9780063056534

Kenny got jumped. The big homies beat him so bad he ended up in a coma.
When he woke up, he was too banged up to take that football scholarship
anyway. Getting out ain’t worth it.
“Maybe we could figure out a different way for you,” Dre says.
I shake my head. “Quit lying to yourself, man. Why should I get out
anyway? Kinging in our blood, remember?”
“You could break the cycle,” Dre says. “Be better than me, Unc, all of
us. Do things the right way.”
“Yeah, that’s easy to say when you driving around in a Beamer,” I say.
“You a hypocrite, dawg. You also a damn fool if you think I’m walking
away from this money, especially now that I got a kid.”
“It’s like that? A’ight,” Dre says, nodding. “Either you give it up or I tell
Auntie and Uncle Don.”
“Then you’d have to admit to them that you let me sell weed.”
“I’m willing to own up to mine like a man. I’ll also tell Shawn what
King doing.”
“I told you, King not involved.”
“Yeah right,” Dre says. “This got his name all on it. You don’t have to
admit it. Me and Shawn will look into it and handle him ourselves.”
“You said you wouldn’t bring Shawn in this!”
“NNo, I said I wouldn’t rat you out to him. I didn’t say I wouldn’t rat out
King. So what’s it gon’ be, cuz? Let drug dealing go completely or let you
and your boy both get in trouble?”
“This blackmail!”
“It’s your choice to see it that way,” Dre says.
“It is that way! How I know you still won’t rat King out?” I ask.
“I trust you to talk to him and remind him of the consequences that
come with doing shit like this,” Dre says. “I promise if I think you back at
it, I’m snitching on him and you.”
“Dre, c’mon. Please?”
“This on you, Mav. Your call.”
I fold my hands on top of my head. Goddamn! This ’bout the worst way
this could go. I wanna keep making money, but I don’t wanna get in trouble
with my folks. I don’t want King to get hurt either.
I ain’t got much of a choice. “A’ight,” I say. “I’ll stop selling drugs.”
Do Dre tell me he proud of my decision? Do he give me props for
looking out for my boy? NNah, he sit back on the couch and go, “That’s what