Say When

T W E N T Y - F O U R

I sat on the stoop outside my house. My backpack on. I periodically looked down the street like a little kid waiting to be picked up by a parent after school. I was waiting on Rita. It was spring break and Rita's eighteenth birthday had finally rolled around. The group of us were driving out New Jersey for a Drake concert. The plan was to see the concert, crash in a room for the night and then drive back the next afternoon.

A week ago I surprised her with the tickets. Two days later she surprised me with the news that David would be coming along. Three days later he surprised her by inviting Yuri. He'd figured we'd save money from renting a car if Yuri drove us.

It was officially a crew thing. We were all supposed to meet at Yuri's place but I opted to wait on my stoop. I ran my sneakers across the cement stairs. Tiny pieces of gray clay tumbled down to the next step soundlessly. I stole glances down the street at Yuri's house.

Yuri and I hadn't spent much time together since that night at the wing joint. I wanted to talk with him more and I tried but in school, he'd close his locker and head off down the hall before I could reach him. Our car rides to work were mostly me chatting away. Asking questions, trying to fill the silence and him being polite but not engaged.

He stayed out on deliveries for most of our shifts at work. It was weird and I was worried about being on a road trip with that weirdness. I shifted my feet again. More cement pebbles, like Yuri and I's friendship, tumbled down the stairs without making a sound.

"OVO or bust baby!" Rita arrived in her usual loud fashion, strutting around the corner like the sidewalk was her runway. David was tailing her pulling a large suitcase. His long curly hair was pulled into a ponytail and he wore a black hoodie with a white owl graphic on the front. Rita had a matching one on. Drake's clothing line. I shook my head at the matching pair.

"Ella esta obsesionada," David said as he parked the suitcase at the bottom of the steps. I tried to hold back a laugh and ended up snorting instead.

"He's always talking shit. What did he say?" Rita shot him an angry look and then pulled me into a hug.

"He said that you're great."

"Lies. I've gotta stop dating these Dominican guys."

"Or you can actually pay attention in Spanish class every once in a while," I told her. She waved my comment away. I embraced David and looked down at the oversized suitcase.

"Rita, the rest of our stuff needs to fit in the car too."

"Hold it on your lap. I will not be unprepared to meet the Champagne Papi himself."

"And we will be close enough to see the edges of his shape up!" I reminded her.

"You are the freaking best!" She leaped down the stairs into my arms. I made sure to get good seats for the concert. Fourth-row center. I'd dipped into a bit of my college savings but I felt she deserved it. Anyway, business had been good. Jax had slipped many more of those cash-filled envelopes to me and things were looking great. Why not share the wealth? Rita's phone rang. She released me to answer it. She got off the phone a moment later.

"Yuri's parked around the corner. Let's go." I picked up my duffle and followed Rita's hopping and skipping frame down the block. We rounded the corner and I spotted Yuri's gray Nissan Altima. The trunk popped up at the same time Yuri emerged from the car. He'd gotten a haircut. The light brown coils on the top of his head were cut down to a neat inch of hair and the sides tapered down low. I surprised myself by noticing immediately.

"Ready for Drizzy?" Yuri asked. Rita screamed with excitement right there in the middle of the street. People stopped and stared and she didn't care. Yuri mouthed "whoa" to me and I smiled. This was going to be a hell of a weekend.