End Game and Pretty Girl

By Keith Morrison

End Game is a story about two friends who both ended up traveling down separate paths but both found a way to achieve a common goal. Rashan and Deron are exposed to real life situations that adolescents face every day in urban, inner city environments and manage to make it out unscathed. Many never make it out, some live above the influence, and some are just lucky. Sometimes we just need a reason and an opportunity to do better. Neither are guaranteed. Some people can be told right from wrong a

• Language: English
• Publisher: Page Publishing, Inc.
• Release date: Nov 13, 2020
• ISBN: 9781681394534

Book preview

Copyright © 2015 Keith Morrison 

All rights reserved 

First Edition 

PAGE PUBLISHING, INC. 

New York, NY 

First originally published by Page Publishing, Inc. 2015 

ISBN 978-1-68139-452-7 (pbk) 

ISBN 978-1-68139-453-4 (digital) 

Printed in the United States of America 

End Game 

Chapter 1 

The school bell rang; it’s 2:45 p.m. The 1988 summer vacation had officially begun. Seven-year-olds Rashan and Deron were inseparable. They had been best friends since pre-K. At the sound of the bell, they ran out of PS no. 22 school as if it was on fire. They were anxious to get home. Rashan’s parents had promised him a new video game system would be waiting in his bedroom when he’d get home from school on the last day of the school year. Rashan and Deron ran two blocks nonstop to Lafayette Gardens, the housing complex they resided in. They made a quick stop at Deron’s apartment. Deron’s knew if he didn’t ask his mother’s permission to go to Rashan’s apartment, she would be looking for him, and he would get disciplined. 

Deron:       Mom, can I please go to Rashan’s house? He has the new Super Nintendo game. I have to play it or I’m gonna die. 

Deron’s mom:   If it’s okay with Rashan’s mom, I don’t mind. Be home by six o’clock for dinner. 

Deron:         Okay, Mom. I love you. See you later. 

They ran across the housing complex from Woodward Street to Barbara Place where Rashan’s family lives. As promised, the new video game system was lying on Rashan’s bed. He always got what he wanted. He was the only child and a spoiled brat. His parents didn’t mind because he was a straight A student. Rashan was fortunate to have both his biological parents still together and employed. That was rare in the projects. They were a lot of single parent, stepparent, boyfriend, half-sibling, and multiple sibling households. Some of the children were being raised by aunts or grandparents because DYFS found the biological parents unfit. Rashan was definitely lucky. 

Rashan and Deron played video games for about two and a half hours without a bathroom break, water break, or even blinking their eyes. 

Deron:            Hey, Rashan? 

Rashan:           You ready to give up yet, punk? 

Deron:             I gotta get home before my mom comes looking for me. She wants me home by six. 

Rashan:           Your mom is so mean. See you tomorrow, Deron. 

Deron was very well mannered and obedient. His mom, Ruby, was strict. Deron didn’t get the best grades in school, but he was very helpful to his mom and younger siblings. Deron was the man of the house. His father was killed in the same housing complex they still resided in. Deron’s mom would have loved to move far away from that place, but welfare didn’t cut checks big enough for that. Deron’s father, Charles, was killed during a robbery attempt. He sold heroin and cocaine and was known to carry large sums of money on him. He loved gold, jewelry, and nice cars. When Charles was alive, Deron’s mom never wanted for anything. Once he was gone, the struggle began. She never had to work before, and now she was unemployed with three children and no help. Deron was four years old when his father was killed. Deron vaguely remembered his dad. Deron’s mom constantly reminded him of the dangers of using and dealing drugs. Deron vowed to never use or deal drugs. 

The summer was very hot. During the day, the housing authority turned on the sprinklers located in the heart of the complex. All of the small children, teens, and even the adults enjoyed the cold water showering down on them. Beware! When the sprinklers are on. If you don’t want to get wet, take another route. Walk all the way around the outside of the projects. The older kids filled up buckets with water and would throw water on any and everyone who had the heart or was foolish enough to walk by. They would pick up the pretty girls and carry them into the water. There would sometimes be fights because people who didn’t want to get wet got angry. They didn’t care if you were on your way to work, church, court, heaven, or hell. If you walked by, you wanted to get wet. From babies to old ladies you got wet. Rashan and Deron didn’t mind because they wanted to get wet. They hated when fights broke out because the manager of the site would turn off the sprinklers. 

The summertime to Rashan and Deron meant the free lunch and snack program would start. The children and teens would religiously attend the lunch and snack program in the community center. Lunch was served at noon and snack at three o’clock. The kids scheduled their day around the lunch and snack program. Whatever they were doing would come to a screeching halt when it was time for lunch and snack. They were at the community center. There were actually different cliques in the PJs. Your clique depended on what side you lived on. Rashan was more outspoken where Deron was a bit shy. Rashan befriended many of the other kids from all around the complex. Deron stayed to himself. Some of the other kids would use foul language and were always up to mischief and fighting. This fascinated Rashan, but Deron didn’t want any part of it. 

Chapter 2 

The now thirteen-year-old Rashan and Deron had both become quite popular in school and around the neighborhood. Deron was still quiet and reserved but had turned out to be an amazing athlete. Deron was better than all his peers at baseball, basketball, and football. Whenever they were choosing teams, Deron was always the first pick. Deron was accepted and never had any problems in the neighborhood because he was known as an athlete. He kept to himself and didn’t get into any trouble. Deron was offered a scholarship to play high school football at Saint Peter’s Prep, one of the most prestigious football programs in the area. His mom was very proud of him. Deron always thanked Mr. Nile for teaching him everything he knew about sports. Nile was like a father to all of the kids in Lafayette. He took time out of his life and used his own money to buy equipment. He taught them all the fundamental of sports and teamwork. They even named a street after Nile. He definitely earned it. 

Rashan’s popularity was with the females. He always got