"Learn The Hard Way"

Ch. 2

Brittney dropped them off and they walked off to the backdoor, nobody uses the front door, Jarrell threw his books on the floor and found his mom about to leave.

She kisses her baby boy and smiles at Druex, "J, Theresa and I are about to leave but we will be back a week from Sunday night, I'll call when we get to the hotel."

Jarrell pulled a coke from the fridge, and his mom gave him a look, "I know ma that very box better be here when you get back."

Carolyn smiled at her baby, "Did you see Brittney? Theresa said she very excited about going to school with you again."

Jarrell started grinning, "Yep, spent most of the day with her too, she getting prettier every year."

Carolyn laughed looking through her purse for the list of numbers to give him, "I know, as sweet as she it isn't surprising! J, Nia and Terrence both won't be home this weekend, but Terrence promised that he'd come and check on you."

Jerrell rolled his eyes knowing that was the only way she would sleep that and calling him every five minutes, "I know ma, where's dad?"

"Over at Theresa's with Steve, Steve wanted to see his baby girl before they left. As much as Steven spoils Brittney it's not a wonder she isn't a brat but thankfully she's not." Carolyn rambled just as her husband walked in the door.

"Honey, Steven and Theresa are ready, are you?" Darrell smiled at his wife knowing she wasn't, they were going on a 'romantic' trip to Virginia Beach for a week and a half, with their best friends.

"Hey dad." Jarrell said getting his dad's attention, Darrell looked over at his youngest son, "Hey J, have a little fun you know, but keep an eye on Brittney, you know Jayson won't come by to see her."

Druex walked over to Carolyn and helped her close her full bag, "Thank you Druex," She smiled, "did you meet Brittney?"

"Yes, ma'am." Druex replied Brittney's smile flashing through his head.

"Good, I'm sure you think she is sweet as pie which she is, and she keeps my son in line too." She replied looking over Jerrell who was talking to his dad.

"I'll keep an eye on her, in fact me and Druex gonna go over there and chill tonight." He said pulling down a bag of hot Cheeto's.

"Good, you look happy to be around her again. Still Best Friends forever?" Darrell laughed making Jarrell blush at the memory of what they had drawn on the wall in the Basement when they were 6, it was still there.

"Yea, pop now go, I see Mrs. Teresa tapping her foot." He said looking out the window.

"Bye son." He said taking all their bags out to the car, Carolyn gave Druex a kiss on the cheek, and pulled her baby into a tight hug, "Mommy's gonna miss her baby, be good OK? Here is all of our numbers, and if you lose these I know Brittney has this exact list OK?"

"Yes, mama, I love you." Jarrell said, he and Druex, walking out with her.

She smiled, "I love you too bye."

Druex laughed, Jerrell was a straight mama's boy and he was damn proud of it too. He smacked Druex in his arm, "What the hell is so funny?"

"I love you mommy." Druex laughed in a high pitched voice.

"Nigga please I done heard you say, 'I love you too mommy' one to many times for you to be fakin." Jerrell said watching the car drive off.

"Who is that?" Dreux asked looking aver at Brittney's house, there was a girl standing on the porch her hair was crimped just liked Brittney's but she had on a white tank top and some bright neon orange shorts. Her thighs where thick and muscular, and her calf was chiseled like a football players. She had an hourglass shape a little soft in the middle but you could only tell by her love handles, and her chest was like big. Druex didn't want to believe that was Brittney, that was body was too much.

Jerrell looked at Druex like he was stupid, but he noticed the way that his mouth hung open, "Nigga that's Bri."

"I didn't know she had a body like that J!" He said shaking his head trying to shake the image of her out of his head.

"Nigga that girls been 'overdeveloped' since I could remember, every year she had bigger breasts than ever' girl in school, and all the females couldn't believe she wasn't a hoe so they still liked her and all them little mama's wanted her body, and all the lil'niggas wanted to hit that but Rome wasn't havin that. And her legs she got them from dancing, Tae Bo, and walking everyday with her mama. She been trying to lose whatever weight that she thinks makes her look bad, off fo' eva now but all it is doin' is making that look even better." Jarrell went on, everybody knew not to ask him a question cuz he would get into it and just talk, talk, talk. He got that from his mother.

Jerrell had talked so much that they hadn't noticed that Brittney was walking over to them, "Wuz up?"

Jerrell looked over her seeing the little diamond stud stick out from under her tank top, he reached over to reveal her soft six pack and a bell button ring, "I thought Mrs.Teresa said no belly piercing till you 18?"

Brittney smiled, laughing a little making Druex's stomach do back handsprings, "You know mama, she don't last long with limitations and stuff. She gave in last week."

"We still good to come over?" Druex asked after getting his voice back.

"Yep, I just walked ova here to say mama cooked so I'm not cookin ya'll shit!" She replied laughing at the face they made.

Jarrell smacked her on her arm, "We'll be over there later."

"Aiight bye." She replied walking away, Druex found himself watching her hips, the girl had a killer walk to go with all that, 'Damn I see what Rome likes.'

He and Jarrell ran back into the house, they walked around for a minute doing nothing, grabbing food out the cabinets and stuff. They went up stairs to change and after they had both came out in shorts in a too damn big shirt they both sat out on the patio, blasting the new Ginuwine CD. They were both laying back singing "Differences" when Jarrell decided to bring up Brittney to D.

"So you like my best friend or what nigga?" Jarrell asked not tryin to be sensitive or disguise it or nothing.

Druex looked at him like he was crazy, "What the hell Boog?"

"You like Bri or what? I see how yo' sorry ass act when she around, trying to be all quiet and shit. Then you be staring at her and stuff, I ain't slow nigga. You got the 'feelin' or what?" He said sitting up looking at Druex, who obviously trying to fake it.

Druex still wanted to play it off, "What 'feelin' nigga? You goin crazy or some shit? Brittney ain't my type."

Jarrell looked offended with that last comment, "Don't front nigga, that 'feelin' that O get when he with Tiraza. That 'feelin' we all lookin for. And what you mean by 'she ain't my type', what's wrong with her?"

Druex waited a minute to answer him, he had to admit he thought he felt that 'feelin' the first time he saw Brittney smile early that morning, but he didn't want to believe that, "Nigga, you know me, I got to have the complete dymne. Tall, thin, luscious --"

"Oh, you mean the hoe that will drop her drawers when you snap, aiight Druex whateva. Just cuz she ain't 120 pounds don't mean she ain't a dymne and you know it ... and I hate to say it you gon' have to learn that beauty ain't all on the outside. Don't lead her on, & don't hurt her, since she ain't you type, don't try to play her then. Cuz you will have me, Jerome, Jayson, and all his niggas at school, and her niggas on yo' back aiight then." Jarrell said changing the CD to DMX, sitting back not looking at Druex anymore. It was pissin him off that Druex wanted to lie, and he was trying to come up with a plan on how to make him tell the truth.

Druex sighed closing his eyes, laying his back on the patio furniture, "Rell I didn't mean it like that and you --"

"Fizz forget it, you done already told me what you think." He stood up and looked over at him, "Come on if you still wanna go over there or if not you could call Mario and go with him to Envy."

"Naw nigga I wanna go." Druex said getting up, wondering why Jarrell got so pissed.

Jarrell ran over the other yard careful not to step on the flowers in the yard, and the little homemade pond with the real little fish. He could remember their sitting out here for hours just working on both their yards. Jarrell was just about to open the door when Druex stopped him.

"J, I do like her and I don't just mean coo', she is that too, but I mean she cute and sweet, and I can't handle that. You know that, I never do good wit them sweet girls, and you know when I get a good girl it never works you know." Druex said stopping Jarrell, Jarrell was going to say something when Druex went right by him and into the kitchen.

They closed the door quietly and walked down the hall, they could hear on the phone. So they stood in the doorway and listened. "Look J, have fun I'm tired of this convo." Brittney said sitting back on the plush couch, Jerome had called before he went on the date not after.

"B, I miss you, and I love you. I want to be with you, but every time me and you together, something goes wrong. You know." Jerome replied.

She sighed closing her eyes, "I thought we agreed that we wouldn't get back together anymore, that was the last breakup for us. We need to stop fakin like either one of us actually meant anything to the other."

Jerome sighed loudly, "B that was harsh, you know I love you, you know I do, don't say shit like that cuz I'll ways be there for you. I'll always be yours."

"Stop, I don't want to hear this anymore, I need someone else to love like I love you. I can't keep doin this with you, it hurts to much J, look I'm gon' go, I need to be with my best friend right now." She whispered pulling her ponytail down.

"Hold on, what you gonna fall in love with Jarrell or somethin?" Jerome replied angry cause she wanted to be with Jarrell more at that moment.

"Shut the hell up Jerome! I'm not gonna fall in love with Rell, but if I did it would be better than this shit between me and you! Shit Rome you so fuckin wrong --" She replied loudly Jerome could piss her off so bad.

Jerome tried to calm her, "Hey, hey boo you know I didn't mean that, I was just upset. Look I'm let you go chill aiight."

"Yea." Brittney replied exhaling loudly.

"I love you B, don't forget that. Bye." Jerome said before they hung up.

"Yea, I love you too J. Bye." She said hanging up, standing up stretching. That whole conversation had left the two men standing at the door with two very raw emotions: one was angry that Jerome was still trying to keep her and one was plagued with different emotions.

"Wuz up Bri!" Jarrell said loudly announcing there presence.

She turned around and grinned ear to ear obviously forgetting about Jerome, but even Druex could see that the glow in her eyes was dim, "Hey there, I didn't hear ya'll come in."

Druex smiled picking up a picture of 6 little kids in bathing suits, "We just slipped in."

"Aye I didn't know Mrs. Teresa kept this!" Jarrell said looking at the picture.

"Yea, since your Mom has the one where we are sitting on the bench after Church momma kept this one." Brittney replied looking at the picture too.

"Is this is ya'll?" Druex asked pointing to a little boy and girl holding hands smiling with their feet in the water surrounded by two more boys and to other girls.

"Yea, that's her brother Jayson and her sister Isabelle, and that's Nia and Terrence." Jarrell replied pointing out their siblings.

Druex laughed and a smile covered his face, butterfly's fluttered in her stomach, she adored the he always smiled when he spoke, "How old were ya'll?"

Brittney smiled taking the picture away, "Don't laugh at us we were only six."

"Anyways I'm hungry!" Jarrell said running into the kitchen, and Druex and Brittney followed slowly.

"As usual, mama made some Chicken, Greens, Chitlins which are mostly for anyone who likes 'em, Hot water cornbread, green beans, and black eyed peas. And there's some kool-aid in the fridge." Brittney said pointing out everything.

"OK cool what we gon' watch?" Druex asked as Jarrell fixed his plate about to sit down at that the table.

"Love and Basketball first it's whatever after that." Handing him a plate.

Jarrell sat down and started stuffing his face, between bites he said, "Hmm, southern home cooking, are gonna eat?"

Dreux sat down Brittney and Jarrell, Brittney was wiping crumbs off his face, "No, I already ate somethin...damn Rell hungry much?"

"Shit, hell yea yo mama and my mama can cook the hell out of some food." He said eating the last piece of cornbread.

Brittney laughed and shook her head, "And how about you skinny nigga?"

Druex swallowed his food, "I'm like Boog on this, this shit is good."

She stood up just as the doorbell rung, "Look after ya'll finish put ya'll plates in the dishwasher come to the den."

Neither spoke they just shook their heads, she laughed and walked to the door. Brittney looked in the peephole surprised to see him, she opened the door, and there was her brother, Jayson's, fine ass best friend. "Hey whatcha you want Xavier?"

Xavier's green eyes glistened as he smiled, "I came by to see you."

Brittney raised an eyebrow, he was fine, 6'3 sand colored skin, bright green eyes and long ass cornrows. But he was so full of himself, "Naw fa real Xa what you want?"

"On the real Shorty I been feelin' you fo real fo' a minute herree and I wanted to ask yo' if yo' wanted to chill wit me tonight? Just you me and the stars mami." Xavier said licking his lips, he wasn't lieing that nigga had been beggin to get to Brittney since she was in the 8th grade. 

"No Xa, I dun told you a hunnid times! No!" Brittney replied mocking his ghetto southern accent.

Xavier shook his head showing off two rows of shiny white teeth, "Aiight shorty have it yo' way. I know you and that nigga Jerome ain't wit it no more so I just thought you and me --"

Out of no where came a voice behind Brittney, "You can back up off my girl nigga. She don told you ass no, so you cut dat shit already and step." It was Druex and a smile came over her face as he stood behind her so close she could feel his chest right on her back. Druex and Jarrell were going to the den when they heard the conversation between Xavier and Brittney and Jarrell sent Druex to save her since Xavier knew Jarrell.

Xavier looked totally unimpressed, "Nigga what she want wit a younun like you when she could have me? And I bet Jerome don't know some young punk ass nigga is trying to warm up his spot."

"Fuck that nigga, you heard the woman No, so step yo' ole ass back to that '77 Chyrsyler wit the to' up rims." Druex said stepping closer to Brittney, layin his hands on her waist.

Xavier looked down at Druex's hands and how close he was to her, "Aiight lil'mama Ima step but just cuz I'm on probation but you know his punk ass is gon' be into it when Jay hear some punk ass nigga is all up on his sister at ya'll house by yoself. One boo."

Brittney flipped him off, "Holla Xavier don't come back."

She closed the door, turned around, and smiled at Druex, he had her backed up on the door, and a smile went his face as her breath went up against his neck. "Thank you Druex."

"No problem." Druex replied not backing up rather he got closer, her breasts were smushed up against his chest as he stared in her eyes.

And they were two seconds from kissing before Jarrell interrupted grinning like a Chesire cat, "Excuseies, can we watch the movie please?"

Druex backed up and shook his head, trying to clear his thoughts he wanted to kiss her so bad, her luscious lips were begging for it, "Yea nigga here I come."

Jarrell looked back at Brittney as Druex walked into the den, "Bri you coming?"

"Yea, in a minute, I gotta go...um pee or something." Brittney said her eyes closed tight. Jarrell laughed as he walked into the den, he knew his best friend and he knew she had to calm her self down.

Ch.3
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