"There's more where that came from, that's all I'm sayin'. It's me and you and we makin' arrangements''

- stavia , jhené aiko & swae lee

My violent nights

in which.. kasani falls in love
with her brother bestfriend..

        in which.. kevin find interest
in jake's little sister

☆

kasani

📍: KASANI ROOM

kevin and kasani were currently in kasani's room while papa and jake was in his room playing video games, the silence weighing heavy on them.

kevin was on the floor, his back pressed against the wall, his mind still racing from what they'd just witnessed.

kasani sat on her bed, staring at the floor, her hands trembling slightly. both of them were shaken, but for kasani, it cut deeper since she knew coogie.

"yo, i can't believe that just happened," kevin muttered, breaking the tense quiet. "i've never seen a dead body before..."

kasani didn't respond at first, her breath unsteady. finally, she whispered, "that was coogie."

kevin looked up at her, confusion on his face. "you knew him?"

kasani nodded slowly. "yeah... i did. he was cool, helped me out a couple times. he didn't deserve that ."

kevin shook his head, running a hand over his face. "yo, i didn't even know what they were arguing about. they keep saying something about a chain."

"damn," kasani said, her voice hollow. "but whatever it was, it wasn't worth killin' someone over. coogie wasn't even like that."

kevin leaned forward, his elbows resting on his knees. "this city's wild, yo. one minute we walkin' home, next minute we watchin' somebody get shot. i didn't sign up for all this."

kasani's eyes stayed on the floor, her voice barely audible. "that's how it is here. even when you try to stay out of it, it finds you."

kevin glanced at her, noticing the way she was holding herself together, barely. "you straight?"

kasani let out a shaky breath, finally lifting her head to meet his eyes. "i don't know. i saw someone i knew die right in front of me. it's like... i can't even feel nothin' right now."

"me neither," kevin admitted, his voice low. "i'm shook, but i don't even know what to do about it. we can't tell nobody, right?"

kasani shook her head, blinking back the tears threatening to fall. "nah, we can't say nothin'. we don't even know who that dude was, and you know the cops ain't gon' help. we gotta act like we didn't see it."

kevin sighed deeply, leaning his head back against the wall. "i'm tryna, but that's hard, for real."

kasani nodded, her voice barely a whisper. "i know. but it's what we gotta do. coogie's gone and there's nothin' we can do to bring him back."

the room fell into an uneasy silence again, both of them trying to process the trauma of what they had just lived through. for kasani, the weight of losing someone she knew made it even harder to bear.

detective cruz
detective cruz stepped under the yellow tape, his eyes scanning the chaotic scene in front of him. cops were already talking to witnesses, and the coroner's van was parked a few feet away. but cruz's focus was on one thing: the body lying on the pavement. as he made his way closer, ducking under the tape, his heart sank when he saw who it was.

coogie..

the kid was lifeless, his body sprawled out, blood staining his shirt. cruz swallowed hard, feeling a knot tighten in his chest.

he hadn't expected it to go this far. sure, he'd told ronnie that coogie might've been involved in jason's death, but he never thought ronnie would actually... do this.

as he crouched down, looking at coogie's face, a wave of regret hit him hard. he had been wrong. this wasn't how it was supposed to go down. cruz had known ronnie was struggling after jason's murder, and maybe he shouldn't have pushed him the way he did.

maybe he should've let things be, let the streets handle it, or at least kept ronnie away from the mess. but now, a kid was dead. and for what? a misunderstanding?

"shit," cruz muttered under his breath, standing up and running a hand over his face. this wasn't just another case now—this was his fault.

he looked around, trying to steady himself. he could feel eyes on him, but he ignored them. guilt churned in his gut, mixing with frustration. coogie didn't deserve this. cruz knew the kid had his troubles, but he wasn't a killer. and now, because of a few words, ronnie had acted on impulse, pulled that trigger, and ended coogie's life.

cruz stared at the body, the weight of his decision pressing down on him. he had thought he was helping ronnie, giving him closure, but all he did was push him to do something that couldn't be undone. and now, he'd have to live with the knowledge that he'd set it all in motion.

the coroner zipped up the body bag, and cruz turned away, unable to watch any longer. his stomach twisted with guilt, and for the first time in a long while, he didn't feel like a cop. he felt like a man who'd made a huge mistake.

"ronnie, what the hell did you do?" he whispered to himself, already knowing the answer. but more importantly, he knew who had really pushed him over the edge.

brandon
brandon was just finishing up his shift, feeling the fatigue of a long day settling in. as he grabbed his coat and headed for the door, his phone buzzed in his pocket. glancing at the screen, he saw his mom's name pop up. he picked up, but as soon as he heard her voice, his heart sank.

"brandon..." her voice was shaky, choked with emotion.

"ma? what's wrong?" he asked, instantly on edge.

"it's coogie," she managed, her voice breaking. "he's... something happened."

brandon's mind went blank. "wait, what? what happened to coogie?"

"they... they found him. it's bad, brandon. they want us to come to the hospital."

he barely processed her words before another call came through—this time from detective cruz. he hesitated, then switched lines.

"cruz? what's going on?" his voice was sharp, more from fear than anything else.

"brandon," cruz said, his tone somber. "i need you to come down to the hospital. it's about coogie."

brandon swallowed, feeling his hands shake. "i already know. i'm heading over there with my mom now."

hanging up, he took a deep breath to steady himself, then called his mom back. "ma, i'm coming to get you. we'll go together."

minutes later, brandon pulled up to his mom's house. she was waiting on the porch, visibly shaken. he got out, wrapping his arm around her as they made their way to the car. the drive was silent, both of them lost in their thoughts, their emotions tangled up in grief and dread.

when they arrived at the hospital, detective cruz was there waiting, a serious expression on his face as he approached them.

"mrs. johnson, brandon," cruz started, his voice low and respectful. "i'm so sorry. we'll do everything we can to find out what happened."

brandon's mom looked up, her eyes filled with a mix of anger and despair. "i just want to know why... why my baby?"

"we're working on it," cruz assured her. "right now, we're gathering statements from anyone who was around, trying to piece together the details."

brandon's hands clenched into fists, his voice tight. "so... what do you know so far? you're telling me someone just shot him, left him there? that's it?"

cruz nodded, keeping his tone even. "that's what we're trying to understand. it's too early to know the full story, but i promise you we're on it. every lead, every witness, we'll track down everyone we can."

brandon's mom held onto his arm, her voice a mix of sorrow and steel. "i don't want empty promises. i want answers."

"and you'll have them," cruz said gently. "i can't take away the pain, but i will get you those answers."

after cruz left, brandon stayed close to his mom as they waited to see coogie. the weight of the moment was almost unbearable, and brandon's mind kept flashing back to memories of his little brother—his laugh, the way he looked up to him, all those moments they shared. he felt a surge of anger, a fierce protectiveness.

"ma, i'm not letting this go," he said quietly, squeezing her hand. "i'll find out what happened to coogie, even if i gotta turn over every stone myself."

she nodded, a tear slipping down her cheek. "he didn't deserve this, brandon... not like this."

they sat there together, holding on to each other, united in grief, yet determined not to let coogie's death go unanswered.

ronnie
ronnie slumped back on the couch, eyes red and glazed as he stared at nothing, the bottle in his hand hanging low.

he couldn't shake the weight pressing down on him, the feeling that no amount of booze could drown out. he'd done it—he'd actually killed coogie. and now, here he was, alone in the silence, except it didn't feel like he was alone at all.

suddenly, he felt a chill, and when he looked up, there was coogie, standing in front of him, staring with that same look from that day—wide-eyed and confused.

"why'd you do it, ronnie?" coogie's voice echoed through the room, soft but piercing.

ronnie's grip on the bottle tightened, and he shifted uncomfortably. "you had jason's chain, coogie," he said, his voice shaky. "that chain... it was supposed to mean somethin'. i thought you were mockin' him, mockin' me."

coogie shook his head, sadness etched into his expression. "it wasn't like that, man. i wasn't tryin' to mess with you or jason. i just... i didn't know." he paused, the weight of his words settling in. "you didn't even give me a chance to explain."

ronnie's chest tightened. "i thought... i thought i was protectin' my boy's memory. but now i don't even know why i did it. all i got is this emptiness."

coogie stepped closer, his gaze unwavering. "you let your anger make the choice for you. you didn't care to hear the truth, you just... acted."

ronnie's voice dropped to a whisper, regret seeping into every word. "i know, coogie. i know. but it's too late for sorry."

the room was silent, and coogie's form began to fade, but his voice lingered, cutting through the quiet. "you'll carry this, ronnie. you made that choice, and now you gotta live with it."

- i actually cried while writing this , smh this so sad bro they killed coogie before we even knew more about him

- thoughtss?