How Life Is

• INTRODUCTION.

Samara Thailia Elias. Seventeen years old. December 10th 1992. Mixraced. Short, 5'2. I love music.
My mum, my creator, my world, my entire universe; Jamaican and Spanish, looks black, coolie hair.
My daddy, my king, my world, my existence; Jamaican and Chinese, black, lightie with chinky eyes.
My half-sister, my role-model; Malika Alexandria Elias. Twenty-one years old. From my mum's side.
My sister, my bestfriend, my other half; Ariana-Noelle Rae Elias. Nineteen years old. Looks like me.
My little brother, my prince, my special lil dude; Jaden Rhys Elias. Five years old. Makes my world.

My family sounds very confusing, doesn't it? It's actually not. Before my mum had Ariana, she was
married to Malika's dad and had Malika. Then she left Malika's dad and married me, Ariana, and
Jaden's dad. Now she's pregnant again, but we don't know if it's guna be a boy or a girl. I hope it's a
girl though, cos for the longest time since I was old enough to know this, I‟ve wanted a baby sister.

I have a lot of nicknames: Sammie, Sams, Mara, Titch, Smurf, Midge (it‟s short for Midget), but only
my family call me Thai. Thai comes from my middle name, basically the first half of Thailia. Both
sides of my family have called me Thai since I was old enough to know my name, and it‟s stuck
since then. I bet you thought I was guna say Thai was short for Thailand, erm no, I‟m not a country!
Nobody else can call me Thai, not even my good friends or family-friends; strictly family and that‟s it.

Except one person. My bestfriend, Carlita Shani Marques. And she‟s the only other person, truly. I‟m
also the only person other than family to call her Shani, it‟s just how it is real y. She grew up with her
family calling her that like I did, so that‟s why we call each other that. To be quite honest, from the
amount of time I‟ve known this girl, we might as well be family. I honestly love this girl, true blood.

It started in Nursery, and I checked the pictures to be sure. We‟ve been friends since then real y, we
fell out for a while over something dumb but we‟re tighter than ever now. Before you ask, no Shani
is not mixraced like me. She's actually fully Portuguese. She‟s got these light brown eyes that are
almost amber, and the prettiest face; my bestfriend‟s so beautiful, I've always been jealous of her.

We‟ve been through the wars together though. I‟m sure she knows every member of my family as I
know hers. To be honest, I‟m sure we spend more time at each other‟s houses than at our own! I
love her mum though, Carolina; she‟s honestly my second mother. I love her like she‟s my own
mum, just as my mum loves Shani (a bit more than me I think). It‟s strange though, me and Shani
both developed a lisp as we got older, and we both needed braces; even though I still have mine.

I love my bedroom. It‟s my sanctuary. I real y love it, because I can come here when I‟m happy or
sad, stressed or relaxed, and feel so at peace with myself. It‟s black and pink, and as you can guess
everything in it is from IKEA other than my shiny black wardrobe, which is from Argos. I‟ve got that
bed that everyone has, you know the black steel one with the two hearts and swirls on it and the
thin mattress? Yeah, that one. Then I‟ve got one long black six-drawer chest of drawers, a sexy
black leather settee, a black dressing table/desk, a black full-body mirror, and four square mirrors.

---

• CHAPTER ONE.

"Hello?" she answered.
"You bloody frog, why didn't you pick up your phone the first time?"
"I didn't hear it obviously, and do you have to shout abuse at me, Thai?"
"Yes I do! You know how violent I am Shani; anyways where you at?"
"Home, why what's wrong?" she asked panicking.
"Will you calm down man? Nothing's wrong, I just wana get my nails done!"
"Gosh, had me all panicked and that! Alright, I'll come, when though?"
"Erm, now? Let's go to the quiet one down the dip, without the yardies."
"Omg, Thai don't make me laugh! Yeah, I'll go, where we meeting?"
"Just come mine so you can sleep over after, ask your mum and I'll ask mine too."
"Gotcha, I'll ping you what she says, then I'll pack my bag and come."
"So be it, ping ping me babes!"
"Omg, you're so sad! Bye!"

How rude, she just locked the phone on me! It's okay, she's staying at my house tonight, I'll get her
then. Anyways, I need to get ready. This was always a problem for me, because I could never ever
decide what I wanted to wear. Actually, I could never decide on anything at all to be quite honest.

However, one thing I didn't decide on was that I would be a violent person. God decided that one
babes, not me. But yeah, I'm very violent, abusive if you like; and I swear more than a sailor, but
that's just me. If you don't like it you can kick rocks, and it's really and truly just as simple as that.

Oh my, I'm supposed to be getting ready for my bestfriend to come round, yet I'm sitting here
chatting away to you guys. Oh well, life's tough, build a bridge and get over it, seriously! Okay sorry,
I'll go and get ready now, I promise! So I pinged my sister Ariana, and asked her if she's home.

- ria, you at home? x
- yea, downstairs. why?
- going out with shani to get my nails done. dyu wana come?
- i do need a refill actually. yea ill join you, when you going?
- after i ask mum + shani pings me if shes coming or not.
- aite, tell me if shes going or not. im coming up now x

Of course, soon after that message was sent I heard Ariana's hefty footsteps running up the stairs.
She barged into my room and threw herself onto my bed, and only for her sake I prayed that she
had mistaken her bedroom door for mine. So I took this as an option to torture her, who wouldn't?
When this fool decided to lay on my bed, she took the wrong path in choosing to lay on her front.
Why, you ask? Because that simply means that when I jump on you, I'm going to crush your belly
and your face, and you won't be able to get up. See what I mean, not a very good idea is it now?

I'm wasting time, I need to get in the bathroom before Ariana does! I grabbed my towel off my
radiator, slipped my feet into my slippers, and ran out of the room, sliding down the banister to skip
the stairs. After the three banisters I slid down, I got into the bathroom and had my wicked shower.

Anyhow, I showered and washed my hair, which was always another task. Being mixed with
Jamaican, Spanish, and Chinese isn't all it's cut out to be; people just think that because mixraced
people are light-skinned with longer or curlier hair, we think we're the best. No, not at all. Well, not in
my case at least. They don't understand that we're stereotyped, that we have people chatting about
how we think we're nice, and judging us because of one girl they met who thought she was the shit.

My case is a whole different story. My hair is not as easy as it looks, because once it gets wet it gets
knotty as Hell. It's damn hard to comb through after I wash it; and even though it don't shrink up and
get short when it's wet, it's still overly difficult. So thank God for conditioner, because without it I
don't know where I'd be. So I am very thankful for the fact that after I wash my hair I can put a load
of conditioner in it and comb through it. Then I rinse the conditioner out and BAM, it's all gravey.

---

I'd always taken care of my hair though, that was a fact. And even though I had dyed it and used gel
in it every so often, it was still in quite spectacular condition. My mum had always taken care of and
with our hair, and made sure that as we grew up and started to do our own hair, we did the same.
My natural hair colour is a really light brown colour, my own mum didn't think I was hers when I
came out because of it. I couldn't stick the colour though, so I dyed it as soon as she would let me. I
made it a medium brown colour, a sort of Cadbury's Milk Chocolate colour, and I had it like that from
when I was twelve until when I was fourteen. After that, I went to black, then dark red, and now I'm
back to dark brown. But this time I've got gold and bronze highlights in it; Shani did them for me.

I've spoken more than enough about hair colour, but never about length. I suppose I get my hair
length from the Spanish and Chinese sides of me, though I'm always chopping and changing it. My
hair grows fast actually; when it's curly it comes to my chest, but when it's straightened it reaches
the bottom of where my bra strap is. I keep my hair straightened most of the time, so I might relax it.

After the adventure of washing my hair and shaving in the shower, I finally returned to my room and
flopped down tiredly on my bed. Now the task of picking out clothes to wear. I forced myself to get
up and cream, then I stood in front of my open wardrobe in my towel. Truth be told I couldn't be
bothered to look special today; so I simply got out a white long sleeved top, tight black skinny jeans,
and a black vest for underneath my top. I always wore vests underneath my tops, and I hate it when
I can see people's bras underneath their tops, like what the fuck are you doing? Fix up man, shit!

I put my underwear and clothes on, and then opened the deep bottom drawer of my wardrobe. This
was my favourite drawer in all of my life. This drawer, has all my trainers in it. And trust me, I have a
lot of trainers. I collect trainers actually, but they're not for show I do actually wear them. From Air
Forces, to Converses, to Vans, to Pastries, to Adidas, I had it all and I was truly proud of my stuff.
Choosing which pair to wear was the hard part though. To stop myself from going mad today, I
simply chose my black and white Nike high-tops, and then closed the drawer with my foot. After
putting on my long silver curb chain and matching bracelet, I put in some big silver studs in both of
my lobe holes and my silver sovereign ring on my left middle finger, seeing as I'm left-handed.

I've got quite a few piercings actually, but I want more. At the moment I've got two in each lobe, and
two cartilage piercings on my right ear. I have my belly button and my nose done too, but I still want
my tragus done on my left ear, and maybe my tongue if I can beg it with my mummy. I grabbed my
phone once I heard that familiar sound and vibration, and then checked the message from Shani.
That‟s the only thing good about Blackberry‟s, quick contact. She told me she was coming though.

I knew her mum would let her come; actually, when doesn't she? Now I had ten minutes to do my
hair and makeup, but I needed Shani here for that cos she always rubs in my foundation for me.
She cusses me for it though, she and I both can never understand why I wear it if I can't rub it in.

Oh well, I needed to get started on my hair. I blow-dried it, greased my scalp, and then straightened
the whole thing. I parted and straightened my side fringe, and then scraped the rest up into a messy
ponytail. After my hair was done, I put on my mascara and a tiny bit of foundation to even out my
skin tone. I applied my lipgloss, and then stuffed it in my front-left pocket when I was done with it.

I never usually carried bags; I'm not sure if you can tell yet, but I'm kind of a tomboy. I very rarely
wear dresses or skirts, and I almost never wear skirts to college. I do love my hair and makeup and
nails and stuff like that though, I'm not that much of a tomboy! Let's just say I'm in the middle of it.

My money went into my back-left pocket, my phone in the back-right, and my keys in the other front
pocket of my jeans. After tidying my room, I put my towel back on the radiator where it belongs and
ran downstairs. I went into the kitchen to see Jaden eating Rice Krispies with warm milk, oh yeah...

I pushed the little bowl of cereal further back on the table so it wouldn't spill; cos God knows I aint
cleaning it up if it does. I stood in front of his stool and cuddled him into me. I buried my face into his
head and smelled his hair; I always did it, his hair was so soft and curly and it always smelled nice
cos Mum kept it clean. He giggled cos he knew what I was doing, and then pulled away, smiling.

---

"Thai, why have you got your shoes on?" he asked looking at my feet.
"I'm going out with Ariana and Shani when she gets here." I said sitting him back down.
"I wana come! Can I come, please?" I hated it when he did this, it makes me feel so bad.
"Not today bubba, but Shani's sleeping here tonight so we'll go somewhere tomorrow, okay?"
"That's not fair, I wana come with you now! And Ariana's going with you too!"
"Not this time Jadey, we won't be long though, I promise. Should I bring you back sweeties?"

Can you believe this boy had me bribing him with sweets? Now I had to go into a shop and
purposely buy sweets specially for him, kmt. The only reason why I'm not taking him is cos he won't
keep himself quiet; and to be honest, we swear a lot and Jaden's stupid like that so he'll pick it up.

"Yes please, can you get me them ones with the hearts and eggs?" He was talking about Haribo's.
"Of course, but are you guna be a good boy for mummy while we're out?" I asked kissing his cheek.
"Yeah. Are you guna be long when you go out?" He said finishing his food and standing up again.
"No we won't be long. Now give me a kiss and a big cuddle cos Shani's nearly here."

He kissed my mouth and wrapped his skinny arms around my neck. He finally let go and I helped
him down off the stool. I put his bowl in the sink, ran water in it, and then took him down to the
bathroom to brush his teeth. After that, I put him in his bed and put Ben 10 on his television for him.

Now that I knew he was settled down and would soon fall asleep, I could go and answer the door.
Shani came in, and we knocked on Mali‟s door downstairs but she wasn‟t in there. Basically, my
house is on 3 floors. On the ground floor, there‟s Malika‟s bedroom at the front-left of the house
near the front door; then behind Malika‟s room near the back door is a game room; down three
stairs next to the back door is a toilet and bathroom; and all the way down the right side of the
house is a ballroom. Basically, we have parties in there, plus there‟s a kitchen at the back with a
sliding door that leads to the garden. Malika uses that bathroom, but the game room is for all of us.

Up 12 stairs is a landing with the main bathroom and toilet; and then up about 5 stairs is the middle
floor where the kitchen, my parent‟s room, the living room, and Jaden‟s bedroom is. Up 5 more
stairs is a small landing where the laundry room is, then right at the top of the house up 12 more
stairs is where me and Ariana‟s bedrooms are. My house is tall, and it‟s the best place in the world.

We said hi to my mum and dad in the kitchen, and then went up to my room. She dropped her bag
by my radiator, and then jumped onto my bed with me. I got back up to turn my speakers on, and
Trey Songz‟s sensual seductive voice filled my room. We jammed on my bed, until I got an idea.

“Omg Shani, let‟s have a drink-up tonight!” I said excitedly.
“Omg yeah we should! Who‟s coming?” she replied, rubbing my foundation in some more.
“I say it should be just me, you, and Ariana.”
“Can she get a couple draws off Kyle?” Kyle was Ariana‟s current boyfriend.
“Yeah but he doesn‟t smoke no more, he‟l have to get it off his hoodrat brother.”
“Omg Thai don‟t make me laugh! Hoodrat brother you know, anyways where‟s Ariana?”
“I‟m guna go knock on her door and see if she‟s ready. You know how long she takes.”

I left my room and knocked on Ariana‟s door. She yelled for me to come in, so I entered and sat on
her bed. She was just finishing getting ready. She was wearing a lightwash pair of jeans ‒ hold on,
they were mine! When she turned around, I kicked her in her bum to remind her that her fat ass
couldn‟t fit into my size 10‟s. Anyways, the jeans went with a tight yellow tshirt, and grey and yellow
Converses. She looked nice, and her hair was up in a curly messy bun with a yellow headband. She
finished putting on her makeup, and then she followed me into my room. Her and Shani hugged,
then we sat on my bed together discussing tonight, so I turned the music down cos it was too loud.

“So Ariana, can you get us a couple draws off Kyle or Kaden?” Kaden is Kyle‟s younger brother.
“We can get it off Kaden, but we‟ll have to get them to meet us somewhere.”
“Wel I want McDonald‟s after I get my nails done, can they meet us at the one in Brixton?”
“Yeah so we better leave now then, I‟l call them on our way there.”

---

“Ariana, Thai, where are you two going?” My mum asked just as we went past the kitchen.
“Omg she has to stop us init,” I whispered. “Mum we‟re going to get our nails done!”
“Yeah okay, well don‟t come back too late yes? Is Shani sleeping here?” She shouted back.
I popped my head round the kitchen door, “Yeah she is, we‟l be back soon.”
“I‟m going out later and I‟m taking Jaden to your auntie‟s, you three and Malika wil be here alone.”
“That‟s fine Mum, thanks. We‟l be back before you go though, love you.”
“Love you too babygirl, you lot keep safe yes?”

I real y love my mum, and she‟s so cool, I‟m surprised she never asked to come with us. Anyways, I
ran down the stairs and locked the door behind me. We went out the gate and walked all the way up
my road and up Leigham Court Road to the 417 bus stop. We caught the 417 down to near where
Morrison‟s is and went into the quieter nail shop called Nails 2000. For once they had three tables
open, so we sat down at a table each with me in the middle and my bestfriends on either side of me.
I had to get tips as my own nails weren‟t long enough, but I cut them down like a centimetre above
my fingertip. I made her make them square and sharp, and then I got up to pick out the design.

There were way too many to chose from for me, so I kissed my teeth and picked a nice barbie pink.
I sat back down, and asked for the small design card. I found the one I wanted. It was a coloured
background, and then there were white, red, and yellow flicks. Now someone tell me what idiot was
guna have pink, white, red, and yellow on their nails? I sure as Hell wasn‟t. I changed the red to
black, the yellow to silver, but kept the white and had the barbie pink background. When she was
finished with my nails, they actually looked sick and I was mad happy. I sat under the dryers, and
soon after Shani came to join me. She showed me her nails; they were the same pink as mine, but
it was diagonal with a black line across the bottom and black streaks going across from the left.

I finished before Shani and Ariana did, so I took their money and mine and paid it for them. Of
course Ariana had to be the last one to finish, but I suppose it was worth the wait cos me and Shani
were long done by the time hers were dry and we could leave. She had gotten long white French
Manicure, with silver and rainbow-coloured flicks on them. They were £22 for each of us, so it better
last long. We soon left the nail shop, and got on the first bus that came for us to go to Brixton Hill.

Once we got off the bus, we walked into McDonald‟s and saw Kyle and Kaden standing in line
together. Ariana went up to Kyle and greeted him, while me and Shani stood beside them waiting to
order our food. We‟re honestly not rude, but we don‟t like Kaden, we don‟t associate with him, we
just use him for weed. But there‟s one tiny problem; he‟s always trying to move to Shani. It‟s the
funniest thing ever because she constantly turns him down but he never seems to wana give up. It‟s
like Tom and Jerry, Tom will probably never ever catch Jerry but he still goes after him anyway.

Kaden‟s phone started blaring out loud in the middle of McDonald‟s, so he picked up, and stepped
to the side to take the call. I heard him say the name Jashon, why does that name ring a bell? Oh I
know why, when me and Shani were in primary school, there was some boy called Jashon in our
year and whenever we used to play Kiss Chase or It, he would always chase me first. Memories...

I remember him so clearly though, it‟s weird. He was so cute back in the days man. He was almost
fully Jamaican, but his mum was half Irish. His skin made him look full black, but you could tell by
how soft and wavey his hair was that he wasn‟t. He had the prettiest eyes though, even though they
weren‟t green or anything extravagant; they were the most beautiful dark brown eyes I‟d ever seen.

“Omg Shani, remember when we used to go Hitherfield and there was some boy called Jashon?”
“Oh yeah, I remember him! He used to always chase you in Kiss Chase init?” I told you so.
“That‟s the one, he was older than us cos he had a late birthday init. But he left in Year Two.”
“Yeah, he left and moved to North-West cos his dad got a new job or something init.”
“Omg that‟s it! Do you know why I mentioned him? I just heard Kaden say something to the person
on the phone and he said Jashon. Imagine if it‟s the Jashon we know? That would be a classic.”
“Oh yeah! Omg imagine that, we aint seen him in how many years now? Like nine or ten?”
“Yeah ten, cos we were already seven.”
“Wow, imagine what he looks like now,” she said. Yeah, imagine; if only...

---

We finally got to the till and I ordered a Quarter Pounder meal (plain, just cheese) and a Sprite,
while Shani ordered a McChicken Sandwich meal with a Coke. I paid for both of us, do you see how
kind I am now? And we moved to the side so Kyle, Kaden, and Malika could order. Once they were
done, we all moved to the side and waited. When our food came, we went to a corner with a big
booth and sat down together as there were five of us. As we were eating, Kaden spoke up, kmt.

“Oh yeah, my boy‟s coming to join us, cos he‟s bringing the draws for you lot if you stil want it.”
“Of course we want it, when‟s he coming cos when I finish eating I‟m leaving,” I said.
“Calm down man, he‟l be here soon don‟t worry.” Yeah, he knows to be here soon init.

We carried on eating in a comfortable silence, but I needed chewing gum and I didn‟t have none on
me. I got up and took my tray with me, and emptied it on my way out the door. I went a couple doors
down to a newsagents and picked up a packet of blue Extra, a Red Bull, and some Hula Hoops. On
my way out the door, I was looking down at my hands to get the chewing gum out and bumped into
someone by accident. I looked up to say sorry, but I swear I felt like I was looking at a beanstalk.

Bear in mind the fact that I am only 5‟2” at the age of seventeen, and this guy had to be at least 6‟
even. He kinda looked familiar though, I don‟t know why but I real y felt like I had seen him before. I
quickly said sorry and bent down to pick up my stuff but he bent down before me and handed them
to me. I looked into his face as he was giving me my gum, and I knew exactly who‟s eyes they were.

---

• CHAPTER TWO.

“Sorry again, and thanks...” I didn‟t know his name.
“Jashon, my name‟s Jashon.”
“Thanks Jashon, I would‟ve thought you would have gone rage mode on me,” I said looking down.
“Nah, I can‟t go rage mode on someone as beautiful as you. That‟s funny though,” he laughed.
“Awr thanks, you‟re real y sweet.” Great, now I‟m frigging blushing and I don‟t even know him.
“Al ow me. Hold on, do I know you from somewhere?” He stared at me.
“Erm, well no I‟ve never seen you before. Why, do you recognize me from some place?”
“I feel like I knew you a real y long time ago, what primary school did you go to?”
“I went to Hitherfield, what about you?” What the Hell‟s with the weird questions?
“I went to Hitherfield too, but I left in Year Two and moved to Wembley.”
“Oh isit, that sounds familiar to me you know. What‟s your last name?”
“Scott-Harvey, Jashon Scott-Harvey. Wait, I never got your name, what is it?”
“Samara, Samara Elias. Your name sounds familiar you know.”
“Yeah, yours does too. Hold on, wait! I know who you are now!”
“Me too, you used to chase me all the time during Kiss Chase and It, didn‟t you?”
“Exactly, I had some mad crush on you back in the days man.”
“Yeah, and I only just noticed,” we laughed, “How you been, Jashon?”
“I‟ve been alright you know, just looking after my mum and little sister. What about you?”
“I‟m good, just went out with Carlita and Ariana to get our nails done.”
“Oh yeah I remember your sister too, rah you looked just like her back then.”
“I know, I know. We‟re having a drink-up later actual y, that‟s what we want the draws for.”
“Isit real y now? So who‟s coming to you lots little lightweight drink-up?”
“Lightweight? Are you nuts? I‟ve been drinking since I was thirteen, I‟m no lightweight!”
“True talks, you‟re not as skinny as you used to be. But you‟re stil a lightweight.”
“What you mean? So you calling me fat now yeah? Great, fantastic!”
“Nah not fat, just developed but say nuttin. Who‟s going to your drink-up?”
“Just us three, and probably my sister Malika if she‟s home. Why?”
“Cos I aint been licked in time and I can‟t be asked to do it alone.”
“So you‟re basically saying you wana come, is that what it is yeah?”
He stepped closer to me and put his stuff on the counter, “You could put it that way.”
“Wel then there‟s your invitation. It‟s starting at 8, if you‟re looking to go home frass then you might
wana bring some clothes. My mum and dad are going out so me and my sisters have a free yard.”
“Free yard, yeah? Wel I‟l definitely be there. Aye, you got cigarettes on you?”
“Nah Ariana only has a couple left, Buy some for us please,” I begged with my puppy eyes.
“You stil know how to get a nigga with them eyes man, aight I‟l buy them.”
“Thank you Jashon,” I said sweetly, “We have some catching up to do you know.”
“Of course we do, I bet them lot are wondering where we are.”
“Oh yeah I forgot about them! Let‟s go back, you done?”
“Hold on why‟s man looking at me like I got suttin for him? One sec, Samara.”

“Aye, Mr Bossman! Let me have a 30-pack of your Marlborough‟s.”
“ID please,” he said in some fresh Indian accent.
“Do I look like I need ID? So you can‟t see how old I am no?”
“I do not care, please can I see your ID sir.”
“I‟m old enough to be a sir but you stil want ID? Move from me man, do you want money or not?”
“Fine, but I need see ID.”
“Forget you man, here‟s my drivers license. Happy? Gime my stuff man.”
“Hey, come back!”

He dashed a ten-pound note on the counter and the man went to hand him the cigs, but before he
could take his hand back, Jashon had already snatched them. He kissed his teeth and walked out. I
took the pack from him and dropped it in the bag with my crisps and Red Bull. He reached over and
dropped his sweets in there, and then I remembered Jaden‟s sweets. Oh well, I‟l get them on the
way home. We walked back to McDonald‟s together and went back to where the others were. For
some reason or another, Kaden and Kyle looked mad confused as to how I knew Jashon already.

---

“Hold on, how do you two know each other?” Kaden asked, looking as confused as ever.
“We go way back, primary school days. Shani, remember Jashon? It‟s him!” I said sitting down.
Jashon pulled up a chair, “Remember me, Carlita? I left to go North in Year Two.”
“Omg yeah! We were just talking about you a while ago. Cos we heard Mr Badman over here on the
phone and he said your name and we were imagining if it was the Jashon we know from primary.”
“Wel yeah, that would be me. Do you want your draws stil ? I won‟t charge for it cos I know you.”
“Awr, thanks! Oh yeah Shani, Jashon‟s coming to our drink-up later on and he‟s sleeping over.”
“Cool, but you know Kyle and Kaden are guna wana come now don‟t you.” Shani rolled her eyes.
“Wel I don‟t want them in my house, do I? But I have to now, to make it even.”
“Oh shush man, just let us come init we aint guna do nothing.” Kaden needs to shut up.
“Listen, I don‟t have to let you in my house yeah? But I‟m going to, because in general I‟m a nice
person. Now if it wasn‟t for the sake of me seeing Jashon again after 10 years, you lot wouldn‟t be
allowed in my house without a second thought. So shut your face or you won‟t have kids. Thanks.”

Shani, Ariana, and Jashon were all dying with laughter by the time I had finished speaking.

“Seriously, what‟s funny? I‟m dead serious you know! I don‟t mind Kyle but Kaden? Humph.”
“Samara, what have I ever done to you to make you hate me so much?” Kaden asked.
“Wel , first off you‟re a hoodrat and I don‟t like hoodrats. Second of all, you‟re overly rude and I real y
don‟t like your attitude or quite frankly your face. You consistently move to Shani like the leech that
you are, when clearly she doesn‟t want you and could do oh so much better than you. Happy?”
“Rah, that hurt Samara. That was deep, but if that‟s how you feel then cool init.”
“Omg please don‟t give me that whole sympathy thing. I don‟t hate you, I just don‟t like you.”
“Fair enough, but do you have to be rude about it though?” Kaden the bitch is asking me questions.
“I wasn‟t being rude, I was being truthful. And I‟m not arguing with you in the middle of McDonald‟s
Kaden. You two can join me and my sisters and Jashon at my house, but the second you piss me
off you can leave. Am I understood clear enough for you?” I was tired of this now, seriously. Shit.
“Yeah fine. Just remember who you call when you want your weed, yeah?” Oh shutup Kaden.
“Whatever, listen are you lot coming or not cos I wana go I have things to do.”
“Yeah, we‟re coming.”

They all took up their trays and we final y left McDonald‟s. I stuffed my phone back in my pocket and
just as I did it, it vibrated forcing me to take it back out again. I saw the red bubble with the white
star indicating a BBM message, and clicked on it. It was from -KASSANOVA, also known as Kaden.

- we can be cool if youll stop being so rude to me.
- im not rude, im telling you the truth. stop frigging jarring me then!
- so you think your attitude doesnt jar me either?
- dont know, dont care. going back + forth aint getting us nowhere is it?
- true talks, so are we guna be cool or not?
- i guess so, but it dont mean were guna be dargys straight away.
- nah i hear dat, i dont expect us to. but if we can be civil to each other thats good enuf.
- aite i agree, we were both wrong.
- exactly, so we cool?
- yea were good. thanks btw /= for bringing jashon.
- aite good, and no worries init were cool now.

Yeah I know I said I didn‟t like him, but we‟re cool now I guess? Anyways, I turned around to look at
him and he smiled at me so I smiled back. I‟l behave myself. We made our way to the bus stop and
the boys got on the bus before ours. We got on and finally got off across the road from the petrol
station on Leigham Court Road. On the way down my road, we stopped in the newsagents at the
top and bought Jaden his sweets and a couple other snacks for later on cos we had some already.

I had already finished my Red Bull and Hula Hoops, so I threw the bag away in the bin in the front
garden. I opened the door with my keys and we knocked on Malika‟s door. She answered in her
towel with wet hair; she had just come out the shower. We told her about the plan for later on and
she said that her boyfriend Jovan was in the shower now. Yeah, we all know why they showered.

---

She agreed that once they were dressed they‟d come upstairs, so we went straight up and into the
kitchen as usual. Mum was giving Jaden his chicken nuggets and chips, and my dad was sitting
down watching the news. He hugged me, Ariana, and Shani, and then went to get ready to go out.

I kissed Jaden on his head and ran my fingers through his curly hair, and then went over and
hugged my mum. She kissed me my cheek and then put down three plates of chicken nuggets and
chips. Boom Bam Bizzle, you done know my mum‟s the hardest! Chieze, she actually made food for
us and it‟s something that I actual y flipping like! She gets rating for that, I‟l give her ratings for that.

We sat down to eat and my mum asked me to bath Jaden when I finished. I said I would and she
went off to get ready with my dad. Apparently they‟re going out to some restaurant and then staying
at a hotel for the night, but they‟re dropping Jaden to my auntie‟s house. After I finished eating I
dropped mine and Jaden‟s plates in the sink and picked him up. I took him down to the bathroom
and let him undress himself while his bath ran. I poured the Johnson‟s in, and let it create bubbles.

I picked him up, and put him into the bath and let him splash around for a bit. He splashed some on
my clothes so I picked up one of his toys, filled it with water, and dumped it over his head. He
screeched at the top of his voice and flicked some in my face. To get him back, I threatened to pull
the plug out and made him promise not to splash me again. He loves his baths so he stopped. I got
down on my knees beside the bath and got out the Johnson‟s Baby Shampoo from under the sink.

I poured it into my hand and started soaping up his hair. I washed it twice, conditioned it, and then I
told him to hold his nose and keep his mouth closed. I held the back of his head and the front of his
chest, and leaned him back so his head could get wet in the water. Once I got him sitting back up
and most of the conditioner had been washed out, I used the shower head to rise the rest of it out.

He looked so cute now, his hair was all wet and curly but it was so long and light brown. His skin
was proper light too; he‟s more Malika‟s complexion and her dad‟s white, unlike ours. Awr he was
just so cute, I had to take a picture of him. He smiled at me; and it was the cutest picture in the
world cos the bubbles were coming all the way up to his chin, and his eyes were all brown and
shiny. I set it as my background and then put my BB back on the side. I let the water run out, and
then stood him up. I sat Jaden on the side of the sink, dried his feet, and then wrapped him in his
towel and took him up to his Superman room. I went back to rinse the bath out and get his clothes.

He was sitting on his bed in his towel watching TV, and he just looked so sweet and innocent so I
had to take another picture. Anyways, it was only half six now and my drink-up wasn‟t starting until
eight so I was good for time. I dried him off completely, patted his hair dry, and creamed him. He
jumped off the bed to pick out his boxer shorts, and then I put them on him. Since my parents were
taking him to my Auntie Juliette‟s, I had to dress him and pack his bag for them to take to her house.

I got out his black tracksuit bottoms, his little blue Superman tshirt, and his black baby Air Force
Ones. First I had to put his vest and socks on him, then I let him put the rest of his clothes on by
himself. Once he was dressed, I got the comb and hair grease and sat on the bed with him in-
between my legs. I canerowed his hair going all back with a couple of them crossing over, but it
didn‟t take me long, only about 15 or 20 minutes. I packed his bag with his pyjamas, a change of
clothes, and his toothbrush and his sweets and stuff, and then got out his hoodie and black jacket.

I put them on him, put his bag on his back, and then took him into the kitchen. My mum and dad
were ready to go, so I kissed them all goodbye and locked the door behind them downstairs. It was
just gone seven now, so before having a quick shower, I took all the snacks and cigs and juice
downstairs, but the alcoholic drinks were already down there cos that‟s where they‟re always kept.

After taking a ten-minute shower ‒ I didn‟t wash my hair this time ‒ I creamed and got dressed. I put
on black tracksuit bottoms, a super tight grey vest top, and black ankle socks. I combed through my
hair, and then put all of it up in a high messy bun with a grey headband. Even though I was staying
in my house, I was definitely not having people round without any makeup on, so I only put on some
mascara and lipgloss this time. I put my jewellery back on, and went downstairs to the game room.

---

The doorbell rang, and it was Jashon, Kyle, and Kaden. Malika and Jovan were already in the game
room with me, so we were just waiting for Ariana and Shani to come down after they had showered.

The two of them finally came downstairs and we all started to get relaxed. The game room‟s got
some nice atmosphere; it‟s painted dark red with a huge black leather sofa and red curtains at the
window, giving the room a red glow. Around the TV and in the ceiling are small lights, but there are
two small lamps on the tables at the ends of the sofa. There‟s a coffee table in the middle of the
room, and a 60-inch TV in an entertainment system with surround sound and a big DVD collection.

We call it the game room because we play the Wii, XBOX360, and the PS3 down here instead of in
the living room where we only watch television. There‟s also a cabinet with drinks in it; from WKD, to
Smirnoff, to Bacardi Breezers, to Caribbean Twist, to Alizé and Malibu. My parent‟s aren‟t very
smart you see, cos if they were smart they wouldn‟t leave the alcohol places where we can get to it.

We chilled for a bit with a film on the TV; I was sitting next to Jashon cuddled up under his arm,
Ariana was on Kyle‟s lap sideways, Shani and Kaden were sitting together but not too close, and
Malika was on Jovan‟s lap in the armchair. I bet we all looked like couples, even though we weren‟t.

“So Samara, what college you going to?” Jashon asked me, pul ing me in closer.
“I‟m at South Thames College.”
“Oh isit, I was at the College of North West London, but I‟m moving to yours.”
“Awr isit? So we‟l be in the same year, that‟s wicked Jashon.”
“Hmm, you used to call me Jash, you know.”
“I know I did, but you left me when you were my bestfriend so you don‟t deserve that name now.”
“I didn‟t chose to leave Samara, but at least let me make it up to you now.”
“Yeah whatever, then you‟re guna leave me again and bla bla bla.”
“Samara, how many times are you guna make me say sorry?”
“You can say it until it annoys me and I can slap you.”
“That‟s rude. But hear what I‟m saying to you yeah, I‟m sorry. I‟m sorry I left you when we were
bestfriends but it weren‟t my fault. I‟m back now and I‟m not leaving you again so get used to it.”
“I accept your apology, but say it as many times as you want. Because once it starts to jar my brain
cells just a bit, I‟m guna slap you for it and I‟l make sure it makes up for the tears I cried back then.”
“You cried?” I‟ve never seen that look in Jashon‟s eyes before. He truly looked sorry.
“Yeah I cried, I lost my bestfriend and I never thought I‟d see you again.”
“Yeah but I thought Carlita was your bestfriend.”
“Yeah she‟s my girl bestfriend, you were my boy bestfriend until you left, kmt.”
“But Sammie I wana be your bestfriend again, let me be that and more.”
“No Jashon, I‟m not letting you in for you to just break me down again after I tried so hard to let you
go. Did you know I haven‟t cried since you left me? After you left I stopped showing emotion.”
“Samara you‟re making it sound as if I‟m dead, I‟m stil here! I didn‟t know me leaving would affect
you so bad; I couldn‟t help that though man, I was seven years old, what could I real y do huh?”
“That‟s real y not the point cos I don‟t give one about that. The fact is that you left me when I needed
you and when I thought you would never leave me you did. That‟s the point I‟m tryna make here.”
“But Samara you need to stop being so selfish, because I never asked my dad to get a new job. I
never asked him to start his own firm so we can be as rich as we are now. But we are, and that‟s it.”
“You‟re rich?” Wow, so that‟s where that watch on his wrist came from.
“Wel not rich as such, I don‟t like talking about it but yeah you could say that. Anyways, that‟s not
the point either. The point is that I did not want to leave either, I fancied you in them days! I thought
you were the prettiest girl I had ever seen, I even told my mum about you! I remember it all so
clearly; and you knew I didn‟t wana leave because I told you I didn‟t, and you watched them carry
me out the playground on that last day of year two.” Jashon was getting emotional on me, great.
“Jashon, I‟m so sorry. Now I feel like such an idiot because I know you didn‟t wana leave but I was
just so hurt. The only emotions I‟ve showed since you left were anger or happiness, I never cry.”
“I didn‟t know it had that effect on you Mara, seriously. I never wanted to hurt you, and you know full
wel I didn‟t but what happened was out of my control. I‟m back now, you can cry if you want to.”

---