Page 21 of Rah

The bass from the party vibrated through the floor as I walked down the hallway, straightening my shirt. My performance had been great. The crowd was loud, screaming my name, and rapping every word like they’d written the songs themselves. For a moment, I felt like a star, like I’d made it.

But, like always, when I stepped off stage, reality crept right back in. All that noise, all that love, and my pockets didn’t reflect it. It was ironic to have fame without the riches to back it up. The streets knew my name. My songs spun on every hood mixtape. But I couldn’t even get a single played on the radio. Ididn’t have the kind of money I thought I would when I started this.

That’s the part they don’t tell you about the music game. It takes a lot of connections, patience, and somebody pushing you behind the scenes before the money comes. And I didn’t know how long I could keep waiting. I was tired of risking my life and freedom just to survive until the music paid off. I’d been to too many funerals already, stood graveside too many times watching dirt cover caskets. I couldn’t stomach the thought of Kahlani crying over mine. I needed a way out, but every exit I could see came with another trap attached.

As I walked down the hall, I prayed that the Interscope meeting came through. It was my exit plan. I pictured a contract on a desk, an agent who actually fought for me, a six or seven-figure check that cleared, and a life where I didn’t have to look over my shoulder every time I counted cash.

I asked God, let the meeting be more than talk, let somebody with power hear me and pull me out the streets.

“Happy birthday, lil’ bro!”

I looked up and saw Carlos coming towards me, grinning so hard that his pale skin was turning pink.

“Appreciate you, Los,” I nodded, pulling him in for a quick hug.

“I just wanted to come personally tell you that before I got up out of here. I bought you a few bottles too. The waitress is putting them on your table now.”

“Man, I don’t need any more bottles.” As he waved me off, I asked, “But why are you leaving already?”

“This ain’t really my crowd. You know that.”

Nodding, I understood. Carlos was older than me and most of the people at that party. He couldn’t stand being around young, wild, hood niggas too long. There were toomany eyes and too many greedy hands. Anybody could look at him and see he had money, and where we were from, that kind of attention could get a man robbed or worse.

He shifted on his feet and lowered his voice. “I don’t like talking business on your birthday, but I need a drop made. Rah said you can handle that for me.”

“Your crew tied up?”

He nodded. “Yeah. Nobody I trust is free right now.”

Sometimes, as a favor to Rah, I made moves for Carlos when his people weren’t available. In exchange, whenever I needed product, I got it at a discount.

“Yeah, I got you.”

“That’s why I fuck with you,” Carlos said, patting me on the shoulder. “I’ll send you the details tomorrow.”

When Kahlani and I stumbled into the bedroom after the party, we were both drunk off liquor and the high of the night. My head was spinning, but it wasn’t just the alcohol. It was her. Kahlani was laughing at something I couldn’t even remember, and her smile was brighter than the neon lights of the club we’d just left behind. I kicked my shoes off, took off my clothes, and collapsed onto the bed, arms spread wide. After taking off her clothes, she climbed over me.

As she straddled my waist, her legs were warm and soft against me. She leaned forward with excitement in her eyes. “Babe, can you imagine? Interscope!” She kissed me quick, lips tasting like the liquor she’d been sipping, then pulled back to keep talking. “We’d be in a big house! I’m talking six, seven bedrooms, floor-to-ceiling windows, a pool inthe back. Our kids running around… and me pulling up in a G-Wagon. Ooh, or maybe a Bentley truck. No,both!”

She giggled while kissing me again before I could reply. I wrapped my arms around her waist, holding her close as she spoke. Her faith in me lit something powerful inside me. She saw the dream so clear and bright, like it was already ours.

I looked up at her, the room spinning just a little, and all I could do was stare. The way her hair fell around her face, the glow in her cheeks, the light dancing in her eyes. She was beautiful in a way that didn’t make sense, like God had spent extra time just shaping her for me. She kept talking fast. Her words tumbled out between kisses, and I knew in that moment I’d burn the world down to make sure she had every single thing she was imagining.

“Picture it, baby,” she said with her hands on my chest and her lips brushing mine. “We’d be pulling up to the award shows and cameras will be flashing. You’ll be in designer, and I’ll be in something fly. They’d finally see what I already know; that you’re a star, Moses. You’re the one.”

Her words lit me up from the inside. I sat up slowly, pressing my lips to hers before she could keep going. She smiled against my mouth, then melted into the kiss. I couldn’t stop staring. The dream she was painting was bigger than music, bigger than money. It was us, free, living the life we’d always talked about late at night when nobody else was listening.

As I kissed her deeper, my hands gripped her waist tighter, pulling her into me. Her body answered mine, rocking slowly as her laugh turned into a soft moan. My lips trailed down her neck, tasting her skin, feeling her tremble against me.

“I’m gonna give you all of that,” I whispered against hercollarbone. “The house, the cars, everything. I promise you, Kahlani.”

Her smile softened. Her eyes were glassy from the liquor but burning with love and trust. “I know you will,” she whispered back.

I kissed her on her neck, shoulder and then her lips again.

She pushed back, locking her eyes on mine. "I want to feel you inside of me."

My dick got rock hard.