"Fuck you mean you ain't got his money?"

I walked up on Chance and four other youngins just in time to hear this fiend tell Chance that he couldn't pay, and ask what else he could do for them instead. They were all circled around him laughing at him, making him beg and watching him humiliate himself. A grown ass man. I walked up on them fast. Real fast. They must have been so busy fuckin' wit' this old dude that they didn't even see me coming, because they all jumped when I spoke, including the grown ass man that they were fuckin' with. Dude was doing that crackhead shit I hated, dancing on his tiptoes and wringing his hands like his grown ass was begging these young kids for permission to run to the bathroom.

I hated that shit, and wanted to crack his head open.

Where the fuck were his wife and kids that he should have been taking care of and protecting? I thought about Tiana without a daddy and got even more pissed. I looked around at the lil niggas, who were all suddenly standing at attention and acting like they had been over there handling business the whole time, instead of scheming on doing who knows what to this old ass man. I was so damn vexed with them that I almost forgot about the baby, until she put her small hands on my face and forced me to look at her. Angel was bringing me back from the ledge, because I was sure about to pop this dude in front of them, make them clean that shit up, and remind these lil niggas not to fucking play on. my. watch.

But I was still pissed.

I was still so fucking pissed about this shit that I had just walked up on. Theses lil niggas played too damn much, and Rico expected me to keep his money right with all these new dumb ma' fuckas pulling this type of shit.

I looked at Chance, who had been right there fucking around with the rest of 'em, then past him to the four other youngins. One of them was the same kid Chance had with him all the time.

That fool was the wildest one of them all.

I looked back at the old man.

When I looked down at Angel again, she was already looking up at me like she knew I was about to tell dude what the fuck was really good. Then she wrapped her little arms tighter around my neck and rested her head right up under my chin, where she always liked to lay it, like she was trying to calm me, but at the same time wanted me to know that she didn't see shit.

I tried to slow my heartbeat down for the baby, and put my lips to the top of her head. But I was still watching this damn fiend, who couldn't pay, over top of the two little puffs that Charity had slicked Angel's hair into the day before.

Then I handed the baby over to Chance.

This crackhead could thank Angel for his life. I was too stressed, and didn't have time for this bullshit. I had thirteen other things to do before the sun came up, after I picked up these niggas' money, and this ma' sucka had just added one more thing to the list. It wasn't even my money that this fool was holding.

It was Rico's money.

And I damn sure wasn't walking away without it.

All of it.

But I couldn't spill blood in front of the baby.

I pulled my Glock and walked directly up to the old man, nose to nose. I shoved the gun into his mouth and told him to get the fuck down on his knees. He made this whimpering sound and I nodded my head toward Chance, letting him know that the baby didn't need to see this pitiful shit. Chance guided her head down to his shoulder and turned her around, blocking her view.

"I'm only telling you one time to come off my money." I didn't raise my voice, and I didn't have to. I said it quietly, so that I wouldn't scare the baby, and the fiend suddenly had the $5 in his pocket, which he handed over immediately.

The damn fool was willing to risk his life over five dollars.

These ma' fuckas were always trying to get shit for free.

I took his $5, took the rest of Rico's money from the youngins, and took the baby back from Chance. I balanced her in one arm, and put the Glock in my pants and the money in my sock with the other hand. Then I nodded to the youngins. They could do whatever the fuck they wanted to do to his ass at this point. I was taking my baby back to Charity. These niggas were out here wylin' tonight. She didn't need to be around this shit.

Charity wasn't home when I got to mama's. I briefly wondered where the hell she could have been 10:00 at night, but mama was out of it as usual and had no answers. Rico was nowhere in sight on the street, so I figured he was probably at home...fighting with Jazz, most likely, and I didn't want to leave Angel in the middle of that shit, either.

So I went to the only other safe place that I knew.

Tiana's mama answered the door looking fucked up as usual.

I held Angel closer to me when she opened the door wider and I saw Tiana's stepfather on the couch looking eager as shit when he saw that it was me at the door, like whatever I was there for he was wit' it. He leaned forward in his chair, with the nerve to try to be business-like, and folded his hands together like he was silently asking, "What can I do for you, young playa?"

This nigga stupid? He couldn't do a damn thing for me.

Ever.

I take that back. He could stop fuckin' up his stepdaughter's life. I looked away from him disgustedly, and back at Carole. I hated these ma' suckas for doin' this to Tiana. Both of them. I kissed the top of Angel's head and breathed in deep, the scent of Baby Magic shampoo calming me. I was trying to summon up the patience to wait for the right time to do what I had to do to this sick ma' fucka. Then I opened my eyes again and looked back at Tiana's mother. I had known her my whole life, and she had been trifling that whole time. That's why Tiana spent so much time at our house when we were kids. At least she got to eat whenever she was hungry at our house. Mama made sure of that.

"Tiana here?" I put my nose to the top of Angel's head again, and ignored Tiana's stepfather. I looked Tiana's mama in the eye to let her know I knew what the fuck she was letting happen to her daughter, and that shit wasn't going to end pretty.

Carole nodded, acknowledging that her business was out there, and stepped back out of my way, opening the door even wider. I walked through, staring Tiana's stepfather dead in his eye, making sure he knew that he better not even fucking look Angel's way, and then held her against my chest even tighter than before.

The house looked fucked up, too.

As usual.

I made my way back to where I knew Tiana's room was and knocked on her door. For some reason she looked like her heart dropped down to her feet when she saw me.

"Hey, Tee..." My voice trailed off, and my eyes left her face.

Tiana had on the thinnest, tightest T-shirt I had ever seen. You could see right through it. And that's it. That's all she had on. No bra, just a T-shirt and panties. I didn't even know they made t-shirts like that. I wanted to buy her one for every day of the week. Damn she looked good. Tiana almost got fucked on sight, if you want the truth. My eyes involuntarily crawled down the front of her, all the way down to her feet. I wanted to touch her. I wanted to pull her to me and hold her. And kiss her...and get up in her...as soon as I saw her.

I wanted everything she had to give me, until she gasped "Kenney!" and held up her hand like she was trying to stop me from coming at her. "Oh...my God..." she closed her eyes like she was praying and trying not to faint at the same time. "Please...don't. I'll fix it..."

I didn't know what the hell she was talking about. We seemed all good when I walked her home earlier that night.

"What? Tee..." I didn't have time for whatever bullshit she was on.

She just stared at me like I was about to kidnap her. Did she not see the baby in my arms?

What the fuck?

"Tee..." I pushed the baby further up on my shoulder with one hand, and held the other hand out to Tiana like I was trying to keep the peace. Was it a full moon? Because er'body was acting stupid tonight. "Look...I don't know what the hell you think I'm here for, but I'm not wit'...whatever the fuck you thinkin'..." I looked into her eyes. "Tee, I don't know..." my eyes crawled slowly over her see-through shirt again, "...who the fuck you were expecting, or what you think is about to pop off right now..." I looked back into her eyes, "...but I'm not here to hurt you. I just need you to watch the baby for me. Ok?" She kind of relaxed a little. "Please..."

I held Angel out to her and she relaxed some more, and then kind of smiled at me. It was a hesitant smile. Scared, like she didn't trust me. I couldn't wait to fuck her stepfather up for turning her like that.

"Charity's not home." I stepped closer to her. She took the baby and held Angel's head to her chest. "And mama's...checked out. I don't know what happened..." Tiana looked at me sympathetically and nodded, then kissed the top of Angel's head, keeping her eyes on me the whole time. "Niggas is actin' fuckin' stupid tonight, and...you know I have to take care of that thing, so..."

Her eyes grew huge. I guess she didn't realize until then that I was a man who kept a promise.

"Will you watch her?" Tiana nodded and smiled at me like she would be happy to do whatever I asked her to do.

I didn't need all that. I just needed her to watch the baby.

"Thanks, Tee." I leaned in and kissed her softly. She put her hand protectively behind the baby's head before leaning in to kiss me back.

"Anytime, Kenney. You know that."

I nodded. If there was anyone else that I trusted like Charity, it was Tiana.

"Thanks," I said again and rested my hand lightly on her arm. "Do me a favor, Tee. Don't watch her over here." She nodded. She knew why. ""Take her to mama's, and Charity will be home soon, ok?" She nodded again. She didn't even hesitate, even though she knew as well as I did that Charity might just beat her ass on sight.

Again.

"Just watch her over there until Charity gets home, and then tell her that I asked that she watch Angel for me tonight, ok?"

Tiana nodded again and held the baby close. I knew that Angel was in good hands as long as Tiana didn't keep the baby at her own house.

"Ok, Kenney. No problem."

I ran my thumb over Tiana's bottom lip and kissed her again. "Thanks." She smiled and handed the baby back to me. Then she went to the closet to grab her shoes and clothes. I sat down and watched her get dressed. Hey...she never told me to look away. After she got dressed, she grabbed her purse off of the chair and followed me out of the room.

Tiana's stepfather wasn't on the couch when we got back out into the living room, but her mama was, sitting there about to blaze up. I waved the smoke away from the baby's face, and figure that Tiana's stepdad had probably gone out to cop, promising all kinds of shit that he couldn't make good on. Tiana looked as agitated as I felt when we walked past Carole and out the door.

I walked Tiana to mama's house and unlocked the door for her. I knew mama wouldn't mind if she found Tiana and Angel in the house when she came to. She probably hadn't seen Tiana in a while, anyway. I knew she worried about her, just like I did.

"Thanks, Tee." I kissed Tiana again and looked into her beautiful, smiling eyes. "Don't take her anywhere else, ok? I don't want her to be outside tonight. Too much shit goin' on. Charity should be home soon. Tell her that, too, alright? Tell her don't take Angel outside."

"Of course." I knew she would do exactly what I asked of her. My baby would be safe with Tiana, just like I had always been safe with Tiana.

"I'll hollatchya when...that thing is taken care of."

She nodded and leaned Angel in toward me for a kiss. I kissed the baby, then kissed Tee, and then I headed out for an extremely long night.