Lovers & Haters (22 page)

May 24, 2014

Dear Samantha,

Well, you're the one who likes bad boys. I guess this is as bad as this boy can get. Let me start out by saying I'm incredibly sorry. I've put you through a lot. I hope you understand everything I've done over the past school year was for you. And I can't begin to tell you how sorry I am for my mother's behavior. I know that you knew it was her behind your attempted kidnapping. I saw how you were looking at her unconscious body through the passenger glass. She had to have talked her boyfriend Nate into it. It wouldn't have surprised me if my mother put Nate up to the prank calls, too. Thank you for not telling anybody about that. But I know it's gonna come out during the trial. I'm sure I won't be invited to any Christmas dinners over at your crib once your parents find out what my mother did. Don't know what got into my mother. Jealousy must've gotten the better of her—for her to have snapped and try to pull off something twisted like that.

But yup, your man is now an official criminal. Former car thief. You want to hear something funny: during my short life as a car booster I was never caught. How ironic that after I kicked in my mother's boyfriend's eyebrows, Felix tosses me the keys belonging to a stolen car so that I could bounce. OMG—right? I guess karma's one cold piece. Cause now I'm being charged with stealing a car.

They're talking probation, though. The good news is that Billy's going to take legal guardianship of me and Alfonso until we can find a permanent situation. I should be up out this piece before finals. Probably won't have too much time to study, but I will ace all my exams. Was thinking about going up to the prison and visiting my dad around July. Probably going to have to pack a lot of Kleenex for that visit.

Sam, I love you with all my heart and I'm looking forward to seeing your pretty face when I get out of here. But there is something that I didn't tell you the night I spilled my guts to you on the phone about me being a car thief and gangbanger. Slick Eddie and Romello want me dead. This thing is not over. Even though both of them are behind bars, I'll never be safe. I've been told to go to another school to escape Eddie's wrath. Your boy's a hard head, though. Not going anywhere. I'm gonna finish up at Coleman and get my diploma or die trying. But seriously, I know my junior year is gonna be nothing but pure drama.

Until I get out—love always! Pinky swear!

 

Xavier

O
n the bus ride in to MacSalle State Prison Xavier's first impression was that the place looked like a huge automotive plant surrounded by razor wire. The prison towers were occupied by armed guards, serving as a stark reminder of what kind of place he was visiting. Sickness came on immediately. He started feeling queasy and his blood was running cold. This had to have been the same feelings experienced by those unruly teenagers in the
Beyond Scared Straight
television series, as many traveled in, nervously anticipating the conditions awaiting them beyond the prison gates. But he wasn't here to be scared out of his wits. Even though the place was immensely intimidating, Xavier had come here to see his father.

The only thing on his mind as he stepped off the bus was that he hadn't laid eyes on his old man since he was six. The fact was that he couldn't remember his father's face. In a few moments, Xavier would be sitting in front of a man but he couldn't begin to know what this man looked or acted like.

But before he could even get remotely close to that part of the visit, he had to go through an extensive security check, which entailed almost having to strip down to the bare in order to see a loved one. He was feeling frustrated and degraded.

Xavier walked along with other visitors through the front door and checked in with an enormously fat, bald-headed, white deputy at the desk. He took his time in filling out the paperwork and his stomach had that feeling you get when you go over the first huge drop on a roller-coaster ride. The butterflies were flying. He was nervous, jittery. Not knowing what to say or how the conversation would go was adding to the growing anxiety building up inside of his body.

Billy wanted to bring Xavier but he'd told his mentor that this was something he had to do alone. Alfonso wanted to come but he was sick at home with a head cold. It all depended on how things went with this visit, which would determine if Alfonso would come along on the next trip. Xavier wanted to see where Noah's head was at before reuniting Alfonso with his father.

He looked around the waiting area. So many sad faces. It'd made him glad that he'd made the decision to stop running with Zulu. He could've very well ended up in a place like this if he had continued on that path. His short stay in the Quentin Juvenile Detention Center a month ago had been enough for him. The little room with the open toilet was way too degrading for him to use.

He finished up the visitor forms and walked them up to the deputy at the desk. The correctional officer collected the forms and took Xavier's school ID. He was then given a key to one of the lockers by the vending machines and water fountain. The locker was for his personal items. Cell phones, wallets, belts, purses—none of this was allowed in the visitation room. Paper currency was prohibited, so visitors were only allowed to exchange dollars for coins at a few change machines—up to twenty-five dollars' worth.

Xavier collected his coins and went back to sit down. Kids were everywhere, no doubt anxious to see their loved ones. He would've been the same way if his mother hadn't been caught up with her selfishness and brought him up to visit his father. So many years he'd missed not really knowing the truth about his dad.

But now Ne Ne was in jail and serving a three-year prison sentence for attempted kidnapping. She'd testified that Nate had been the one stalking Samantha and responsible for the prank calls Samantha had received. In the end, her boyfriend, Nate, drew eight years. Xavier wasn't trying to be cruel but the two idiots should've gotten more. They'd put Samantha and her family through so much unnecessary stress that it was ridiculous. The trial had played out like a circus, with Ne Ne passing out as the judge handed out the sentence. Mr. Fox had also gone nuclear and warned Xavier that he'd put him behind bars if he ever went near Samantha again. His threat did nothing to stop true love—it only encouraged it. Every chance they got, the two teens were on their cell phones texting back and forth.

After thirty minutes of waiting, Xavier was called with a group to be searched. He walked through a metal detector, and was patted down like a criminal. He had to remove his shoes and socks and had to wiggle his toes—it was all part of the routine. His hand was stamped and he walked with the group behind another tree trunk of a correctional officer until they reached the visiting room. There was so much activity in this place that Xavier was hesitant to go in at first. People were everywhere, laughing, playing cards, and reading newspapers.

There was no way to begin to pick his father out from the crowd. The colors separated the prisoners from their loved ones. Bright orange or army green was the color of standard prison-issued jumpsuits. There was a light-skinned guy standing by a book rack and watching Xavier's every move. Could it be him? But it wasn't his dad, because just then a woman and a small kid walked up to him.

Xavier was about to go up to the chubby black guard sitting at the desk to inquire about his dad, when he felt a hand on his left shoulder from behind. He turned around and looked up into the face of a light-skinned, smiling giant. Xavier didn't want to rush to judgment. So he waited on this dude to make a move first.

“All of these years I've been waiting to see you, son,” Noah Hunter said, smiling with tears welling up in his eyes. Before Xavier could respond he grabbed his son and pulled him into an embrace. “Praise God Almighty that my son is here to see me. I have favor on this day and God's love is so good.”

Xavier didn't know what to say. Tears were in his eyes as he hugged his father back.

“My baby boy was too sick to get up here and see his old man, huh?” Noah said, releasing his son.

Xavier explained, “Yup. The dude is wrestling with a summer cold. This July weather is hot and I told him about playing so much that he works up a sweat outside and then running back inside to get in front of the fan. The boy is hardheaded.”

Noah playfully rubbed Xavier's head. “Look who's talking. Before I got into this trouble you were one of the most hardheaded little boys I'd ever seen.” Noah walked over to the book rack and retrieved a terribly worn Bible. “Follow me and let's go grab a seat. We have some catching up to do.”

Xavier followed his dad, not believing the sheer size of the guy. Noah was easily over six feet, with shoulders that looked like mountain ranges of muscle, and looked like he weighed over two hundred pounds. Xavier was jealous because he hadn't inherited his father's height. He did look like a darker version of him, so it was all good.

They grabbed a table in the corner.

Noah asked, “So tell me all about yourself, son.”

Xavier told him about himself, but highlighting the achievements only. “Yup. I'm on the Dean's List at school. I held a 4.0 GPA up to this point, and this coming school year I'll be a junior.”

Then he thought to himself,
provided I'm not rubbed out for snitching out Slick Eddie and Romello.
Even behind bars, Eddie was still powerful and he had that kind of cheese to make folks go missing. Xavier wasn't going there with his father. He didn't know the man well enough to be dropping heavy knowledge on him.

“Great, son,” he said excitedly. “Your aunties all have their degrees. God is good. You're smart just like my side of family.”

Wow! Was that a diss directed at Ne Ne?
Xavier asked himself. It was funny because Xavier could remember Ne Ne telling him that he'd inherited his intelligence off her side of the family.

Noah went on to say, “I bet you Alfonso's brilliant even though he's special.”

“Yeah, the little knucklehead's special, all right. Can be a special pain in the butt.”

Noah asked, “How's your mother?”

Xavier measured his response. Biologically Noah might've been his father but he was still an outsider to Xavier. Even though Ne Ne was the biggest moron inside of Detroit city limits and didn't deserve any mercy, Xavier had no right to tell his father her business. After all she'd done to him, too—trying to kidnap Samantha.

“Ne Ne . . . Ne Ne is good,” he lied.

Noah's brow wrinkled. “Son, you call your mother by her first name?”

In trying not to air his mother's dirty laundry, he'd accidentally let some out of the bag.

Noah opened the Bible and flipped pages. He stopped and quoted, “Honor thy father and thy mother, that your days may be long in the land that the Lord your God is giving you.”

Xavier was stuck, scratching his head. “We weren't disrespecting her. That's what she told us to call her. 'Cause she said calling her
mother
made her sound old.”

“Jesus and mother Mary,” Noah said as he closed the book and laid it on the table. “What has gotten into your mother? What else has she done that you're not telling me?”

Xavier rubbed a hand across his head. He hated starting out with his father by lying. Ne Ne hadn't been all that as a mother, but she still deserved some dignity.

“My Lord,” Noah prattled on. “I was gonna save this until you got ready to leave this evening. It was supposed to be a surprise, son. They're letting your father out the first week of August. And by the looks of it—thank you, Jehovah!—it's right on time. Boys shouldn't be without a dad, their spiritual leader. When I come home we're gonna become a family united under Christ.” He picked up the Bible and held it out in plain view. “I know I made some mistakes in my life but this right here is gonna make sure that I stand strong to shepherd you guys through this life.”

Xavier had a dazed look on his face, like this man belonged in a church, preaching to a congregation. He'd heard about criminals going to prison and coming out holier than thou. Xavier just didn't think his father would be one of those guys. Noah had left an incredible legacy behind in the game, too. Who would've imagined?

“Thank you, Jesus,” Noah praised. “You've been so good to me. And, son, when I come home I want to share God's teachings with you and Alfonso. I want to offer you God's salvation right now. Let's close our eyes and pray.” His father took Xavier's hand and started praying, loudly.

Xavier's right eye was closed, but he was peeping around out of his left. Folks sitting around that area looked to be irritated by his father's lack of consideration. Xavier was confused and embarrassed at the number of people who were rolling their eyes in their direction. Ne Ne had been selfish and let her greed land her into a bed of corruption. She wasn't an ideal parent. Smoked marijuana, drank beer, and partied with her boyfriend, Nate, until they could hardly stand. These were all traits of a lifestyle familiar to Xavier. But the squeaky clean one that his father was promising sounded more like something out of a church movie. He could see it now: Wednesday night Bible study, Saturday morning choir rehearsals, and being forced into attending double services on Sunday.

It wasn't gonna fly with Xavier. He wasn't cut out to be an altar boy, and he definitely couldn't see himself holding bake sales to raise money for the church. There was too much roughneck in him. Even though he was happy for his father, Xavier was now dreading the old man's release date. Aside from worrying about Slick Eddie's revenge, there was also a new worry on the horizon. Nobody was going to force him into doing anything he didn't want to do. Not even his father. There were going to be problems between them. Xavier could just feel it.