38| Bigger Picture

Background color
Font
Font size
Line height

Ain't have to get rich for these partners, still with the same folks. And I can't beef with none of you niggas, not in the same boat. I'm never gon' get caught up about it, know how the game go. Tennis chain bustin', look like rainbows. | Lil Baby  

Priest sat down while his personal barber doctored up his cut and shape up. With the help of Priest, Kaymen and J'Ru, Leila had successfully secured her position as the mayor. Her campaign was sturdy and finance immensely by Priest. He managed to pull a few string for her which gave her a clean and easy win. J'Ru wasn't much of a fan of having Leila in office since he believed that she was horrible representation for their community, but Kaymen and Priest were able to convince him. Leila would just be the face. As far as they were concerned what they said went. 

"Did you just put a barbershop in your penthouse?" Britain asked over FaceTime. 

Priest chuckled. "Nah, he makes house calls for me," He shrugged casually. Like arranged, Britain was currently in the Hamptons with Jazzy and Jadey. Sadly, Brea couldn't make it from Baltimore at such short notice. In substitution of Brea, Jazzy brought Taylor along so she could enjoy some Hamptons fun as well. 

Priest felt at ease knowing that both Britain and Jazzy were in the safety of the Hamptons. Plus it was a perfect excuse to get the two more comfortable with each other. 

"How fancy," Britain teased him with a smirk. 

"How's it going so far?" Priest asked referring to the Hamptons. 

Britain sighed as she rotated around so she could be laying on her back in bed. "So far so good. Diane is on her way so we're just getting ready for massages," She informed Priest. 

"Getting massages without me now?" Priest teased her.

Britain rolled her eyes jokingly while waving him off. "It's not my fault you shipped me off," 

"I didn't ship you off," Priest corrected. "I graciously handed you vacation without me," 

"You make me sick," She screwed her face up causing him to laugh. 

Priest adjusted the phone down so his barber could properly shape his line up as he continued his conversation with Britain. "You and Jadey getting along?" Priest asked. 

"Surprisingly, it isn't awkward between us. I think we've both missed each other so much," Britain explained with a light smile. 

"See I told you," Priest says. 

Britain rolls her eyes not liking the fact that Priest was right constantly. "Whatever," She waved off causing Priest to chuckle. 

"I'll call your hating ass later, I gotta get ready," He teased her. 

Britain nodded her head. "Love you playa," She tells him with a smile on her face.  "Love you too playa," Priest professed before they both said their goodbyes to each other. 

As Priest continued with his cut, in came in J'Ru through the thick steel doors of the elevator. He was fired in an all black dress suit along with some slacks,  adorned on his feet were a pair of Italian leather loafers. As always, his hair was braided back nicely as his beard was lined up in perfection. "Something told me that your sensitive lightskin ass wasn't going to be ready," J'Ru scoffed as he travelled towards the kitchen to help himself with what he could find. Talia always had some meal plans in the fridge so it could be in convenience to Jazzy and Priest who were always busy running around in the city. 

"The only motherfucka' that can come in my shit and insult me," Priest huffed out jokingly causing J'Ru to laugh.

In laughter, J'Ru points at Priest. "Can't forget about your mother Priest," He reminded him.

Priest lifted his hand up, sticking the middle finger at J'Ru. "Fuck you too nigga, respectfully!" J'Ru retorted to Priest bringing on some more laughter. 

Right when Priest's barber was wrapping up his cut and dusting the fallen hairs off of his neck, in came Kaymen. "Typical. You running late," Kaymen points at Priest. "And you always fucking eating," He then points at J'Ru who had already retrieved his food from the microwave so he could eat. 

"And you always fucking being a tight ass," J'Ru retorted with his mouthful. 

Priest laughed as he stood up from the chair, now with the cape off. "Could y'all chill," He says to his two friends before thanking his barber and paying him a hefty fee for the inconvenience. Priest's barber made his way out after gathering his things, leaving the men the privacy to speak freely. 

"Good looks for giving ya spot away at the Hamptons. J needs to be as far away from this shit as possible," Kaymen expressed his gratitude to Priest as he claimed a seat on the couch. 

Priest nodded his head, agreeing with Kaymen. "It's nothing man," He assured. "Britain's hard headed ass would have made it her will to give me hell today," 

"I heard she be checking your ass," J'Ru cackled obnoxiously. "Shorty got you walking around with your head down and shit," 

"Do you ever shut the fuck up? Damn," Priest scoffed  as he side eyed J'Ru who was now shamelessly stuffing his face with the stuffed chicken breast and rice Talia stored in the fridge.

"If you embarrassed because your shorty be putting you in time out, just say that. I ain't gone judge you," J'Ru continued to tease Priest causing Kaymen to laugh. He had witnessed first hand Britain going off on Priest. She wasn't necessarily controlling or anything, however she was the first person that he had ever seen Priest not match fire with fire. Just like he himself had found his match with Jadey, Priest had found his match with Britain. 

Instead of responding to J'Ru's infantile ways, Priest simply shot him the middle finger before going off to get dressed. 

Priest put on the tailored suit with ease, being sure to accessorize the navy blue color of the suit with his platinum, diamond drenched watch and chain. He stood in the mirror, eying himself. Like any other time he was about to face a mass of cameras and be front and center of it all, Priest prepped himself. His rugged yet tender hands smoothed down the steamed material of his suit as he let out a breath. "Priest Kanaz Justice," He reminds himself.

Reciting a quick and routine prayer, Priest waded out of his bedroom to meet J'Ru and Kaymen in the living room. Upon his arrival into the living room, Kaymen and J'Ru ascended from their seats and began making their way towards the elevator so they could make their way down to the parking garage. 

"I can't believe we let this bitch win," J'Ru huffed out, not sufficed with the fact that he was about to stand through an acceptance speech from Leila who truly didn't deserve to be the mayor of the people she failed to look out for. J'Ru didn't think that she needed to be die hard pro black, but for her to be a sista, she was far too disconnected from her roots and it was evident. 

She lacked black representation in everything she did. From her awkward looking Caucasian husband very down to the people she hired alongside of her in City Hall. It was a sea of white folks in there and neither of them gave a fuck about the heart of the community. They all had different plans to gentrify the local block and raise the prices of rent. The nicer things looked to the naked eye the more poverty and struggle they were inflicting on minorities and that just didn't sit right with J'Ru at all. He was trying to be a team player but damn it was hard.  Priest sighed, preparing to hear J'Ru's long spill listing out all the reasons Leila didn't deserve her title. Priest definitely agreed with J'Ru however he had to see the bigger picture. 

Tossing his arm around J'Ru's shoulder, Priest exited the elevator alongside him and Kaymen. "Don't think right now, think the future," He advised J'Ru.  "That's real fucking hard when we about to ruin the future for a lot of folks," J'Ru shakes his head. "C'mon Kay, tell this nigga that this shit was a bad idea," He turned to Kaymen hoping that he would agree with him.

Kaymen shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly. "Too late Ru," He says. "We got way too much riding on today. If we let this moment slip, it'll be hard to get another perfect opportunity. This is only temporary, stop tripping," 

J'Ru scoffed. "Niggas in the hood gone think we coons," He mutters as he climbed into the vehicle that Cyro was waiting for them in. 

Priest smacked his lips. "The hood know how we rocking," Priest shrugged after thanking Cyro for being on point with his timing. "After today, our problems are over," Priest declared as he leaned back in the plush leather seats. 

J'Ru decided to keep his forward and blunt thoughts to himself. He didn't want to seem pessimistic. He figured he's said more than enough over these past couple of days.  "What got you so tight?" Priest asked J'Ru, noticing the scowl on his face. 

J'Ru smacked his lips. On top of the fact that he was about to be on TV supporting a bitch that didn't give a duck about him and his people, his personal life was turning to shut. "Aja came back from Japan," He muttered out with a look of agitation etched on his face.

Both Kaymen and Priest withdrew their eyes from their phones and placed them on him. They were both slightly in shock and their faces showed it all. "Your wife Aja?" Kaymen asked for more clarification. 

J'Ru shot him a cold glare for his stupid question. "What else Aja would I be fucking talking about Kaymen?" He crudely cut his eyes at Kaymen. 

Priest chuckled, finding J'Ru's attitude amusing. "So how exactly are you going to keep her happy?" He asked. 

J'Ru dragged out a heavy sigh. "I have no fucking idea," He lets out in a defeated tone. 

Unlike Priest and Kaymen who were both in typical relationships, J'Ru's relationship with Aja was far more complex and hard to understand. Priest had witnessed the evolution of both J'Ru and Aja since the two had always messed around since high school. J'Ru's senior year right before Aja went to college, he married her. It was a senseless decision but at the time he was just thinking with his heart. Unfortunately, Priest was locked up at the time so he didn't get the chance to talk J'Ru irrational ass out of it. 

Aja was never really the issue. She was a wonderful girl and even better woman. She cared for J'Ru a lot, however their circumstances were just odd. The two could go months without speaking to each other since they were both living two very different lives. She was stationed out in Japan while he continued his life out here in New York. 

The two had agreed in an open relationship which was the logical thing to do since they went so long without contact. The issue was that a while ago, Aja admitted that she no longer wanted an open relationship. J'Ru agreed, however he never followed through. How could he? Aja was stationed all the way in Japan. Their contact was limited due to how long it to them to reach each other. J'Ru truly loved Aja and everything about here, however she couldn't possibly think he could fight the temptation of being deep inside of a woman for so long. 

"So about Taylor—" Priest let out in a questioning manner which caused J'Ru to cut his eyes at him. 

Taylor had made herself available to J'Ru during his recovery from his surgery. He appreciated Taylor for being the woman he needed during such a low time of his life while Aja simply couldn't. Long distance was troubling and with the extra restrictions of Aja being in the army, it was far more troubling than any normal long distance relationship. 

J'Ru leaned back in his seat. "She'll get it," He shrugged. "Aja comes first," 

Kaymen chuckled from beside Priest as he shook his head. "This nigga made a vow before God and talking about she come first like she ever had the chance to come second," Kaymen shames J'Ru. Kaymen took marriage extremely serious and it showed just by the way he conducted himself with Jadey and his own marriage. He had warned J'Ru several times to stop playing this wicked game between both Aja and Taylor, but he was hard headed. 

"Facts," Priest agreed with Kaymen. "The best thing you could do right now is be real with Aja,"

J'Ru knew that his friends weren't judging him which is why he didn't grow offended. They were right and now he has the obligation of making everything right with the use of their advice. "It's her first time back since she got stationed in Japan. She's happy to be home, I can't just ruin shit like that," J'Ru sighs deeply. 

"You rather spend this month she's here lying to her or being real?" Priest rose a brow at J'Ru.  J'Ru pursed his lips. It was a lot to think over. It didn't make it any better that Aja was at his brownstone waiting for him to return.

"I'll tell her tonight,"  Kaymen and Priest exchanged glances at each other as they both shook their heads no.

"Not tonight, she's gonna be worried about you after this. Tell her tomorrow, less emotions all over the place," Kaymen advised J'Ru. 

"Bet," J'Ru agreed. 

Eventually Cyro halted the car at the side of the City Hall building. Civilians gathered before the building in masses awaiting for Leila to take the podium and say her acceptance speech. Priest, Kaymen and J'Ru piled out of the dark tinted SUV and into the windy weather. Despite it being 4 PM in the afternoon, the sun didn't make much of an appearance from the sky. 

With J'Ru and Kaymen striding behind him, Priest made his way towards the side entrance of the building. Before they entered the building, Priest extracted a phone from the pocket of his classic grey Dior overcoat. He turned the burner cell on, sending a text to the only number programmed into the device.

  —Arrived

Once the text was delivered, Priest turned to face Kaymen who was awaiting him with this hand out. Swiftly, Kaymen extracted the SIM card from the device, carelessly tossing it on the ground and stepping on it. The tiny SIM card dismembered into smaller pieces unable to be used again. Kaymen pulled the silk handkerchief from the inner breast pocket of his suit discarding any traces of he and Priest's finger prints. 

Wrapping the device in the silk handkerchief Kaymen turned around to face Kaymen. "We'll be back here to meet you when it's done. Switch cars and be ready," Kaymen advised Cyro who simply nodded his head in clear understanding. 

The men and Cyro went separate ways. They entering the City Hall building and Cyro heading off to fulfill their orders.

Upon entrance of the City Hall building, Kaymen and Pries both awaited for J'Ru to retrieve the leather duffle bag where he had stashed it. The three men chuckled as J'Ru began pulling the duffle bag from a nearby air vent. "Hidden in plain fucking sight," J'Ru joked as he pulled the zipper of the duffle bag back.

He, Priest and Kaymen surveyed their eyes over the cash that filled the bag, sufficed with the sight of it.  "You counted all this yourself?" Kaymen teased J'Ru as he unzipped the inner pocket inside the duffle bag placing the now clean phone inside. 

J'Ru laughed. "Yeah with the help of your mother bitch,"He retorted to Kaymen which caused Priest to laugh. 

"You niggas are hell," Priest shakes his head still in laughter. 

"Mention my mother again and I'm fucking you up," Kaymen warned J'Ru as he neatly adjusted the handkerchief back into the inner pocket of his suit.  J'Ru waved Kaymen off. "I'll meet you niggas out there," He tells Kaymen and Priest as he took the exit out with the duffle bag in hand. 

Once the door shut behind J'Ru, Priest and Kaymen exalted out heavy breaths.  "This shit better work," Priest says before continuing to stride towards the stairs so they could get to the main floor of the building. Navigating through the building went with ease for the two men since Priest was a very familiar face. Leila returning for another term of power as the mayor she gave everyone strict orders to treat Priest no different than how they use to treat him while he was in an alliance with Mayor Cunnings. 

Leila's chambers were closed off from everyone without approval from her. Kaymen and Priest stood before the guard awaiting entrance through the door. Upon recognizing who they were, the guard stepped aside allowing the two men to enter Leila's chambers. 

The room was swarmed with different members of Leila's campaign as they prepped her for her big speech. Priest scanned his dark orbs around the room deeming everyone who was running around as if they were so busy as useless. Truth be told he and the guys work is what brought Leila to power. His money fueled her sunken campaign bringing it back to stable waters while Kaymen worked day and night to make sure that charitable work was being done in the community on Leila's behalf. She was so out of touch not realizing that the minorities are who she needed the most. 

Priest waded his way towards Leila who was rereading her speech for the third time today. Of course she didn't go through the labor of writing it herself so she was trying hard to make it seem as though it had come straight from her heart. "Mayor Leila Jenkins," Priest smirked as he applauded her.  Leila's attention averted from the well written speech to Priest who now stood before her with a smug smirk on his face. "I'm impressed," Priest nods in a sufficed manner. "I honestly didn't think you could pull this off," He admits. 

Leila cleared her throat as she smoothed her hand down the front of her pant suit. "Well I did," She stated confidently.

"With our help of course," Priest gestured between he and Kaymen. "None of this would be possible without us," He shrugged his shoulders. 

Leila cleared her throat shifting her weight from one side to the other. "Now Priest, it was a team effort," 

Priest scoffed as he waved her off. "My $40,000 check says otherwise," He states causing Kaymen to chuckle. "But we're not here to take all the credit Mayor," 

Leila folds her arms across her chest in a defensive manner. Whenever Priest and Kaymen were in her presence it felt as if the Grim Reaper himself came to visit her. They knew how to kick her off of her high and bring her back into the reality that she wouldn't have been able to pull this grande scheme off without them. "Then what are you here for?" She asked. 

Kaymen smirks. "To celebrate. All our hard work has paid off. Now we enjoy the fruits of our labor," 

"Mayor Jenkins, you go on in 5," The door cracked open as Leila's assistant warned her of her time.  Leila let out a deep breath as she nodded her head.

"Show time Leila, don't fuck this up," Priest taunted her as he held the door open for her to exit.  Leila cut her eyes at him before wading out the door. The stampede of useless campaign workers followed behind her. Priest and Kaymen both lingered behind Leila and her entourage. As they were making their way towards the front steps of City Hall, J'Ru managed to catch up to them. He shot Priest and Kaymen a curt nod indicating that the deed was done. 

One after the other, they exited the heavy doors of City Hall gathering on the top of the steps

You are reading the story above: TeenFic.Net