Episode 13: Plausible Deniability

Reem

It’s been almost a year of me, Ty, and Set on top and our shit is down to a science. Ty’s not even as wild as Rico or Nutty, but just because he’s known for running with them, niggas don’t step out of line. I mean, unless they just don’t know shit. And if that’s the case, Set has no problem proving a point.

My phone vibrates, and I have to tamper down a grin. My lady is waiting up for me, like she always does. Having a smart college girl who’s not from here does wonders for my peace of mind. School’s out for the summer, but Heaven’s working an internship at Kenton Memorial. It’s paid, which is the only reason she let me move her off campus to a cool lil’ one bedroom. She thinks I’ma let her pay utilities.

Ty does that nasty ass shit with his nose, but it doesn't fuck up his hands. He’s straightening out all the different dollar denominations we got today from pick-up. The crumpled shit he counts himself, and puts everything else through the money counter, just to count it himself again. It’s been that way since we was kids. Anal, but his count is never off.

When he does that shit again, I put my rolling tray down and glare at him. “You back on that shit?”

Ty cuts his eyes at me. “You wild as fuck for questioning me.”

“You deflecting. The fuck I tell you about–”

“No, nigga. I’m not. We don’t get high off our own supply, and the Italian shit is so stepped on I’d peel over before I finished snorting.”

I ball my fists and will myself not to steal off on this nigga. Both of those excuses aren’t nowhere near what the fuck I wanted to hear.

“Ty–”

Ty puts the crumbled bills down and turns to me. His eyebrows are pulled low, and his own fists are closed and vibrating. “On my mama, I got a sinus infection, Dub. I told you I was done with that shit, and I am. Now pills? Definitely. I can’t stop fucking Jazz off them shits. But I told you I would stop and I did. You question me again about it and I’m firing on you.”

The air is tense as we glare at each other, but I believe him, so I smirk. The anger coming off him is regular shit, not that coke rage he used to get.

The door in front of us opens, and Set strolls in. He looks around before going to the fridge. “What y’all niggas talking about?”

“Reem thinks I’m off that shit,” Ty fusses, going back to the bills in front of him.

“Well, are you?” Set asks, grabbing a soda and walking toward us. He takes a seat at the armchair and takes out his phone.

“Says he got a sinus infection.”

“Yeah, his lo showed he was at urgent care this morning. I thought he was getting another shot in his ass.”

“At least I’m getting pussy,” Ty spits, sucking his nose. “Yo ass over there living like a monk. Surprised you ain’t follow Autumn and Turk to Northupton for her birthday. You know they chillin’ with yo girl.”

“Exactly why I ain’t go,” Set replies. “B said we not together, so we not together. And just ‘cause I don’t feel like racking up STDs like you don’t mean I’m living like a monk. I got all this nut saved for when B comes back. Shorty can’t stay away from the city, and the second her big toe steps over the city limits I’m unloading in my favorite place.”

This sick nigga grins, dimples still showing as he chugs his can.

“Yeah, aight. And quit bringing that shit up man! I ain’t telling you niggas shit else, bro. Y’all stay on my case! Set was popping and snorting right along with me and you don’t get on his case! And I know for a fact Turk caught some shit–”

“Yeah, because you backdoored him,” I cut him off, tired of the theatrics.

“And, fuck nigga, Reem be on my bumper like he be on yours. But one–I’m Set, and when I say I’m cool off some shit, I be cool. And two–even if I wasn’t Set, any nigga who was tweaked out like I was could be in a room full of white and never be tempted.”

I crack a smile and shake my head. “You still can’t eat bacon huh?”

“Not pork. But I’m cool off turkey and beef bacon now, too. Small price to pay I guess.”

Set’s twenty-first birthday fell on a Saturday. He, Ty, and Turk did every drug they could think of, and drank every type of liquor they could find. I went home early, but I’d heard Set tripped out so bad that he almost burned his apartment he shared with Ty down because in the midst of that, he’d left bacon in a skillet on high. They never could get the smell out.

Set had always been a super light weight, which is how he got into popping pills, since they help with drinking. But after that, he swore off everything but weed. I wish Ty followed suit.

“Ay, y’all heard this? This shit nice as fuck.” Ty turns the volume up on his phone, and a hard ass beat amplifies, with a hard ass woman flowing on top of it. I don’t necessarily keep up with female rappers, but I know I’ve never heard this voice whenever Heaven is on the aux.

“Who that?”

Ty grins on his screen. “You’ll never guess.”

“Who?” Set asks this time.

Ty looks up at him. “Wynter.”

“Swear?” I pull out my phone and search her name on IG. Her birthday just passed, and sure enough, the first post on her profile is a mixtape announcement. On her story, the Native Sons and Grimey, some rappers out of East Kenton, are in every picture and video. The last slide is Grimey’s tour announcement, where she’s the opening act.

“Damn. She hard as fuck.” I look toward Set, who is frowning at his phone. “You knew she could rap?”

“We’d drunk freestyle but… ay, what’s her IG again?”

“Uh, theeiceprincess, same shit she been calling herself since middle school.”

Set chuckles once. “Her ass blocked me.”

I snort, while Ty shrugs. “I mean, I heard you played her all the way to the left when Tiny’s daughter blew into town. You ain’t even bring her around the homies foreal, so I know you was tender. I woulda blocked yo ass, too.”

Set leans back, like he’s really contemplating what Ty said. The whole beginning of last year, my bro was on some different shit. I mean, he and Wynter were never official, but she was the only woman always around, and part of that could have been she was Autumn’s sister. So seeing him out the way, posting and deleting a whole other woman, going to war over her, it felt kind of surreal.

I always figured he and Ty would be roommates at an old folk’s home if he didn’t get serious with Wynter.

“Blocking someone ain’t ever player. Tell her lame ass I said congrats on the tape and happy birthday, though.”

“Sheeit, I ain’t telling her shit. She ain’t blocking me, too! Besides, I’m team Wynter until you bring B around. If I can’t crack, then–”

“Ay, watch ya fuckin’ mouth, Dub.”

Ty and I lock eyes immediately, before he cackles. “Oh, you real tender!” he sucks his nose again, grabbing the rubber bands by his hip to start sectioning the organized bills. “You hear that shit, Reem? That nigga panties in a bunch!”

“All twisted up,” I add, even making Set snort.

“Yeah, yeah.” He waves us off.

“Nah, you feeling her like that, then I’m team B. You couldn’t handle a bitch like Wynter anyway, brodie. Trust me.”

“I handled her ass for years. But she not B. She not…”

“Not what?” I grab the rolling tray again and go back to what I was originally doing.

“I’on know. This stay between us, right?” Set looks between me and Ty, and we glance at each other before nodding.

“Only nigga I would tell is right here.”

“Fasho.”

“You niggas,” Set shakes his head. “But nah, Wynter is harder than a lot of niggas. You wouldn’t expect it foreal, ‘cause she not loud and fasho don’t try to be politickin’ like other females that’s affiliated. But she hardbody as fuck. And when I was younger, I thought I needed that. I didn’t think I could fuck with a girl who was soft, ‘cause I ain’t ever been soft. But I’on know… we’d been fucking around on and off for years and neither one of us ever let our guard down, but neither one of us ever really asked the other to. She’d get to tripping sometimes, and I’ve showed my ass a couple times, but like, us being vulnerable and shit? I mean, I know some shit about her, like she knows shit about me, but she ain’t ever softened up. Then Brina comes, bruised up, and shorty’s still soft as fuck. Softest thing I’ve ever known… it was a no-brainer.”

Set’s lost in his mind as his words taper off. He used to get like that when we were kids, but now it’s happening more often, the more work we put in. 

Ty and I share another glance. We have our own suspicions on why Wynter’s so closed off, but neither one of us would ever say a word to Set. We pride ourselves on staying out of dick and pussy shit, and besides, years of plausible deniability meant we really ain’t know anything too concrete enough to actually put anyone on game. 

Me personally, if I did give a fuck about what the bros be doing, I would say that Set and Wynter fucked around because they were both broken, and thought their pieces would fit together. But Wynter’s jagged parts already fit someone else’s, and now, Set found someone whose pieces fit his.

At the expense of  what could have been a real friendship.

Fucking friends is so messy. Exactly why I don’t have female friends.

“You a whole ass tenderoni over there,” Ty sniffles. “Damn, that was beautiful. You got that from that book Reem is reading, huh? I swear I just heard that shit like two days ago.”

Set stands and flips Ty off. “You don’t take shit serious. That’s why you stay fuckin’ with bops. Text me when you ready to go. I’m finna call my bitch.”

“Like I said, Reem. Tender.”

I chuckle as I seal the backwood. Set ambles off to one of the bedrooms of the crib. More often than not, he’s on the phone with Sabrina anyway, and even if she’s busy, she still answers. I’m happy for bro, foreal. And he’s getting in good with her brother, so I know it’s a matter of time before they back good.

Ty clears his throat, but when he looks at me, I shake my head.

His mouth closes, and his shoulders deflate. I spark up, and take a healthy toke before passing it to him. 

“Damn.”

“Yup.”

Plausible deniability.