach to fold him over.

Gripping the back of his Prada polo-style shirt, I tossed him over the balcony, causing him to shriek.

“Fuck who?” I asked, slightly struggling to keep a hold onto this big ass nigga since we were what for what in size, but I truly didn’t give a fuck if I dropped his ass.

“Let me up!” He screamed, having lost all that bass he once carried while clawing on the balcony railing in attempt to gain ahold of it.

“Look at you, nigga.” I laughed, especially seeing his horror laden expression. “Dangling in the air like the runt of the litter.”

“Dog. Rah! Bring me the fuck up!” He continuously fought to grab onto something, looking stupid as fuck.

“Keep moving and you gon’ make me drop yo’ ass. I guess that ain’t too bad though, huh? You may die or, worse, big bad Ayan would have to go through life probably paralyzed and eventually end up broke.”

“Please, bruh.” Tears welled in his eyes, and I saw a semblance of the brother that I could very rarely play video games with when we were in elementary school.

It’d been decades since Ayan and I did anything together out of free will and just the two of us.

“Press my woman again or do anything to try to jeopardize our relationship, and I swear to God, Ayan Godfrey, I will murk you,” I promised him, and judging by the way his eyes never wavered from mine, I knew he’d picked up on how dire my statement was.

“I got you. I’m off th-that.” His voice quavered a bit.

Clenching my teeth, I slipped my freehand under his armpit and then quickly let go of his shirt to put the other under his opposite arm as he latched onto my shoulder. In one good heave, I pulled his weak ass over the balcony and dropped him.

“Move wisely, Yan, and that includes fixing that hand problem you got,” I tossed over my shoulder as I ambled through the sliding doors, the room, and out the hotel door.

* * *

Pulling up into a park outside of the hair salon in Inglewood, I retrieved my iPhone and tapped Téa’s name. Stepping out as the line trilled, I made sure I had my shit on me. I wasn’t known, but that still didn’t mean shit was sweet.

“Hello?” She answered skeptically.

“Come outside.”

“Umm, I’m under the dryer right now, Rah. Can you just tell me over the phone?”

“Nope. Come outside, or I can come inside and cause a scene. You got sixty seconds.” I hung up.

Leaning against the front of my whip, I waited, and moments later, Téa emerged from the salon wearing a clear shower cap-like hat and a frown that was a mixture of puzzlement and a reaction to the glaring sun.

“What’s going on?” she queried, shielding her eyes with her small hand as she took me in. I could tell by her slightly frigid body language that she was afraid.

“You be selling pussy?” I got right to the shit.

She opened and closed her mouth, sputtering but unable to form a coherent sentence.

“I-I used to, but I don’t do that anymore. And even when I did do it, it wasn’t all the time. It was rare and⁠—”

“Ain’t this some shit.” I stood upright, taking in the scene to hopefully quell the urge I felt to choke this bitch out.

“Bu-but I swear I haven’t done it in a while! Are you asking because you think this baby might not be your kin?”

“The fuck you think?” I snapped, making her jump backward and place a hand on the slight bulge in her abdomen. “I’m not fucking you, so why else would I care what you did with that pussy, Téa?”