#3 Turn Up for Real Read Free Page B

get my three Gs.” Boots punched A.V. again.
    I wanted to help, but at the same time, I didn’t need to get involved. Minutes earlier I didn’t even know this guy, but now I was sucked into his world, his drama, his pain, and I couldn’t pull myself away. I only wished he’d left me on the stairs, bawlin’ my eyes out alone and secluded.

CHAPTER TWO
    SCREAM
    One hard punch after another struck the stranger who’d serenaded me. It was tough to watch him get beat up so hard. I was so shocked that I didn’t even realize I screamed.
    â€œWho was that?” Boots angrily belted out.
    â€œDon’t hit him anymore!” I yelled, now understanding that I could not back away.
    â€œRun!” A.V. shouted out to me.
    I didn’t move. “You can’t hurt him anymore.”
    â€œGet her!” Boots yelled out to his two thug partners.
    â€œNo, no, no, don’t hurt her. I’ll talk to her. I’ll keep her quiet,” A.V. shouted before the thugs got to me.
    He struggled to come to the door because he was beaten up. The other guys were looming, waiting on the stranger to let me go so that they could get me in check. Their glares made me uneasy, but I kept my cool.
    â€œThe police are on the way in,” I lied out of instinct to try to scare them off.
    I must have displayed a great poker face, because they believed me. Boots snapped and eyed A.V., giving the sign that this wasn’t over. Then the three of them rushed past me.
    â€œYou shouldn’t be here,” A.V. said to me as I exhaled.
    â€œOh my gosh, are you okay?” I said, ignoring his concern about me. I was ten times more worried about him.
    â€œFine,” he huffed with a bit of an attitude.
    Blood was gushing from his mouth, and he was holding his ribs like something was broken. Concerned, I voiced, “We’ve got to get you to a hospital.”
    â€œNo, no really … you’ve got to go.”
    â€œI’m going to go tell my dad. He knows important people in the city. It’s going to be fine. He’ll get the police to catch these guys. They can’t just come in here and beat people up like this, ransacking your mother’s office. This is horrible,” I said.
    â€œNo, you’ve got to stay out of it.”
    â€œYou don’t understand. This just happened to my house not too long ago. People just think because they’re big and tough or going through stuff that they can make other peoples’ lives miserable. My father won’t stand for this.”
    I was serious too. My sisters didn’t like folks knowing our dad was powerful, but I had no problem letting the world know. My dad had us helping him get elected. He was happy to show the city he had a nice family. Now it was my time to get him to help.
    â€œLook, you don’t understand,” he said more forcefully.
    His mother sashayed her way over to the door, hand on hip, eyes bloodshot red. I stuck out my hand to introduce myself, believing that she couldn’t be angry with me. After all, I was trying to help.
    His mother started yelling. “How dare you come in here and stick your nose all in where it doesn’t belong. Isn’t the pageant over? What are you doing way back here anyway? This part is off limits. We don’t want the police involved.”
    â€œBut they were beating up your son,” I said to her as if she hadn’t just been in the same room as me.
    The way she was positioned in the room, she was behind her boy. She saw him getting punched, but she couldn’t see the damage. He wasn’t trying to show her, either.
    She screamed, “Listen girl, it’s none of your business.”
    â€œMom, you don’t have to be so rough,” A.V. said to his mom, finally looking her way.
    â€œWell, who is this girl? And what have you gotten yourself into with these guys?” She turned him around and saw up close he was really banged up.