Page 48 of Not My Type (Not My Type #1)

Nickoi

I stare through the window as Zara sobs in the back of the car. I hate that she’s crying because of me, but she’s just so stubborn. Jah know.

“Zara?” I say, looking at her in the rear view mirror and she rolls her eyes.

“Don’t talk to me Nickoi,” she says wiping her tears. I sigh. “Yuh lucky,” she says. I shake my head.

Mi can never understand Zara enuh. I watch her for a while as she wipes her tears before I open the car door. I pull the back door and she moves over.

I hold her hand. “Come yer,” I say.

“Mi have times when mi rather be alone and just think yuh know...” I start, unsure of what to tell her. She doesn’t look at me but I continue.

“So like what we have going on is my escape. Sometimes mi wish mi nuh affi leave yuh, doh get me wrong but mi cya gwaan like seh mi nuh have a chaotic life outside of this... weh mi a work on,” I say to her.

“It nuh hurt fi talk Nickoi,” she pouts. I know, but this shit just complicated.

“Mi know that but wah mi a guh talk bout when mi nuh understand wah even a gwaan? And a that’s why mi need fi think,” I explain.

“... and mi affi do that alone.”

She sighs. “Okay.... so wah get you so mad to the point weh yuh affi ruff me up?” She asks.

I laugh pointing at my myself. “Me ruff yuh up? Wah mek yuh so lie b?” She smiles.

She takes out the straw from her Stanley cup, putting it in her mouth like a spliff before she sits back, making a straight face. “Nuh ask me nutt’n!” She mocks me. A you that fi real G.

I sigh. “A nuh ruff up that?” She asks and I nod because that’s what she wants to see then she puts back the straw. “Talk to me,” her eyes on me.

Mi cya tell har this at all and mi nuh wah lie to har so it better if mi mek eh rest.

“Mi feel better now so figet that,” I sit beside her.

She nods slowly. “Okay.”

“Yuh have school tomorrow?” I ask her and she nods.

“Yeah why?” her eyes fixed on me.

“Mi did wah bring you and Ms. Sandra to Mystic Mountain,” I say and she gets excited.

“Really?” She beams and I nod. “When?”

“Tomorrow morning so you can mek Mama know,” I chuckle and slide out of the back.

Thinking of it, mi never yet sit in the back of the Benz enuh and Zara mek mi do it. In every aspect of my life even when it insignificant, she have me a do things weh mi never do before.

“Bye Hanett!” I hear and look to the side. Ms. Sandra is coming.

I look back at Zara. “Come back in the front,” I tell her, going back in the driver’s seat.

“Me have unuh a wait long?” Mama asks with a chuckle.

I shake my head no. “No sah yuh good man,” Zara gets in the front. I look at her for a while before I check if Ms. Sandra is okay.

“You alright?” I stare at her. She looks tired.

“Yes mi bwoy,” she says wiping her face with her rag.

“Ah, gimme a minute,” I get out of the car. I don’t really know these people but for some reason I get a little genuine vibe from them. A nice people them.

Then again, people so deceiving nowadays so them probably a pretend but mi nah go be negative right now. I approach a few of them that my spirit take, telling them that I’m going to leave. I spot Henry glaring at me and I look at the ladies.

“Take care.” I smirk.

They wave and smile. “I’d love to see you again!” I hear and chuckle to myself. Nah see me ag–dawg? easy.

“Fi real mon, unuh big up unuh self zeen,” I rasp and walk away.

My phone rings. I swipe the screen. “Juaqína mi cya talk now,” I close the gate.

She sighs. “Not like yuh ever available, but Gutta tell me say you did wah talk to me,” Oh yeah.

“Not now mi a call yuh later,” I tell her and hang up.

I pull the door and notice that Zara is looking at her grandmother in the back who is on the phone. “We nuh lef yet so why yuh nuh run come? Space in here.” I get in and close the door.

“Yes Michelle,” I hear her say.

“Mommy a come, okay,” Zara tells me. I open my phone and spot a message from an unsaved number. I hiss. Who deh give out man number? I check my mother’s message.

How long Lorie go inna mi house fa? Mi want har out a mi house!

Look like them nah gree again. I shake my head and close my phone.

Mi not even care wah deh gwaan with mamz and Lorie cas a she tek har in.

Anything dem a go through them try figure that out themselves cause right now mi have bigga things fi meds.

I spot Ms. Michelle coming. She pulls the back door and Ms. Sandra moves over chuckling.

Zara’s mom struggles to hop in. Mama laughs out.

“Yuh nyam up the wull heap a food a ‘Merika now yuh can hardly lif up yuh legs,” she says and they both start laughing.

As they continue to talk, I zone out their conversation. Mi really need fi be by miself enuh .. mi really cya think the way mi want with so much talking round me. I smile at them. Dem can chat.

“Unuh ready now?” I ask and they nod.

“Yes, before it gets too late,” Ms. Michelle retorts. I press the button, powering on the car. I look over at Zara and she’s pulling on her seatbelt.

“Mi always hate lef family reunions enuh but all good things come to an end. Nuh so dem say?” Zara’s mom laughs.

“Same suh,” Ms. Sandra chuckles and I watch my mirrors and notice that a man is moving his car at the same time.

Mi sure know him see mi a move. Him cya wait? He moves his car slowly almost scraping my car and I wind down my window. I poke my head out, giving him a death stare because him a must idiot.

“Yuh nuh see say mi a move my car?!” I ask him.

“Nickoi..” Zara says and I sigh. Cya even be grimey wid him. Universe love deh boy yah.

“No mi never notice,” he says. “But yuh nuh have mirror?!” Who him a deal wid? Nickoi memba weh yuh deh.

I glare at him then hear Ms. Michelle’s voice. “If him see say you a move why him would a move same time?!”

“Who gi dem license?” Ms. Sandra asks. I sigh to myself.

Mi a try fi stay calm enuh. He’s still outside arguing and my temper is boiling. Zara puts her hand on mine and squeeze it. I breathe. Wah him a argue bout? Nuh him nearly scratch mi car? Delusional.

“Town boy deh feel like mi fraid a him enuh,” he says. What! How that come in?

“ Wah you a argue bout?” I ask him.

Him a kill up himself and him nah mek sense. Him barely a talk bout the car him just a talk bout who fraid a who. Maybe something else a bother him. That nuh have nothing fi do with me though... mi just a go check if him scrape mi car.

“ Yuh a gwaan like a fool bad man!” his voice raises.

Zara comes out of the car and stands beside me. Zara is a rider enuh. A mi Ghee mon.

“It alright?” She asks and I kneel down, looking at it. Him scrape it enuh.

I shake my head and Zara puts her hand on my shoulder. “ It’s minor.” She says. Mi know seh a cas she nuh wah nuh problem.

“If yuh did a look in a yuh mirror that wouldn’t happen!” he says with no sign of remorse.

Keep calm Nickoi, you already a do great!

Him a ask fi sup’m enuh but mi respect Zara family so mi a gwaan wull it.

“Hey bwoy shut up yuh mouth yuh know a who yah deal wid?” Dino asks him.

“Yow mek that deh boy deh gwaan talk man, as long as him nuh touch me,” I say looking at my car bumper. Ben mi enuh.

I hiss. True him d’evu know seh a Zara mek mi nuh use deh glock ya pon him. Zara always a save dem bwoy yah life. That’s why mi nah mek she know bout Carlos. Mi wah kill him miself.

“Yow Dino nuh deal with me!” He shouts. Bad bwoy?

“Timoy shut yuh mouth nuh!” Zara snaps. So she know him? A who him?

Ms. Michelle walks over to us. “Timoy yuh need fi come gwaan a yuh yard. Yuh drink too much and it mek you an act like a fool,” she says to him and he looks down.

He walks over to his car and gets in. Idiot boy. I shake my head and hop in the Benz.

We’ve been driving for two hours and the drive is noisy. The ladies are talking about random stuff while I’m in my head the entire journey.

“Mommy yuh nuh see seh Sash did missing the whole time?” Zara asks.

“She did a talk to wah boy from over the side. A nuh family reunion she come,” Mama chuckles. I hide my laugh. Mi fi a mind mi own business.

It didn’t take long for me to turn on their lane. “Nickoi we’re not coming off at home mi wah go around sister Olive so turn right,” Mama says and I turn and follow her directions. I stop at a yellow and white house.

They thank me and walk over to the house.

Zara looks at me with a look of concern. “Mi know seh you’re not okay..” she sighs. I stay silent.

“I guess I’mma leave you alone until you’re in a good mood again,” she says and I know she’s trying to say I’m sometime-ish. I’m not.

I decide to let it go though because mi have other things fi deal with right now. Mi nuh have the time fi talk with Zara about me being sometime-ish. I move closer to her and she pecks my lips.

“Later or whatever,” she says getting out and I watch her.

“Mami” I say making her blush.

“Bye,” she grins.

I watch as she walks over to the house and I pull off.

I connect my phone to the car because I have serious business to deal with right now.

I decided to try Talia again because I’ve been calling her phone without answer since the incident.

Seemingly avoiding my calls. Mi know seh a because of the fight mon.

I call her once more and it goes to voicemail. Hmph.

After I heard about her attempting to shoot Zara I looked for her and I didn’t find her.

I tried calling her and she wouldn’t pick up either.

She leaves me with no choice but to check her yard and mi really neva’ wah do that.

I call her again and she doesn’t pick up.

She’s online on WhatsApp though. I send her a text.

*Answer.*

It’s delivered.

My phone starts ringing and I realize that it’s a call from a private number.

I furrow my brows. Mi nuh answer private number enuh.

Suppose a Carlos? I press my thumb on the steering wheel and the phone answers.

I hear shuffling. I kept quiet driving, waiting for the person to talk.

If yuh call mi pon a private number a you first a seh sup’m.

“Yow Nickoi,” I hear Rick say, he’s hardly audible and usually he’s loud. Something off, mi just know it.

“Bro..” he says and his voice breaks. What he says next I wasn’t expecting.

I’m not saying I’d rather if he told me that they came back and vandalized his house or send death threats fi wi. In all honesty, any one of those scenarios would’ve had me furious yes, but I’d prefer to hear any of those instead of hearing this news ...

“She nuh make it enuh,” it comes out shaky. I know he’s crying.

People would a seh bad man nuh cry and a only weak man cry but nothing nuh go so. Who say bad man nuh have feelings? We a human too.

I tighten my hands around the steering wheel because I knew that he didn’t have anything good to say.

I knew it! There’s nothing in this world that ever make Rick cry, but this is understandable.

From we a go high school him deh with Gina plus him get a youth with har.

Jah know. I don’t even know what to say. I just want to do some evil shit.

“Mi think she would a pull through enuh bro, but she g-gone Ghee... m-mi cyaa’ even believe this yowww,” he cries and I stare out of space.

Shit! Shit! Shit!