The Fix 2 (8 page)

A smile spread across Maggie's face. “You ain't such a bastard after all.” She flashed him a cigarette-stained smile, before taking the coke and heading over to the stove.

“Fiend-ass broad,” Rissa mumbled under her breath.

Chucky leaned in and whispered through clenched teeth. “Why don't you be cool and stop trying to rock the damn boat?”

Rissa chuckled. “Boat? This is more like a sinking ship.” Her voice was sharp, but low enough to where Maggie didn't overhear. “On some real shit, Chucky, I didn't come to New York to live like a damn vagabond. You said we were only gonna pass through New York for a minute while you handled your business, but we've been here long enough to need this shithole apartment. I want that trip to Florida and the good life that you promised when I helped you and my sister rip homeboy off in Philly.”

“And you're gonna have it, but not before I say so!” Chucky hissed back. “My word is as good as gold, baby sis. Once I handle what I came here to do, we can skate, but until then, stop complaining and stick to the script.”

Rissa sucked her teeth. “Okay, Mr. Script. So what's next?”

“We're gonna take a road trip, but first I gotta make a quick stop.” Chucky smiled sinisterly.

Li'l Monk sat on a crate in front of his building, enjoying the warm breeze. It had rained earlier that day, making the air humid and muggy so the breeze was welcomed. Sitting on his lap was a turkey and Swiss sandwich, made especially how he liked: extra mayo, salt, vinegar, onions, and tomatoes. He even had the guy in the store throw the onions and turkey on the grill while making it, adding heat to the sandwich. Li'l Monk took slow, deliberate bites as it was his first meal of the day and he wanted to savor it.

While eating his sandwich, Li'l Monk busied himself watching the world go by. An older lady from the neighborhood was walking down the street, pushing her cart of groceries; she waved and smiled at Li'l Monk. He couldn't recall her name and she had never spoken to him until a few weeks back when he had paid her a kindness. Li'l Monk would always see her struggling back and forth to the supermarket with a push cart that was missing a wheel. One day Li'l Monk had taken it upon himself to buy her a new cart, but instead of giving it to her himself he left it with the supermarket manager to present to her the next time she came in. From the day she received the cart, she would speak to Li'l Monk every time he saw her.

Li'l Monk was always doing things like that in the neighborhood, like when he threw a “back to school” block party for the kids in the neighborhood and had barbers on deck giving the little boys haircuts. Or when people in the neighborhood were blowing out their tires because of all the potholes on the block. The city wasn't in rush to fix them so Li'l Monk took matters into his own hands. He bought all the supplies and hired a team of crackheads to fill in the potholes. They did a shitty job, but it was the fact that Li'l Monk had even made the attempt that stood out to the people in the neighborhood. Li'l Monk was a criminal, but he was also a man of the people and they loved him for it. People who had once feared and talked about Li'l Monk as if he were some kind of monster now respected him and praised him for the work he did in the neighborhood. There were some who thought that Li'l Monk did the things he did in search of praise, but he did it out of the goodness of his heart. Li'l Monk was from the mud, so he understood better than most what it was like to go without.

Li'l Monk came up hard, being the kid of one of the most coldblooded killers to ever touch a Harlem street, and a murdered mother. His father, Monk, was both strung out and street poisoned so his son inherited the consequences of that combination. For the most part Li'l Monk was left to fend for himself and make his way in the world as best he could. Big Monk did as best he could with his young son, but because he was out and about in the world living like a savage, the art of survival at all costs was the only things he could teach his son.

Li'l Monk was an unkempt kid because he didn't have anyone to teach him about personal hygiene or how to wash his clothes. The kids would often tease him, which led to Li'l Monk getting in a fight almost every other day. He had spent many hungry nights in his and his father's apartment. It got so bad sometimes that he would go and steal from the local market. Because he always got away with it, Li'l Monk considered himself a competent thief, but what he didn't know was that the store owner intentionally let him get away with his goods. He knew Li'l Monk's background and figured he would rather let him steal from his store than to have the little boy get caught up in the legacy his father was creating for him. For the most part Li'l Monk was an outcast and a loner. Only a select few kids in the neighborhood would ignore his rank smell and still play with him when he was outside, Persia and Charlie mainly. This made Li'l Monk fiercely protective of them, especially Persia. He had always had a thing for her, but Persia never seemed to pick up on it. Even when they were older, she always seemed to look through him. Li'l Monk held on to hope that one day she would really see him the way he saw her, but it the day never came.

Li'l Monk tipped the cold twenty-two ounce Old English to his lips and took long gulps to wash the sandwich down. Omega would've clowned Li'l Monk for drinking the malt beer. He felt that now that Li'l Monk was making a few coins, he should upgrade from the cheap beer to something less harsh. Li'l Monk argued that it had been good enough for him during hard times; it'd be good enough for him during the good times. He wouldn't be switching to Cristal anytime soon.

Li'l Monk and Omega were the best of friends, but were like night and day and it really started to show once they'd started getting a little money. When they went to purchase their first cars, Omega brought a 2004 BMW, and Li'l Monk brought a 1988 Pontiac Bonneville. When they went jewelry shopping, Li'l Monk brought a modest Cuban link with a gold cross on it, but Omega copped a thick rope chain with a medallion almost the size of his fist. Omega was flashy, and loved to be seen, but Li'l Monk was more reserved, preferring to play the background. They were definitely an odd pair, but their differences balanced out their relationship.

Li'l Monk was about to take another swig of his beer, when he spotted Tasha and Sophie coming across the street. Tasha, as usual, was wearing an outfit that left little to the imagination, a skirt so short you could almost see her ass cheeks, and a shirt that was at least two sizes too small. She strode down the block like she owned it, waving to people she knew on the street and shouting a greeting up to an old woman who was sitting in her window. Everybody in the hood knew Tasha for one reason or another. Tasha was only seventeen, but already quite worldly, for lack of a better word.

Sophie was a different story. She was a cute, light-skinned chick with big doe eyes and a smile you couldn't help but fall in love with when you saw it. Sophie was tall and big boned, but she carried it well, mostly in her hips and breasts. She was thick, the kind of thick that made something as simple as the tight blue jeans she was wearing look provocative. Sophie was a hood chick, and could get a bit loud at times, but she knew how to turn the hood side of her off and on as necessary. She was cool with a lot of guys from the neighborhood, but hardly any of them could say they'd been with her. Sophie was no virgin, but she wasn't a whore either.

As the two girls approached, Li'l Monk slid the beer behind the crate and stood up to greet them. “Hey, Tash,” he greeted her with a nod.

“You speak to her before you speak to your girl?” Sophie said with a fake attitude.

“Only because I had a special greeting waiting on you.” Li'l Monk wrapped his arms around Sophie and spun her around. Sophie wasn't a small woman, but she felt petite and fragile, wrapped in Li'l Monk's bulging arms. “I missed you, boo.” He kissed her on the cheek.

Sophie frowned. “Oh, we kiss on cheeks now? Let me find out you don't want to kiss me in public because you out here fronting for these hood rats.”

“Baby, you know I only got eyes for you,” Li'l Monk said sincerely.

“Then act like it and show your lady some proper love.” Sophie grabbed Li'l Monk by his squared jaw and planted a kiss on his lips. It was deep and passionate. A few seconds into the kiss, she pulled away and gave him a funny look. “You think your ass is slick, don't you?” She ran her tongue along the roof of her mouth, tasting the alcohol. “Li'l Monk, I know you ain't out here drinking this damn early. Jesus, the sun isn't even down yet!” she scolded.

“It ain't nothing but a beer.” Li'l Monk retrieved the bottle from its hiding place and showed it to Sophie.

“Ew, rotgut.” Tasha frowned.

Li'l Monk sucked his teeth. “Shut up, Tasha. You don't know shit about rotgut. You ain't even old enough to drink.”

“Neither are you, but it doesn't stop you from doing it.” Tasha rolled her neck.

Li'l Monk waved her off. “I don't know why everybody is feeling some type of way about what I drink.”

“I don't have a problem with what you're drinking, Li'l Monk. I have a problem with where and when you've decided to drink,” Sophie told him. “I know you're on the clock, so you've probably got a gun on you somewhere. What if the police roll up on you to harass you about the beer, but find the gun? You'll have turned a simple desk appearance ticket into a felony, just that quick. I'm not riding you about the booze. I just want you to make smarter choices when you're out here on the front lines.”

As usual, Sophie was right. She was good at being his voice of reason. Sophie and Li'l Monk had been best friends long before they became lovers. They'd grown up in the same neighborhood, under similar conditions. Their turbulent home lives often drove them into the streets together. The two damaged kids often found in each other what they couldn't get from their parents: comfort. Li'l Monk was able to confide in Sophie about anything and vice versa. Knowing each other so intimately, it seemed only natural that they became boyfriend and girlfriend, but it didn't start out like that. Sophie had always liked Li'l Monk and he had feelings for her too, but his heart was elsewhere at the time. He and Sophie hung out, went to the movies, and did everything couples did, but neither of them would accept the title of a couple. Li'l Monk and Sophie had even lost their virginities. It was a night that they had both tried to put behind them, but also one that neither of them would ever forget.

It had been one of those nights when Big Monk was on a drug trip and felt like using Li'l Monk as a punching bag. He had beaten him something terrible, and Li'l Monk ran away. He didn't have any money or a destination so he went to Sophie's. She lived in first-floor apartment in the projects, so it was easy to sneak him in through the window.

Sophie tended his wounds with peroxide and bandaged him up with paper towels and tape because they didn't have a real first-aid kit. After patching Li'l Monk up, he and Sophie lay in her small twin-sized bed watching
Poetic Justice
and drinking cheap wine that Sophie had stolen from her mother's stash. Sophie remembered being chilly, so Li'l Monk wrapped his arms around her for warmth. She felt as safe as a child in the womb, snuggled in his embrace. Sophie could lay in Li'l Monk's arms forever. It felt good, natural.

She could feel his manhood stiffening, and poking her in the back. Embarrassed, Li'l Monk tried to scoot back, but Sophie held his arms so that he couldn't. She was teasing him, like they often did to each other. Li'l Monk and Sophie had done some flirting, and shared an occasional kiss, but always stopped before they crossed the line. She stiffened when she felt him plant a gentle kiss on the back of her neck. It sent an electric current through her entire body. She turned so that they were facing each other. Li'l Monk's eyes stared at her lovingly, as if he was feeling the same thing she was feeling at the moment. Sophie leaned in and kissed Li'l Monk, expecting him to try to pull away, but he didn't. He kissed her back. Neither of them was quite sure how it happened, but they ended up naked under one of her thin sheets.

Their first bought was awkward and somewhat unpleasant, but not as bad as she thought it would be. Li'l Monk was so brutish that she expected him to tear into her like a savage, but he was surprisingly gentle. He was mindful not to put all his weight on her, and took his time with his strokes, careful not to hurt her. She knew he was about to cum from the ugly face he was making. A small animal
-
like sound escaped him as his seed filled her and spilled out onto the bed sheet. Li'l Monk looked embarrassed that he had been unable to control himself and that was the moment Sophie realized it was his first time too. Sophie and Li'l Monk had sex twice more that night. Each time was a bit better than the last. The following morning, they went back to their regular lives and playing the role of best friends. Thought they tried to act as if it hadn't happened, they both knew that it did.

After the night they shared, they both expected it to cause some type of awkwardness, but it actually brought them closer together. They still hadn't crossed the line of becoming an actual couple, but it pushed them into the “friends with benefits” zone. Li'l Monk continued to chase something that he couldn't have, while Sophie watched from a distance, suffering in silence. She had tried to move on with her life by having other boyfriends, but always found a reason to break up with them. She was lovesick and only Li'l Monk could cure what ailed her. Eventually Li'l Monk came around, and with great hesitation she let him into her heart. Li'l Monk and Sophie's romance blossomed into something magical, which drew adoration and hate from others.