Chiraq VII

Chapter 7

Victoria wrenched a big belt from her purse as she screamed, "You're about to get it now!" Big Shorty submerged backwards, escaping a lick from the belt Victoria had. He shook his head "No", stuttering uncontrollably and shouted, "N-n-n-o-o-o! Grandma, help me!" His grandma came between them saying, "Victoria! Ain't no whooping going on in this house! I do the whooping here!", his grandma demanded. His grandma used her authority to remove the belt from Victoria's possession.

Victoria stood in an upright position with her hands on her hips in disagreement. "He's gotta come home!", she commanded. His grandma wiggled the belt at both of them and said, "No he don't! He's living with his grandma now!" Victoria was wearing a white summer dress, with red flowers on it, and sandals. "How could you take up for him, mother?", she asked. "Lord knows what my grandbaby been through the last few days on the streets.", his grandma replied.

Victoria stood defeated at the doorway of the kitchen. Her tears threatened to come out. "Okay, mother.", whimpered Victoria. "Get over here and give your mother a hug, Tyrone.", she requested. The only thing Big Shorty concentrated on was the wide size belt in her hands and the redness in her eyes that betrayed her failure as a mother. "Put the belt down first", Big Shorty requested. Victoria had to turn away from him when she felt a tear welling up in her left eye. "Tyrone, I won't whoop you", Victoria said. When Big Shorty came to her, she held him tightly to her chest and that's when Big Shorty said to her, "I love you mom". It seemed so long ago since she had embraced him in her arms. "Tyrone, your sister Lena been worried about you", Victoria said.

In autumn, Big Shorty's grandparents took him to enroll in school on 76th and Halsted. It was only three blocks from their home. Big Shorty turned ten on his first day of school, he wore his favorite Chicago Bears pull-over, as the bears were his favorite team. Big Shorty stood at the entrance of the school with a swarm of schoolmates. He sported a fresh blue and black outfit from his grandma's store with a brand new pair of Jordan's. The school bell rang and Big Shorty walked with the crowd through the hallway.

In his class, he saw that the desk's were neatly arranged in proper order and furnished with a separate enclosed compartment for keeping books. Mrs. Ferguson, Big Shorty's teacher, stood in front of the classroom and leaned against the side of her neatly appointed desk. She checked her carefully manicured nails for chips while she waited for the class to settle in. The red polish looked as if it would make it through another day.

Big Shorty was sitting in the first desk of the fourth row when he caught sight of Faith, his near classmate who was seated two rows behind him. Faith giggled while gazing into Big Shorty's warm light brown eyes. She saw that he looked amused, and the upward curve on his mouth brought a smile to his face. She giggled nervously as the smile on Big Shorty's face made her cheeks blush.

Ed, another one of Big Shorty's classmates, sat one row and two seats behind Big Shorty, and was one of a half a dozen other students that were curious about Big Shorty being the new student and asked, "Why are you wearing blue and black?" Big Shorty looked back at Ed and saw that the boy was wearing red baggy jeans and a black sweater. He noticed that some of the other students were also sporting red and black. "I'm a Gangsta", replied Big Shorty. Ed, who fingers showed the renowned Pitch Forks dropped in a downward position, thus dissing Big Shorty in front of the whole class, said, "I'm a Gangsta killer".

Big Shorty took the disrespect to his gang personally and yelled, "Come kill me then, sissy!" In what seemed like one swift move, Big Shorty grabbed the legs on his chair and swung it at Ed, hitting him in the back of the head. Mrs. Ferguson hurried over to intercept the next blow that Big Shorty was about to make at the other Lords sitting closest to Ed. Big Shorty sat in the principals office as the clerk dialed his grandparents phone number. She spoke into the receiver and his grandma's voice bounced back at her. Big Shorty's heart started thundering as he heard the clerk asked, "May I speak with Mr. or Mrs. Howard, please?"