Minimum, 30

It was raining heavily outside. You could even feel the vibrations of thunder rolling from the inside of the prison. Even though they couldn’t see much of the outside, the inmates acted just as dismal and gray as the weather.

AJ was sitting with the rest of the guys watching TV. They got Mike to switch channels since he would do pretty much anything anyone said. They quickly went passed the cartoons, the re-running sitcoms, and the talk shows. But the second Mike got to the news, AJ jumped up from his seat.

“Mike... whoa... stop it there. And turn it up.” Mike was just going to do that when someone else intervened.

“Man, we ain’t watching this shit. We got cable and your punk ass wanna watch the news.” He shouted at AJ, but Case saw that Reneé was on the screen along with others and he stood up for his new friend.

“Sit your ass down, fool!” They looked at each other for a second, and then the guy who protested in the first place sat back down. Case was bigger than him and obviously held some sort of power and respect in among the prisoners. AJ moved to the front and kneeled down in front of the screen.

“....We’re praying for AJ and we know he’ll come out of this soon. We all believe that he’s innocent of these accusations and he’s not going to be punished for it much longer.” Kevin said proudly. Behind him were the rest of the guys, Denise, and Reneé. Denise couldn’t even look up at the camera. She just kept staring off into space. And AJ knew that if it wasn’t for Reneé and the guys helping her through this, she’d have broken down the minute they took AJ away.

The interviewer went on to talk about AJ’s case and how he and his lawyers were planning an appeal. But just as the camera panned to the interviewer alone, AJ saw his mother crying. He didn’t want to just sit there and watch his mother in pain in front of all the guys. So he got up and left, quickly. A few guys started to laugh, but Case smacked one across the head.

He then signaled for Fields to go see if AJ was alright. Then he got Mike to keep going through the channels until they settled on BET.

Fields found AJ in the library. He was sitting on the floor with his back to a tall shelf of books. Fields sat down across from him.

“I know you’re not gonna start crying on me.” He mumbled. Even though the last thing he needed was someone to be sarcastic about the situation, he understood where Fields was coming from.

“Nah. I just feel bad about my mother, you know? I mean, if I got in here because I really did something, I wouldn’t be as worried about her. But I didn’t do anything to deserve this. And she knows it. And it’s really hurting her.”

“You know, I never had a mother. I never had anybody. I was in and out of group homes all my life. So I never really had anyone to get upset when I ended up in here. Hell, I never get visitors. But you wanna know what’s really fucked up? I know who my father is. He’s this big shot CEO of some company. I’ve seen him. And he’s seen me. Shit, man, we look exactly alike. But he refuses to say I’m his. And I can’t help but wonder what my life would have been like if he had just been there for me.”

“And what about your mother?” Fields lowered his head a little. And he himself had to fight back tears. His anger and his sadness was catching up to him.

“She worked so hard to take care of me. I mean, when I came home from school, she was working. When I went to sleep, she was coming home from work. And when I woke up, she was leaving again. My mother, she tried her best. But she was sick. And she couldn’t take care of me and pay her medical bills at the same time. So she chose me over herself. My mother died when I was 9. And to this day I don’t know what she died of. She never allowed me to worry about her or try to take care of her. All she cared about was working and keeping clothes on my back... food on the table.” AJ was shocked. He had no idea how bad things were for Fields.

“After she died, I was on my own. They never put me in a home with people who actually cared about me. They just wanted money from the state. Money they should have used to help care for me. So when I was about 16, I started doing for myself. Making money the only way I saw fit. Stealing what I couldn’t afford. And my ass ended up here. And yeah, I know I made some fucked up mistakes. But I still feel like things would have been better had my father been a man and took care of my mother and me. But he used her and never looked back when she got pregnant.” A single tear fell from his eye and hit the cement floor.

“I’m sorry about that, man.” Was all AJ could say.

“Nah, don’t be. I don’t want anyone feeling sorry for my ass but me. Besides, I’m not here to talk about me. I’m here to talk about you. Make sure you ain’t gonna hang yourself in your cell or some shit.” They both had to laugh.

“My father was never around either. So I can kinda understand where you’re coming from. My mother and my grandparents were everything in my life. But my mother, man, she’s just like my best friend. No matter what, I can always depend on her. When work got hard, she was there. When I wanted to give up, she would get me back on my feet. And anytime I was just feeling down about something, she’d just work her motherly magic and make things alright. I’m her only son and I just know she’s taking this hard. But Reneé and the guys are taking care of her. So I guess she’ll be alright until I get the hell out of here.” They were both startled when they heard a loud bang. It was a CO standing at the end of the aisle of books. He had hit the metal shelf with his hang to get their attention.

“McLean, you got a visitor.” AJ got up from the floor and followed the CO to a room he had never seen before. It wasn’t like the room where everyone got visitors. He was left alone there for a brief moment, then Reneé came in. She looked at him, and then turned back, opening the door wider. The second AJ saw his mother’s sweet face, his heart felt like it burst into a million pieces.

He ran to her and wrapped his arms around her. Lying his head on her shoulder and breaking down into tears. When Denise felt her son crying in her arms, she knew she had to be strong for him. She rubbed his back and neck just like she did when he was just a small boy.

“It’s ok, sweetie. Everything’s going to be ok, Alex. Shhhh.... it’s alright, baby.” She whispered, comforting her soon in the best way. Reneé could only stand back in awe. The bond he had with his mother was so great. She could only wish that she would have that bond with the son she planned to have with AJ.

Denise kissed his forehead twice and held his face in her hands. She wiped his tears with her thumbs and smoothed back his hair. Typical maternal gestures.

“Listen to me, Alex. You have to be strong. I know that you can be. You’ve gotten over so many obstacles in your life thus far. This is just another one. And you cannot let this beat you. Do you understand me?” He nodded, his head still in her hands.

“How much longer do I have to be here, Mom?” She let him go and all three sat down at a table.

“Honey, they’re all trying their best to get the truth. But the fact of the matter is, this Carrie Newton girl has a credible story. And the child is yours. Now, we all know that she had to have gotten herself pregnant without your knowing it. But proving that, especially over two months later is difficult.” AJ teared up again and looked at both of the women at the table with him.

“So you’re saying I’m stuck in here for 30 years??? No! Hell no! There has to be some way to get me out of here!” He stood up and slammed his hands on the table. A CO paced in front of the door and Denise bade him to sit back down and calm himself. He did so.

“Listen, just promise me that you’ll clear my name! Please! I can’t stay in here. This place is not for me!”


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