Camilla’s brows furrowed and her eyes bounced between us. “Oh.”
“Yeah, this my future sister-in-law.” My arm wrapped around her shoulder. “While my brother’s out of commission, I decided to get her out the house.”
“He still in a coma?” Dylan asked.
Nakyra tensed next to me and I squeezed her shoulder in reassurance. I nodded. “Yeah.”
“When we getting started? I’m getting antsy,” Jerrod, a member of Dylan’s crew, asked, walking over. “Oh shit, Creed? I didn’t know you were here.”
We slapped hands. “Yeah, it’s only temporary though.”
Dylan pulled his phone out and checked the time. “In a few. Ay, Creed before we start, come check my baby out. I did some modifications since the last time you seen her.”
“Of course you did. When aren’t you messing with this car.”
“Never. I swear he loves it more than me,” Camilla complained.
“Almost, baby.” Dylan winked at her with a grin.
Camilla rolled her eyes. “Remember that tonight.”
He pulled her into him by the waist and whispered something in her ear, causing her to grin. Pecking her lips, he pulled up and faced me. “C’mon.”
Camilla stepped forward. “I’ll take care of your girl here. You drink, chica?” she asked Nakyra,
“Oh, uh…” Nakyra glanced up at me.
“Camilla’s cool. She’s like my little sister. She’ll look out for you.”
Nakyra nibbled on her bottom lip then shifted her attention back to Camilla. “Yeah, sure.”
Camilla grinned. “That’s what I’m talking about. C’mon.” She reached out and grabbed Nakyra, pulling her away.
“You sure you want her around Camilla’s crazy ass? She might corrupt your girl,” Dylan mentioned.
I peeked over in the direction the girls went. “First, I told you that’s not my girl. Second, that girl’s only crazy because yo’ ass makes her like that.”
He chuckled. “If you say so, man. And nah, she been crazy.” He walked to his driver’s door and opened it before popping the hood open.
Dylan was always messing with his Challenger. From what I knew he had basically rebuilt the car piece by piece to make it the perfect racing machine. Most of the time I didn’t understand the modifications he made when he explained them to me, but I still listened.
Being around Dylan and his crew always kept me grounded. Growing up I never felt like I fit in. My parents were big on image and they always stressed I needed to present myself in a certain manner. While most of the time they ignored me, there were times I was required to be out in public with them to maintain the perfect family image. It was never something I cared for and often tried to avoid. When I became friends with Dylan and came to his side of town, I felt like I was finally able to just be andnot have to be someone I wasn’t. We came from two different backgrounds, but that didn’t matter, I always preferred being around him and his crew over the environment I grew up in.
____
“This is insane! I would be terrified to be in a car driving like that!” Nakyra gushed with wide eyes full of excitement. The races had officially started, and just as expected, she seemed to be enjoying herself. She was drinking whatever Camilla had given her and the two seemed to hit it off well.
“Girl, it’s actually fun as hell!” Camilla shouted over the crowd.
Nakyra whipped her head to face Camilla. “You’ve raced before?”
She shook her head. “No, but I’ve been in the car with Dylan a couple times! You think watching is something, it’s nothing compared to being in the action.”
“You’re crazy.” Nakyra shook her head, looking mortified, causing me to laugh.
“So I’ve been told.’ Camilla smirked, downing her drink.
The current race was finishing up and the roaring of the cars grew louder the closer they got. We were close to the finish line, waiting for Dylan to race. His was the final one of the night. I wasn’t sure who the people they were racing against were, but apparently there was underlying street beef being handled on the track.
