When I came back, he had snapped out of it. He had made fun of me for jogging up and down his block ever since. He was the only brother I ever got that close to, who never had my back. He was also the only friend I ever actually ghosted. Actually, him joining the military helped that, although that wasn't the reason I backed away from him. None of his friends were good friends of mine, not even his younger brother, and I always found myself coming too close to getting into some kind off trouble around him, even with the law (through his associates). We did have one mutual friend (more his friend) who went to my high school, who lived a few doors down from him. He was two grades behind us, but it was rumored he was our age...he was probably just closer to our age than I thought. But he was the coolest brother on his block, and could fight real good, but didn't look or talk like it. He was a dark-skinned brother with curly hair, and real friendly. You could tell he and his sister (who had real long hair) were mixed with Hispanic...she was real friendly too. But one time he and my buddy's younger brother sorta did me wrong. It came back on them fast. But I will say his good heart out did the bad he had. He never sounded like he was from the hood. And he said he always been told that.
I had to go off topic and talk about this dark-skinned brother with the curly hair, because I just found out a few days ago, searching on facebook checking on my old buddy, the one I thought was going to hit me, that he passed a few years ago ( I'm not going to talk about my old buddy...who did btw become my best friend during this time). Anyway, although we didn't hang alone all that much, his passing messed me up, and I was around him more than I realized. Plus I have a cousin who lived on their block since the late 60's, when he was already there, although I didn't know him or my old buddy at that time. I remember he was there when I got in this fight on their block, where I did a number on this dude who sucker punched me. That guy passed away himself about four or five years later. I don't like bragging about that fight, since he's deceased. But that fight gave me a huge rep on that block. The night me and my old buddy were high, and it sounded like he wanted to hit me, happen after that fight. That's another reason I decided to get out the car and jog. I didn't want to wound up doing the same thing to him. Anyway, the dark-skinned cool brother who I recently found out passed, would always compliment me on that fight years later when I would see him on the subway. He was working in the hospital as a medical therapist. I'm starting to believe he may have been one of the many medical workers who contracted covid on the job. May he rest in peace.
Sorry for going off. But you only live once, so they say.
/SPOILER]
