Please excuse any grammatical errors.

February 13, 1992

~Cedric (K-Ci) Hailey's P.O.V~

"JoJo, go open the fucking door!" I yelled from my room.

I heard him in the kitchen rattling paper like a damn rat, so I knew he was woke. The clock now reads 10:21 a.m. I got up, put on a shirt to see who was here. When I entered the room Tia was entering our apartment, while JoJo held the door open for her.

"I didn't come here to argue or anything, I came here to speak with you woman to man." She said to me.

"Okay, I respect that."

"May is sit?" Tia asked.

I nodded my head toward the couch, and followed suit. This should be good. I rubbed my hands together and sat.

"Okay, first things first. How're you doing?" She asked as an icebreaker.

"I'm cool, I guess." I shrugged.

"That's good to hear." She nodded. "So, I noticed that I've been one of the people brought up in you guys' arguments, why is that?" She asked sitting her elbow on her thigh, staring at me intently.

"Cutting to the chase, huh?" I laughed under my breath.

"There's no other way." She shrugged.

"I-it ain't that I don't like you, I just don't like your personality. You act like you know more than you do, like you better than everybody else." I said to her.

"My personality? I think I'm better than everybody else? K-Ci we don't even know each other well enough to say that my personality is bad. As for me acting like I'm better than anyone else, how do I appear that way?" She asked confused.

"You be talking like a white person."

"What the hell is talking white, and how does that connect with anything you said?" She said squinting with her eyebrows raised.

"White people talk like that, all proper and shit, using them big ass words a lot of people don't know the definition to. Plus I feel like you straying him away from us." I explained.

"I know plenty of black people who use big words, so white people aren't the only ones. You're not making any type of sense right now, K-Ci. So you have a problem with me because I pronounce all my vowels? That's just elementary. I'm not doing ANYTHING to stray him away from ANYBODY. You seem to be the only one who thinks so. Besides, Donald is a GROWN man, that controls his OWN actions." She chuckled, but not in amusement.

"That's what I said, but now that I think about it you and Dalvin right. It does sound dumb, my bad for including you in all 'lat shit. He is a grown man, he do what he want." I apologized.

"Okay, cool. Now that you admit you were wrong about me, do you think you were wrong about how you acted towards Dal and Donald?" She asked me. She called this nigga Donald.💀

"I-"

"Hold that thought. I'm sorry to cut you off, but I have to go, and the rest of whatever you said could be said to them if it's positive." Tia said standing up and picking up her bag.

She continued, "Just remember that not everything is meant to be funny. Also, not everything is worth losing the people closest to you over. You all got love for one another, I saw it when I first met y'all, but this needs to be fixed. Some things just don't get fixed without an apology, no matter how light or heavy the situation is. It doesn't matter how much it hurts your pride saying sorry." She said walking to the door then facing me.

"Yeah, thanks for stopping by."

"I enjoyed this little conversation, have a nice day." She waved as JoJo opened the door for her.

JoJo closed the door, "Straight boss!"

He bursted out laughing, "Dalvin basically said the same thing she said about that talking white mess you spoke about. When he said it you dismissed it and when she said it you ain't have a choice. I even told you that's straight bullshit. She had you stuttering, put you in your place, and intimidated you, all in the span of fifteen minutes. Next time you get mad at some dumb shit,I'm getting Tia on you, because I 'on't know nobody that was able to do that to a stubborn ass K-Ci besides mama." JoJo joked, laughing repeatedly clapping his hands, and stomping his feet.

I didn't know what else to say, so I did what everybody else would do when they don't know how else to reply. "Shut up!"

"I'm serious though, she did it the nicest way possible amd still succeeded. She is actually a cool person. You just ain't really hung with her, she's cool people bruh."

"A'ight, nigga damn!" I said getting mad at him for keep going on and on.

Walking into my room, I sat on the bed and thought about the conversation with Tia. She made a lot of points, I didn't want to hear that shit, but I guess I needed to hear it.

After a couple of hours laying in bed thinking, I came to a conclusion that she was right about a lot of things. We all been boys for years now, and some shit as dumb as this to ruin a friendship is just ignorant. Not to mention we still are in a group together, and I don't want that to interfere with work. The best thing to do is apologize to them soft ass niggas. I was wrong and everything but I STILL think they some soft ass niggas. I knocked on the DeGrate brothers door, and Dalvin answered it.

"What you doing here?" Dalvin asked frowning.

"What's up nigga?"

"Man, what do you want?" He raised his voice.

"I just wanted to say sorry to my niggas. We boys and I was on some bullshit when I said all of that. I ain't mean that shit at all. Is we good nigga?" I asked.

"Hell, yeah we good now. As long as you don't be on no more of that bullshit." He said letting me in. "You got my money?"

I forgot I owed this nigga money, "Yeah, it's at home." Ion got his money, I got enough but not for him.

"Go get that shit then!"

"Nigga, imma give it to you later. Take my word."

"I ain't taking your word until I get it." He pointed at me amd walked out the room, and I sat on the couch.

A couple minutes later De walked out, he looked like he was ready to go. "The hell you doin' here?" He asked me in an agitated tone.

"Dalvin let me in." I replied back.

"And?"

"To apologize for my behavior lately. I have been acting out for random shit lately, y'all all know it takes a lot from me to say I'm sor- I'm so- I'm sorry. Aight?" A nigga always had a hard time saying sorry, and meaning it.

He just laughed at me then said, "You better mean it this time, 'cause I'm getting tired of yo black ass doing shit."

"Nigga, I did. We boys?" I held my hand up, so we could dap.

"We boys." We dapped up, laughing.

"Nigga, I got to go. I'll catch y'all niggas later!" He yelled out leaving out the front door.

~Tia's P.O.V~

"I can't believe my baby working with Denzel fine ass." My mama said through the phone. I threw my head back laughing.

"Mama!" I said still laughing.

"What? He is fine ass hell."

"Yes, he's a nice looking guy but he's married. You both are and have children."

"Baby, I'm married not buried. My husband knows I love Denzel. He likes Halle Berry, so we're even."

"Okay, mama. You talk to auntie Betty?"

"Naww, I ain't talk to her. You know she always treated us bad. She ain't treat us like we was her family, treated us like slaves." My mother replied.

When she said us, she meant her full-blooded brothers and sisters. Her full blooded brothers and sisters. My mother came from a family of fourteen children. My grandmother had her oldest kids by her husband, and when he husband had to get the heck out of dodge, she started dating my grandfather, which is my mothers father.

My grandmother had her first eight children by her husband, and my mother and her full blooded two brothers and three sisters by my grandfather. The younger ones got thw worst treatment. They were abused by the older siblings in more ways than one, my mother was just one of the lucky ones to miss out on the sexual abuse, but the her two older sisters weren't so lucky. They had no type of childhood, a good one that is. They had to worry about being messed with at school AND at home by their older siblings who was left to care for them when my grandmother was working.

Her siblings treated my mother a tad better because she was lighter with loose hair. By a tad I mean her features weren't talked about, until she got older and my grandmother would joke about how big her eyes were. My mother is not light skinned or anything it's just that she was LIGHTER than the rest of her full blooded siblings. When they'd have to stay at their aunt Betty house, she'd make them do a lot of things.

When people would come over and compliment how my mother and her full-blooded siblings look, Auntie Mary would dismiss it and say 'YOU should see how my OTHER nieces look'. They grew up with a horrible self-esteem because ALL that they endured. They're so beautiful to me, but are sometimes blinded.

That's one of the reasons my mother has that colorism mindset. I love mother dearly but she says a lot of nonsense that rubs me, and some others the wrong way. She even made a comment saying she had my brother and I by our "dad" because she wanted us to have the same father and wanted us to be light. I don't consider myself light but everyone else in my family seems to think so, in my eyes I'm brown but whatever.

When I went natural my mother and other family members HATED it, she called me nappy-headed, or comment saying I should perm it again when I'd have it out. It was because my hair is mostly a 4C texture. She always told me to love myself, but how could I FULLY do so, when I had people constantly in my face saying bad things about something that's a part of me?

She's also stated how biracials look better than full on black babies. She thinks the baby is only cute if the father is black and the mother is some other race. If the mother is black she thinks the baby don't look right. I had a colorist way of thinking while growing up, because of the people I was around, until I grew up and wised up.

"I just asked because you talk to her every once in a while."

"Yeah, but not lately. I might call her soon, though."

"Oh, how's auntie Deedee, auntie Freda and auntie May doing?" Those are my mothers full-blooded sisters.

"They're good. Everybody be asking about you, you should call them sometimes."

"Mama, I'm a very busy woman."

"And? You can still make time for your family."

"Mmhm, I hear you mama." I ,epld

I love my aunts but one of them touched me inappropriately as a child, I never said anything to ANYBODY about her. Heck, I haven't really told nobody about my cousin, but my brother and best friend. I had to be at least five at the time. It wasn't nearly as bad as what my cousin did. My aunt felt on me.

"Everytime we speak, you always at work. When ain't you working?" She said getting angry.

"I have to be consistent to reach my goal, mama. I've been wanting my ideas to play on screen for a while now. I can't just stop. You have to understand that this is the ONLY thing helping me pay my bills as of now." I carefully explained to her. I'm helping her and my brother out as well.

"I know, but still. You got to get better at contacting people."

"I don't like talking on the phone a lot. Also, the phone works both ways, if they really wanted to speak to me they'd call me themselves." I said to her.

"You just making up excuses. Like I said you need to be better at that. You know your auntie May mad at me."

"Really?" They argue ALL the time, mostly about petty stuff and won't speak to each other for days to a week.

"Yeah! She gon' call me talking 'bout some I'm lucky I'm got a husband to be here with me. And how he and you helps me do things, while she has nobody. She's mad that I'm married and she isn't. I keep telling her it ain't my fault I lucked up. I thought I was going to stay single for the rest of my life, after having you. I ain't want nobody here that'd be touching on my daughter." My mother said explaining what happened. They argue about this a lot, and when she explain it she'll keep repeating it. She said she didn't want people touching on me? She watched out for the wrong people and gender.

"Oh."

"Talking about some I'm lucky I have y'all. Ain't my fault I lucked up-" she kept talking, mostly repeating what she had already said.

"You got somebody yet?" She said finally changing the subject after a while.

"No, mama." I laughed.

"You not interested in nobody? I saw you on TV with two different dudes. One on the red carpet and that Demontee boy that seemed to always call your house when you when I'd come over."

"Mama, they're just my friends. And he goes by DeVanté. They are very down to earth people too."

DeVanté is nice and all but we still don't know each other in full capacity. Besides JoJo said he was a whore, and when a dude friend calls them out then it's more than likely true. Though, I've been staying with him, and I don't see any whorish tendencies company unless its JoJo, K-Ci, or Tionne.

Their phone doesn't even ring that much. Unless it's a close family member. He could be the type to visit and call them. But he's not my man, so it isn't my business. Even if I did know him in full capacity, I probably wouldn't date him that quick because I like to take things SLOW. I want to be friends with the person, then build up to a different type of relationship with them. I'm not a fast mover at all, I'm a dang turtle. Also, as I've said before, I really need deal with my mental health and really deal with my childhood trauma properly.

"He sound like he Spanish. Ain't no nigga gon' call all the time wanting to be friends. You ain't giving it up, are you?" She lowered her voice.

"Mama, NO," I laughed, then continued. "I told you that I'm still pure. I told you I wanted to wait, and I wanted to have myself together first. I don't even think I have time to date. Besides I don't want to be some dudes practice or taking care of no dude."

"You seem to have it all together to me. You got a lot of money, and your head on straight. If you really wanted to date, chile you'd make time."

"It's not just about money ma. There are other things to take into consideration as well."

"Chile, let me let you go. I'm still trying to get used to cooking again since you moved out. Before you go, I need you to remind me of the ingredients to these chopped potatoes and turkey tails."

I told her the ingredients as she took notes on paper.

"I love you. You know you still mama's baby, right?" She asked.

"Yes, mama. I love you more. I'll talk ti you another time."

"Bye," she said and hung up the phone.

I put my phone away, stood up, and walked out of my trailer. I made sure everything was in place before those needed came back from break to production. People my job is an easy job, but it isn't AT ALL. We have to deal with all types of attitude, and work are only able to work in the production studio on the owners time.

We're only on the second scene, one scene takes HOURS to do. Plus it has to be lengthy because we still have to chop it up at the when we complete the whole thing. We have to take away the important but not as important clips away. It also has to fit in the budget given.

My first film 'The Five Heartbeats' was a very stressful process. The budget was soooo low, and sooo many scenes had to be cut to fit in the given budget. I'm glad this 'Malcolm X' film isn't as bad as my first film. This time the person I'm working with owns his own studio, and is providing the budget, which is way higher than 'The Five Heartbeats', it's even higher than 'Juice'. I'm going to get to the level of owning my own studio, and providing my own filming budget. I'm going to make it thay far and even further. MARK MY WORDS.

"Aaaannnnddd, ACTION!" The directors tape slammed close.

Author's Note: I have to get back to doing schoolwork again. Its SO stressful, but I'm managing. So, I'll update whenever I get the chance to.

Word Count: 3,060

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❤Thank you for taking the time out your day to read another chapter! I appreciate it a WHOLE lot!😘