into a time machine or something. Not just because of the Tweety shrine but all of the memories made in this room. Sonny, Malik, and I spent so much time in here. It’s where Trey introduced me to Uno. Granddaddy played dolls with me in here.
My mom isn’t part of any of those memories though.
There’s a knock at the door, and my mom peeks in. Trey’s behind her. “Hey. Okay if we come in?” she asks.
I sit up. “Yeah, sure—”
“I ain’t gotta ask to come in this room,” Trey says, and lets himself in. Then he has the nerve to plop onto my bed.
“Um, excuse you? This is still my room.”
“Wow,” my mom says, looking around. “Tweety, huh?”
She’s never been in here before. Back when she only had me and Trey on weekends, she’d only get as far as the driveway. Grandma wouldn’t let her come inside.
Mom moves around my room. She picks up one of my stuffed Tweety Birds. “I hadn’t realized I hadn’t been in here before. Wait, I take that back. I was definitely in here when it was your daddy’s room.”
“Wait, you saying that you two had sex in the room that ended up being Bri’s room?” Trey asks.
There goes my appetite. “Ill!”
“Trey, stop!” says Mom. “They probably changed the bed.”
Oh my God, she just confirmed that they did have sex in here. Trey falls onto the bed, screaming laughing. “Bri got the sex room!”
I punch him. “Shut up!”
“Cut it out, y’all,” says Mom. “I need to talk to you about something.”
“Hold up—first things first,” Trey says, sitting up. “What’s up with you and Grandma?”
“What you mean?”
“Y’all been here, what?” Trey glances at his watch. “An hour now, and nobody’s argued yet. I haven’t even heard any snide remarks.”
“Fact,” I say. “Y’all have been lacking shade like a sunny day.”
Oh, God. I sound like Granddaddy.
“Your grandmother and I had a discussion,” J—Mom—claims. “That’s all.”
“That’s all?” says Trey. “Any discussion between you two is monumental. When did this happen?”
“The other day,” Jay says. “We talked for a few hours. Hashed out a lot of things, even stuff from way back when.”
“Did Jesus moderate it?” I ask. “’Cause that’s the only way I see this working.”
Trey goes, “Haaaa!”
Mom kisses her teeth. “Anyway! I’m not gonna act like we’re best friends, hell no. That woman still knows how to work my nerves. But we realized that we love you two and want what’s best for you. We’re willing to set our differences aside in the name of that.”
Trey picks up his phone. “Ah. That explains it. I just got a notification that it’s below zero in hell.”
I snort.
“Whatever, boy,” says Mom. “We also came to a decision. Your grandparents offered that all three of us stay here until we get on our feet. I accepted.”
“Whoa. Really?” I say.
“Hold up, hold up,” Trey says. “We’re moving in here?”
Wow. For once, I’m finding out when he finds out.
“Look, something may or may not come from my interview with Dr. Cook, but either way this will take some pressure off,” Mom says. “I told your grandparents I’d help with household expenses, but this would mean a lot less bills to worry about. Besides, we’ve been trying to play catch-up on rent so long that it’s almost impossible to catch up at this point.”
“But I’ve got us,” Trey claims.
“I’ve got us,” she says. “I appreciate all you’re doing to keep us afloat, baby, I really do, but this is honestly for the best. This way, I can go back to school and finish up. Once I do get a job, I can save up for a place. It also means you can go to grad school.”
He immediately shakes his head. “No. Absolutely not.”
“Why not?” I ask.
“The school is three hours away, Bri.”
“If this is about Kayla, if she really cares about you, she’ll be fine with that, baby,” Mom says. “Heck, she better be.”
“It’s not just her. I can’t leave you and Li’l Bit.”
“Why not?” Mom asks.
“Because.”
“Because you think you have to take care of us,” Mom finishes for him. “And you don’t. The only person you have to take care of is yourself.”
Trey slowly lets out a breath. “I don’t know about this.”
Mom comes over and lifts his chin. “You gotta go after your dream, baby.”
I get an ache in my chest. That’s the exact opposite of what she told me in the car when she said I couldn’t rap anymore. I mean, I get it. I’ve messed up big-time. But what