"Baby boy! Mama's so glad to see you sugar, now get you and your brother in here before you let all the heat out."
Odafin Tutuola hesitantly went into his grandmother's apartment while his little brother Max bolted past him and into his grandmothers big arms.
"Mama! I am so glad we're here. Can we have biscuits later? Oda let me sit on his lap on the train so I didn't have to sit next to the scary white man...and oh! oh! I saw some kids playing at a playground down the street, can I go there later? I'm so happy to be here, I don't like Terry's house, it smelled...Oda! come say hi to Mama and then we can go to that playground...can't we Mama?"
Odafin listened to his 8 year old brother's ramblings while he glanced around his grandmother's apartment, which seemed even smaller than when he was a little younger. "Now listen baby. You can't go to that playground today, it is much too cold and we have too much to do around here. But you can go there tomorrow after school if you want and of course we can have biscui..."
"We have to go to school tomorrow already?" Odafin interrupted while looking at his grandmother with big eyes.
"Of course you do. Did you think you were on vacation or something, boy?" "Well, being as our mother is a crack whore and we have been neglected for the past 6 months I would say that we deserve one" Odafin muttered under his breath.
" Maxie baby, why don't you take some of your stuff into your room down the hall there and set up your toys while I talk to your brother and make you a snack, okay sugar?"
"Yes Mama" Max replied as he lugged his lone suitcase down the hall and into the room that he knew was reserved for his brother and himself when they would occasionally stay the night.
Odessa Tutuola sauntered over to her 15 year old grandson and stared him straight in the face.
"Sit down Oda."
Odafin sat in a nearby chair while his grandmother lowered herself into her rocker and looked at her grandson with nothing but seriousness on her face.
"Listen baby, I know that it has been really hard for you dealing with your mother, but you are here now and you know that there is no nonsense under this roof. Now, I know that there has been a lot going on and you are angry and I don't care who you are angry at or how much you want to hurt somebody, there are rules in this house and I expect you to abide by them while you are here. You WILL go to school, you WILL help out and do the chores I assign you, and you WILL not disrespect mine or your mother's name in this house. Do we have an understanding?"
Odafin looked at his grandmother's loving yet serious eyes and immediately felt safe. He put on his best stoic teenager face and replied
"Yes Ma'am."
"Well good. Now, I want you to go and make sure your brother is doing as I asked. After that I want you to go down to the market and pick me up some things that I need for dinner tonight. School has gotten out for the day, so I'm sure you'll see some of the neighborhood kids your age, but don't get too caught up cuz I wanna get dinner on the table so you guys can have enough rest for tomorrow."
"Yes Ma'am"
After checking on his brother, Odafin put on his parka and began to walk down the block to the market. As he was walking through the aisles getting the things on his grandmother's list he couldn't help but notice the cackles and catcalls from some guys his own age at the front of the store. His grandma was right, there were a good number of kids his age in the neighborhood returning home from school. He had already spotted some ladies that he would love to befriend. As he was browsing through the brands of bread and thinking about how to make this school year not suck like the past, he heard the bells on the door to the market ring. As he looked up, he was met with the most beautiful sight he had ever seen. Surprisingly, this beauty came with the filthiest mouth he had ever heard on a girl.
"Listen to me you little skanky pieces of shit, if you call me 'sweetie', 'hottie', or anything of the sort I promise you I will cut your balls off and hand em to ya...understand!?"
The boys gulped and replied a quiet "Sorry" while still trying to catch a glance of the beautiful brunette's body as she walked into the market. Odafin was completely shocked. He had heard girls talk dirty before and cuss out boys twice their size, but none of them were as pretty or put together as this creature. They were all from his old neighborhood in Brooklyn and could easily be mistaken as a boy on many occassions. "Excuse me handsome, but I kinda need to get to the bread sometime this century."
Odafin was snapped out of his thoughts and clearly his body realized how close he was to this girl.
"Oh, um...sorry."
"Geez...return to Earth will ya. Oh gosh, please don't tell me you were daydreaming about something disgusting like screwing some hot chick or something. I swear boys are getting on my nerves today, seriously what is it about you guys anyways huh? Why is it that everytime that I..."
"Olivia, girl...calm down," a thin girl with extremely long blonde hair approached Olivia and Odafin.
"This young man didn't do anything to you...speaking of which...you are a very handsome young man if you don't mind me saying so. My name is Kelsey and this is my girl Olivia. Please excuse her, but she is currently thinking about giving up on your gender, but I'm trying to convince her otherwise. So tell us...were you really thinking about something disgusting, or are you some sort of intellectual who ponders the meaning of life in Jerry's Market?"
Odafin was astonished that this thin little thing was really in his face asking him these questions...and even more astonished when he realized that the sex goddess herself had a dead serious look on her face waiting for his answer.
"Neither, I guess. I'm new in the neighborhood and I guess that I was just getting a little lost in all the new things around here."
"Oh, alright. Well, that still doesn't excuse you as a freak, but I'll let you off easy. Liv, seriously girl, get the shit you need cuz I gotta get home before my mom freaks out and makes me some sort of slave to the other annoying rascals that she gave birth to." Alaisha grabbed Olivia's arm and began to drag her to the front of the store. Olivia looked at Odafin as she was wisked away and gave a quick smile to him as she grabbed some bread before her friend ripped her arm off. As she walked away, Odafin couldn't help but take a glance at her figure again. She was beautiful. She was petite, with dark brown hair falling on her shoulders. She was pretty thin, but had the beginnings of a womanly body with slightly curvy hips and small breasts. Odafin figured she was about 13 or so, which was odd because he usually went for the older ladies, but the bulge in his pants was definitely telling him that he was attracted to her. The thing that stood out to him the most was her eyes. She had big, beautiful brown eyes. Now, he had seen many girls with brown eyes in his neighborhood, but something about Olivia's eyes made him not want to look away. As he finished going over her features in his head and concentrated on relaxing his disobedient friend in his pants she appeared again just as fast as she had left.
"Sorry if I freaked you out earlier, I'm having a rough day," She said apologetically.
"No prob. Why'd you come back anyways?"
Odafin was surprised that he could even muster up the brain power and control to act cool and collected around her. She looked at him with her big eyes while hearing his question. She wasn't expecting him to respond back to her, she always held the upper hand, she wasn't used to being on the receiving end of probing questions. She really didn't know why she had gone back...well, she did...cause she thought he was hot. But, she couldn't tell him that.
"Well...uh…I just realized that I didn't catch your name."
Odafin smiled. He had caught her off guard. "Odafin Tutuola."
"Well nice to meet you Odafin, Olivia Benson." She reached her hand out and gave him a firm handshake.
He returned the gesture and, beginning to feel comfortable, he brushed his finger along her wrist as she pulled her hand away. She blushed slightly and he began to enjoy the fact that he was beginning to have the upper hand with this exuberant female. He thought he'd have a little more fun with her...
"So, Miss Benson, why are you even speaking to me in the first place. From what I've seen of you so far, you're not exactly the welcoming type." He smirked in his mind and started to feel cool and relaxed like he always did around the ladies.
Olivia gave him a strong look and then softened up and in her best damsel demeanor replied….
"Oh, don't flatter yourself Mr. Tutuola, didn't the fellas tell ya. I'm the welcome wagon committee. Welcome to the fuckin neighborhood."
Odafin was stunned and was extremely happy that she turned around and swiftly walked out the door otherwise he would have made a fool of himself with his mouth agape and looking like a complete idiot.
