"What up nigga!" Malcolm pushed his way through the crowded bus. loads of tired people seemed aggravated at his coarse tone and loudness. But it was nothing unusual for Malcolm, when it came to being just plain loud and raw.

"Wassup man?" Chico smiled as his long time homie plopped down beside him.

"Man it’s hot as a mofo’ out there! And this bus took forever, I started to walk this mutha, or take the Church hill three down further. So what you been up to man, where you been hiding yo?"

"You know man, a lil bit of this, and a little bit of that." Chico smiled.

"Uh huh, spit it out jigga! That’s right, I HEARD boyee!"

Chico knew right away what Malcolm was referring to. He had had a little adventure after checking out the Boys to Men concert friday night, the one unwhich Candy, his girlfriend couldn’t make because of family obligations.

"So tell me man, on da real did you hit that?" His smile grew wider when he saw Chico’s cocky grin, "you one lucky muthafucka man! How you talk her into it?"

"Well you know, I had to throw a lil sumpin sumpin on her," laughed Chico, "and man..." leaning closer, sliding down a bit in his chair, "she sucked me off, and it was like..whooo! umm..umm..umm...made me scream like a bitch. lawdy-mercy, and she was sooooo sweet, like a tangerine..brotha..." He bragged, feeling goaded on by the expression on Malcolm’s face.

"Ahh damn... Malcolm mouth flew open like Chico knew it would, Chico smiling to himself when he saw it. "Oh oh..what about Candy, she find out you messing around you may lose that sweet thang," He laughed.

"Yeah like I’m gonna just tell her all about it huh? Besides that hoe aint nuttin to me, Candy is my boo you know this, I just don’t need her finding out about that shit, it was just a momentary laps."

"Uh huh..I don’t wanna hear all that man, how was the grip?"

"Man, get outta here wit your stoopid ass, I'll kick it wit you later ya non-coochie gettin’ nigga," said Chico, still laughing as he quickly made his way to the exit door.

"Yea fuck you Chico!"

"Love you too son! Call me when you start gettin’ your own bootie calls!" Chico spat out, laughing, turning quickly to make his way down the littered sidewalk, ignoring the curses of his friend thru the bus window.

It was a typical day with a typical laziness, and nothing to do. A typical life, of being black, and living in the hood. Sean Grayson, bka Chico to his boys, was a tall, butterscotch complexioned, hazel-eyed hoodrat, who was ALWAYS horny, but that was nothing new at seventeen plus and counting. His world consisted of himself, his mom and sister, and the homies round the way whom he considered closer than brothers. Born and raised in Richmond, Virginia to a single mother, life had never been easy for them, and had always seem to deal extra blows their way, Chico, had long learned his own way of dealing with those blows, and trying to come out on top.

*~*

Hot wind blew through the broken cracks in the window. The smell of bad crabs filled the room, somebody must have used the alley as a garbage dump again. Which wasn't surprising. A bunch of stanky hoochies lived round the way. They were the types of hoes who would never leave the house with their hair undone, but kept their babies in dirty diapers, and snotty noses, and were ALWAYS looking for a new man. They always did Chico the favor of reminding him of the type of girls he wouldn't wanna screw with.

"Sean!" The sudden banging on his bedroom door woke him from his evening nap. "Why didn't you take the trash out? And where is Asia? And how come you got this door locked, are you smoking weed? Is that gal in there? "Sean...Sean?"

Sighing a little, Chico got ready for the daily questions that always came from his mama. But he didn't mind really. If there was one thing he was sure of in this life, it was that his mom had mad love for him and his twin sister, Asia. She was a hard working lady, and he couldn't remember a time when she hadn't worked two jobs to support them. Unlocking the door to see her standing there, short, dark, pleasantly plump, tired looking as ever. She was the most beautiful lady in the world to him, and he couldn't help but think, but wish, he could take her out of this madness, out of the projects. He was still unable to slow the bile that always filled his throat whenever he thought of the man he blamed for this. The so-called father he never knew, who he only heard from on the occasional times when he just so happened to call, or rather... when their phone just so happen to still be connected.

"Why did you have the door locked? And where is Asia, she didn't even do the dishes and I don't have time coz I have to shower and get ready for work again. See you two could really, really help me more and you know it Sean!" said Elizabeth Grayson with a reproachful, pleading tone.

"I don't know where she is," he replied, stretching like a cat. I've been here for about a hour but shoot I was tired, but I was gonna take out the trash. Ma why you gotta go right now, I mean you just got here, forget them white folks. Let em cook their own dinner!"

"Because cooking those white folks dinner as you calls it puts dinner on the table for you, as you well know," she said.

Chico grumbled quietly to himself.

"What did you say? Sorry mister I didn't hear you, what was that?" His mother asked, with raised eyebrows.

Chico was quiet for a second before blurting out. "Thing is you shouldn't have to work so hard, thing is you should be getting help from YOU KNOW WHO, thing is, I could even get a fulltime job and help out, just get my GED and chill with that."

"Thing is," his mother inserted,"your behind WILL graduate and that's all to it! What would even cause it to come out of your mouth the letters GED huh? I want the cap and gown for my twins all the way, no SHORT CUTS!"

"Yeah but.."

"No buts! Look, I don't have time to argue with you over this. I do what I have to do ok? And when Asia gets here you tell her to wash those dishes, and to stay in tonight please. You too! Y'all always gone and I don't know what y'all be doing out in them streets. And here," she said, handing over a wad of food stamps. "Go get something to eat, and get milk too ok?"

She kissed him quickly, not missing the look of protest on her son’s face. "Don't even say it ok? Just do what I tell you." His mom hurried out the door, showering quickly, for more time spent in indentured slavery as far as Chico was concerned. He also noticed that she avoided the subject of his dad, like always. It seemed that the older he got, the more pain he saw his mama in, the wider open his eyes became.

Placing the food stamps on the end table, He picked up his zebra spiral notepad. It was his haven, the uncool part of Chico, his thought tablet. Words always seemed to come easily to him, and mostly when he was writing them down in his thought tablet. Closing his eyes, he felt the poetic spirit come over him, felt the hidden emotions come out, that he rarely allowed the outside world to see, or knew he had...

While flowing thru this place called life, and all its hidden paths… You sometimes have to stop, exhale, and have a shaky laugh…

Things aren't always the way they seem, no life is not that clear… Sometimes inside your hidden soul, you feel this quake of fear…

You cover, you hide it from the world, so people just don't see… The fear, the pain, that tore up kid hiding inside of me…

Those little things there from your past, those memories, those scars… The depth the richness of your heart you hide them in the dark…

One thing could help your soul escape from all that's done it wrong… Is music, tempo, melody... cause life is just a song...

Chico closed his tablet, staring blankly in deep thought. Slipping his Nikes back on, he quickly headed out into the darkness of the night.