Page 44

“Congratulations on winning the competition last week. The piece you did on ol’ boy was dope as hell.” I congratulated Draike on winning first place in the tattoo competition Jah and another big tattoo artist put together. Draike did a dope piece of the Taj Mahal complete with lions and everything else you could think of. His attention to detail was masterful, and he brought each element of the piece to life.

“I appreciate it, bro. It took me seven hours to complete, and I wasn’t sure what was gonna happen. Jah was impressed though, and he introduced me to a lot of people in the industry. The network is pushing for him to do the reality show, but he’s on the fence about it still.” Draike expressed.

“I understand both sides. It would bring a lot of exposure to the shop, but reality shows only get views when there’s a lot of drama and mess going on. Jah is a grown married man with a family. There isn’t gonna be any drama in his life, and he wants to keep it that way. Plus, if there’s drama in the shop, it could affect the customers, which would ultimately affect the business.

“I understand where you’re coming from, but being on TV would be dope foreal. Jonah Hills has always been a small town with limited reach, but now the city has expanded, and people know who we are. Imagine how much more traffic a TV show could generate. I mean, we’ve bred some of the world's favorite artists and ball players. It would be a great opportunity to rep for the city.”

I nodded in understanding. Jonah Hills was a fairly peaceful city, and I wasn’t sure if that kind of publicity would be a blessing or a setback for the people here.

“Yeah, I guess it’s something to consider. I know one thing, though: I won’t be anywhere near the shop if he does.”

Draike chuckled, turning his attention away from the game we were playing on his XBOX.

“You’re the only superstar I know who doesn’t care for being in the spotlight. It’s funny to witness because you turn into a completely different person the moment you hit the stage.”

He was right, and I still couldn’t explain why. In real life, I preferred to stay in the background, but the moment I took the stage with a mic in my hand, I became someone else. My passion took over, and I was able to block out the noise and give it my all. Sometimes I would watch the clips of my performances in awe because I never thought I would one day be living my dreams.

“Yeah, Honesty teases me about it all the time. She says I have an alter ego.” I shrugged, thinking about my Honey Bee. We hadn’t talked in two days, which wasn’t like us unless we were busy. The overthinking side of me wondered if she was already ready to back out of our arrangement.

“Speaking of your Honey Bee. What’s going on with y’all? The blogs have been going crazy, trying to get as much information about the two of y’all as possible. I saw a post a few days ago about y’all being spotted at the mall and being ambushed by fans. I know your ass was ready to spazz.” he chuckled because he knew me better than most.

“Man, it took everything inside me not to lose my cool. I’m used to my fans wanting to take pictures with me when I go out, but since they found out about Honesty, it seems like they've lost their minds. Brandi claimed this fake-dating scenario would help the press and public see me in a different light, and while it may be working, it’s driving my fans crazy.

“She posted a food review video of us on IG and YouTube, and it had over a million views the next day. A lot of people seem to love us together, but then there are the others who are waiting for her to fuck up. I saw a post the other day, and it said: “She’s cute or whatever, but I pray they’re only fuck buddies because no one is allowed to marry my man.”

I ran my hand through my beard as I thought about our interactions with fans over the last couple of weeks.

I loved my fans endlessly, but they had become obsessed and out of control. I used to be able to shop at the mall without too many issues. A couple of photos and autographs here and there, but now I could barely walk through the door without being ambushed. Honesty found the interactions entertaining, while I became more and more stressed.

Big Moe still worked for Rule whenever he was on tour, but since Rule had been home with his family, he helped me out when he could. Last week he told me Rule went through the same thing when he first started out, and I wasn’t sure whether that made me feel more comfortable or more stressed.

“Well, you might as well get used to it. Now that the two of you have popped out, your fan base has grown in a matter of weeks, and people are streaming your music like crazy.”

He wasn’t lying because the label kept sending me updates, letting me know my music was being streamed more than ever. They told me to keep doing what I was doing, which slightly irritated me because I wasn’t doing anything special besides going outside more.

“Hey, son. I need to use your car because mine has been making weird sounds and I need to drive up to Tanger to grab a couple new bags.”

I gritted my teeth the moment I heard her irritating voice. Maybe it was impossible, but I spent most of my time pretending she didn’t exist.

“Why can’t you drive Pop’s car? I’ve got some moves to make tonight, and I’m not tryna roll up with your hooptie puffin and sparking every five seconds.” Draike replied to Brenesha, who had barged into his place without even speaking first.

“D-Lo said I can’t drive his shit anymore because he claims I’m hard on cars,” she scoffed, even though the accusation was true and proven.

“He ain’t lying. You wrecked his truck six months ago, and your Charger sounds like it’s on its last leg. I’ll never understand how you keep tearing these cars up, but you won’t be breaking mine in. I don’t have time for my insurance to skyrocket, especially if I’m not the one messing it up.”

“Oh, come on. I’m only driving two hours away, and I’ll be right back.” She whined. I focused on my phone and texted Honesty to see where she was.

Me: Damn, have we broken up, and I’m the last to know?

Honey Bee: I would never leave you, daddy.

I chuckled because she had been saying the craziest stuff since we started dating.

Me: I’ma fuck you up. Where you at, though? I haven’t talked to you in days. You don’t fuck with me no more?

Honey Bee: You are being dramatic. I’m sorry, I’ve been working on this dress around the clock and barely had a chance to breathe.

It’s coming together perfectly.