-Chapter 12-

There she was, his childhood friend and neighbor, at his doorstep. Huey was still in awe and surprised that she was here in Woodcrest after so long. He took a good look at her, wondering if it was a dream. His wine tinted eyes met her large green ones, seeing that Jazmine's contagious smile lit up even more, if that was possible.

"Huey…" she whispered, he could almost see her tears of joy about to form.

Jazmine Dubois stood at 5'4 at twenty-two years old, which was a noticeable contrast to Huey's 6'3. She had light skin, emerald green eyes, and long strawberry blonde hair that was currently straightened. Everyone who has met her had always found her features and beauty to be quite unique, as she had one of the rarest combinations on Earth. Most of the time, she would always have to explain to people her heritage, which could get bothersome. Memories began to come back to Huey, starting from the day they met. Like Huey, Jazmine moved to Woodcrest with her family but a little earlier than the Freemans. Initially Huey disliked her when they had first met, however Jazmine continued to be friendly towards him, which he didn't understand. However as time passed after his fight with Cairo, Huey began to value her friendship and had always tried to get her in touch with her African American heritage, even though his plans didn't work most of the time. He had also developed a protective streak towards her, doing his best to shield her from any harm. They had remained best friends even throughout high school, but sadly split apart after college and ended up losing touch for the most part. Jazmine pursued her education at the Wuncler University, which was a private school and a few hours from Woodcrest.

Now believe it or not, Huey did develop a thing for Jazmine at the time as he saw a kind and optimistic girl with her own passions and thoughts. Although it really started when he was a junior in high school. However he wasn't sure about his feelings, plus he wanted to go to college to invest in his future. That's not to say that he didn't miss Jazmine, but he was terrible at keeping in contact with people and had a busy schedule.

Now she was standing in front of him as beautiful as ever. Puberty was quite kind to her, as Huey and other guys, have noticed. Besides her height, she had a feminine hourglass figure and that skintight, midriff baring pink top and jeans were showing it marvelously. Huey had always felt some guilt checking out his friend, but his eyes always wondered to her. Of course, he would catch himself to avoid any awkwardness. However now, all he could do was stare. The last thing Huey noticed was that she was holding a medium sized bag over her shoulder, he was curious of what it contained.

She leaped into the taller man's arms. Huey was surprised but slowly held her in his arms, returning the hug. He could feel her warmth, smell her strawberry scent, and hold her into his protecting her. He didn't know what was coming over him, it was overwhelming.

"Jazmine..."

He was holding the young woman tight, to Jazmine's surprise. However she definitely wasn't going to ruin this moment, it was almost like a once in a lifetime chance to be hugged by Huey Freeman. The two then released as soon as they heard Tom's laughter.

"Not so long, you two." Tom joked. Huey groaned silently, why was her father here?

"Oh daddy, it's not like that!" Jazmine replied, as a blush appeared on her soft cheeks. Huey allowed the father and daughter duo inside. Granddad came to the door, followed by Riley to greet her. "Mr. Freeman!" she called out. The elderly man smiled as if any bad mood he had was gone in an instant.

"Why hello, cutie pie! How was the trip?" Grandad greeted as they both hugged. The elderly man always had a soft spot for Jazmine, almost like she was the granddaughter he never had.

"It was great, but way too long." Jazmine replied. "It almost felt like my body was giving up."

Granddad chuckled at her comment. "I feel you, lil' baby. Well I'm glad you're safe." he spoke. "By the way, you grew into a beautiful, young lady." he complimented.

Jazmine smiled at the old man's comment. "Aw Mr. Freeman, you're so kind." she replied.

"Mhm, any man would be lucky to have you someday!." Granddad replied, taking a quick glance at Huey. The revolutionary tried to come off as ignoring that comment, however the slight blush on his cheeks still appeared.

"Aye yo, Mariah! Lemme holla at ya real quick!" Riley called out, wanting some attention.

"Of course I haven't forgotten about you, Riley." Jazmine said, giving him a hug. Riley returned the hug, smirking at Huey while she wasn't looking. However the revolutionary glared back at his brother, making sure he wasn't going to touch her or anything like that. While Riley grew up with Jazmine and knew her for years, he was still a pervert sometimes. He recalled one time when Riley slapped her butt "on accident", which prompted Huey to give him tough discipline. Even Riley knew if he touched below her waist, Huey would make him dead meat. It was just the protective nature of the revolutionary. After being released from the hug, Jazmine stood closer to Huey. She looked at him and noticed that he was looking at a particular feature on her, her straightened hair of course.

"I know, I know." Jazmine said, holding a luscious strand of her hair. Her hair was so long, it fell all the way to her butt. "I just straightened it just because."

"Whatever, conform to the white man's standard." Huey replied, sarcastically. He knew for years that Jazmine was insecure to this day about her naturally, thick curly hair. Huey believed that one of these days she'll accept her Black features. "But-"

"Lil baby, would you like something to drink? We have some orange juice." Granddad offered, interrupting their conversation.

"Yes, please, Mr. Freeman." she politely replied.

"Boy, go get the orange juice!" Granddad ordered, referring to Huey. The revolutionary stayed silent and went into the kitchen as ordered. Riley also followed his brother with a taunting smirk on his face, indicating that he was going to say something stupid per se.

"Man Jazzy lookin' like a full course meal in there!" Riley commented, watching his brother pour the orange juice. "You see the tiddies on her?"

"Don't talk about her like that." Huey sternly replied, putting the pitcher away in the fridge. He was not going to let Riley talk about Jazmine in a disrespectful manner.

"What? It's true though, I know you were lookin'!" Riley replied. He wasn't entirely wrong, that's the worst part. Huey made a mental note to deal with Riley later, he needed to get the orange juice over to Jazmine.

Huey headed to the living room where both Granddad and Tom spoke about their college aged children while Jazmine sat there listening. Meanwhile Huey handed her the cup of orange juice like he was told. "Thank you, Huey." she replied, giving him a smile.

Huey only nodded. "No problem."

"Oh, I almost forgot something!" she said. Jazmine immediately realized another reason why she was here. It was the bag she had carried. She grabbed everything that was inside, which contained three small books. Huey's eyed the books, wondering what they could be about.

"I saw this at a bookstore and well…I thought you might like them." Jazmine bashfully handed her friend the books, which he accepted. Huey's eyes widened when he saw the titles and what the books were about. One was about Afro-Cuban religions, another was about Huey P. Newton, while the third was a new edition book on the criminal justice system. Huey was surprised that she thought of him that much to buy these books for him, not even his own current family members have done that.

"Jazmine...these are great." he complimented, turning to her after admiring the books. Much to Jazmine's surprise, Huey actually gave her a rare smile, his genuine one. "Thank you…"

Jazmine gasped, not only proud that he liked the books, but that he was smiling. "Huey...you're smiling!" she cheered. However that was ruined when Huey returned to his normal scowl, which made her giggle. "Wait, wait, where's your smile?"

"Moment's passed." Huey bluntly replied. "But seriously, I'm thankful for these. You didn't have to."

"I wanted too, silly." Jazmine said. "But I'm gonna get you to smile again someday."

Huey rolled his eyes. "Good luck." he stated. To be honest, he was relieved that it was the same, optimistic Jazmine. At least college stress didn't change her too Huey began to feel even more ashamed about the affair and the position he was in. He also remembered promising Sarah that he wouldn't hang out with Jazmine, which both news would probably crush his friend.

"So Huey." Tom started. "Did you think about what I said?"

"About what, daddy?" Jazmine asked, looking at her father.

"Well sweetie, about hanging out with you somewhere to catch up on things." the attorney replied. "I know you guys haven't seen each other in a while."

Huey sighed. "Well Mr. Dubois-"

"Forget that bitch nigga over there!" said Riley, grabbing everyone's attention. "Mariah needs a real nigga to show her a good time!"

"Hush boy!" Granddad barked.

Jazmine then spoke up. "Riley, I'm flattere-"

"I'll pick you up tomorrow, Jazmine." Huey then stated, glaring at his brother. Jazmine perked up hearing this as she would rather hang out with the revolutionary over his gangsta brother. Meanwhile Huey knew what he promised Sarah, but he'd be damned if Riley took out Jazmine. The thought just didn't sit right with him. Of course, he knew he was going to regret it. Riley returned the glare appearing disappointed, which was all a front because Riley was proud that he could get under his stoic brother's skin. Granddad and Tom however wondered if Riley just helped Huey.

"So McHater's takin' you out on a date, right?" asked a blonde woman while sitting on Jazmine's bed, as Jazmine was braiding her hair carefully.

Jazmine shook her head at her best friend's claim. "I don't think it's a date, Cindy." Jazmine replied, blushing. As much as the young woman wanted it to be something more, she was just planning on hanging out with a dear friend.

Cindy McPhearson was the daughter of one of the wealthiest families in Woodcrest, despite being personified as the white, female counterpart of Riley. She was rambunctious, aggressive and hardcore; Riley and sometimes Huey would even find her intimidating, but she was also a very loyal and caring friend that showed her soft side whenever needed. She had always grown up as a tomboy and enjoyed the gangster subculture, which was why she could never get along with the preppy kids that her father wanted her around with. However Cindy was just fine with it, she found that preppy crowd to be fake anyways. However, she became the best friend of Jazmine Dubois after once saving her from bullies when they were younger. Cindy knew what it was like to be ostracized due to being different, which is why she formed a friendship with Jazmine, despite their differences.

Now despite her thuggish nature, she was still regarded as a beautiful, young woman. Her long, blonde hair was in two braids, she had fair skin, and blue eyes. She had an athletic yet curvy body and anytime it was referred to as "thick", Cindy took it as the highest form of a compliment.

"Don't be bullshittin' yourself, Jazzy." Cindy stated. "The nigga says he'll pick ya up, he probably takin' you somewhere like the movies or out to eat."

"But you and Riley hang out all the time and you guys aren't dating." Jazmine replied.

"Yeah but it's different 'cuz Reezy's a homie who got the benefits." the blonde replied, recalling that she was going to hang out with him the same time Huey and Jazmine would be out. "You know whatchu gonna wear?"

Jazmine shrugged. "Just a t-shirt and jeans, like I said, it's just two friends hanging out." she answered. To Jazmine's surprise, she stopped braiding as Cindy turned around to face her. At least she was done braiding so she wouldn't lose her spot. Jazmine knew that confused look, Cindy was gonna tell her off about something.

"Bitch, you need to show off what he's been missin' for so long!" Cindy bluntly ranted.

Jazmine shushed her. "Cindy, not so loud!" she whispered, knowing her parents were downstairs. While they were adults, Jazmine knew the rules at her parents' home, which included no swearing. Cindy rolled her eyes at her best friend's goody-two shoes ways.

"Anyways, you need somethin' that'll show off your phat ass forreal." Cindy commented, playfully checking out the biracial woman herself. "Shiiit, girl. If I wasn't throwing Reezy sum' ass, I would've gone lesbian for you, no homo."

Jazmine nearly bursts out laughing at that comment. It didn't make sense, but they were that comfortable around each other. Cindy smirked and the best friends stood up from her bed, she was always happy to make Jazmine laugh.

"Come on, let's go find something in yo closet." Cindy stated, before searching for the perfect outfit in Jazmine's closet.

The next day, Huey was watching CNN for his daily news report, however he was too deep in thought about what he told Jazmine and Sarah. After Sarah made him promise her, was planning on avoiding the biracial woman for who knows how long, despite the advice he received from Caesar. However he felt pushed from Granddad and Tom, since it was pretty clear that they wanted them together as something more than friends. The revolutionary sighed, lately he was acting by his impulses and look where it got him, it was unlike him for the most part. Suddenly Granddad came into the living room wearing his jogging gear; Huey figured the old man would be going on his morning jog with Ruckus at the park.

"Morning, Huey!" the elderly man greeted. "You know where you're gonna take the cutie pie?" he asked, referring to Jazmine.

"I haven't really thought about it yet, Granddad." Huey replied honestly.

"Well, make sure you think of something." Granddad stated. "That Jazmine is a good woman, Huey. I know deep down she's special to you. You make sure you treat her well."

"Whatever happened to "soiling your oats""? Huey asked, not that he was planning on doing anything to her. Even though he thought she was beautiful, he knew better with the situations he was in.

Granddad only smirked, normally he was scold at his grandson for being a smartass. "Boy, you remind me of your daddy when he was your age." he commented."Anyways, I'll be on my morning jog, make sure you figure something out."

Huey knew that Granddad was right, she was special to him. After what he did with her mother, he knew in his heart that Jazmine deserved much better. Even though she had a special place in his heart, he had to keep her away from him. Even if he meant that she would never talk to him, it would be for the best. That's when Huey recalled that everything in life has it's consequences, the truth will always be revealed.

The revolutionary turned off the TV screen to get rid of the extra noise to think. However he then came up with a solution out of desperation, it was wrong, but he felt as if he was doing right thing. He could never pinpoint how his mind worked sometimes or how careless it could get in this specific situation. Huey felt as if he had a pit in his stomach at how wrong this would be, but he figured it was the only way, even if it was being dishonest with Jazmine and himself.

He planned to sabotage his friendship with her.

To be continued…