Free Caught Up by Amir Abrams

from my inquiring gaze. “Yeah, sumthin’ like dat. So you wanna catch another movie tomorrow night?”
    I chuckle. “Hey-hey, not so fast. Don’t even try to change the subject. Not until you tell me what ‘something like that’ means .”
    He brings his face close to his computer screen, and blows smoke at me. “See. If I tell you, I’ma have ta kidnap you.” He laughs and coughs at the same time.
    I tsk him. “Just tell me, please.”
    He sighs. “Yo, you really wanna know?”
    I nod. “I wouldn’t have asked if I didn’t.”
    He sighs again. “When I was like eight I found my older brother’s stash . . .”
    â€œOh, you have an older brother? How old is he? What kind of stash?”
    He shakes his head. “Chill, chill. You want me to tell you da story or not?”
    I nod.
    â€œA’ight then. My brother, Brent, is twenty-three. Anyway, I found his stash of weed in a Timberland box under his bed. I remember watching him roll up and seein’ him smoke and I thought it was cool. So dis one night when he was out doin’ him, I snuck in his room wit’ two of my friendz at da time. He had like six blunts already rolled ’n’ ready to burn so I took one ’n’ lit it. Me ’n’ my boyz started smokin’ it like we knew what we was doin’ but we ain’t know jack; feel me?”
    I nod. “So what happened?”
    Blaze looks off for a split second, then lands his gaze back on me. “We heard someone comin’ ’n’ got spooked. I tossed all da blunts ’n’ da lighter back into the box ’n’ pushed it back under his bed, then me ’n’ my friendz dipped outta his room before we got caught. My moms woulda beat me if she caught me smokin’.” He shakes his head. “Later dat night, I went to bed, then the next thing I know my moms is bargin’ in my room shakin’ me ’n’ screamin’ for me to get up ’cause there’s a fire.”
    I gasp. “Ohmygod! Did your house burn down?”
    He shakes his head. “Nah. It was just a lotta smoke. I mean, it did burn through the box ’n’ my brother’s mattress got scorched, but we ain’t lose e’erything. My moms was just happy no one got hurt ’n’ dat our crib didn’t burn down to da ground.”
    â€œY’all were real lucky,” I say sincerely.
    â€œTrue.”
    â€œSo did they know how his bed caught fire?”
    â€œNot at first. But then dem fire marshall cats came ’n’ tol’ my moms what caused it. She blacked on my brother for havin’ dat stuff in her house.”
    â€œDid she put him out?”
    â€œNah. She just made him give her money for da damages. And started chargin’ him rent to live wit’ us. Soon as she spun off, he started spazzin’ on me ’n’ yoked me up for goin’ into his ish. He knew da only way da fire coulda popped off da way it did is if someone was in his room messin’ wit’ his stash. Man, dude tried to beat da crap outta me. After dat he got a lock on his door, then started callin’ me Blaze.”
    â€œWow.”
    He licks his lips. “Now, what about dat movie?”
    I grin. “Tell me your real name, and it’s a yes.”
    He shakes his head. “See, why you gotta know all dat? It’s Blaze.”
    â€œYeah, okay. And my name’s Tinkerbell from Once Upon a Time .”
    â€œHahahaha. Well, once upon a time, there was dis dude named Blaze who had another name. Nice to meet you, Tinker. Now come ring my bell.”
    I join in his laughter. “You’re so silly.”
    Although he doesn’t tell me his real name, he does share with me that his mother’s a single mom. That his dad was killed in car crash when he was six. And his brother’s in prison for three years for selling drugs.
    I also learn that