Hood Rich: The rise and fall of one of Brooklyn's Finest

by Corie Allen

  Although we weren’t bound by blood, I had been a part of the family for as long as I could remember. When my foster mom took me in, PJ treated me as if I was his flesh and blood.

  PJ extended his hand to me.

  “What up little bro? I heard you been doing big things.”

  I was surprised to hear those words come out of PJ’s mouth.

  “I’m aight my nigga, I just been doing my thing, nothing major.”

  PJ smiled and nudged me on the shoulder

  “Rich, you know the streets aint only watching but they talking now. The streets don’t keep secrets. You the only man standing on Wilson Avenue, and you holding it down. Manny, Wiz, and Zeke all dead. The block chirping. Y'all even took the customers from Central Avenue. Fats dead. It’s funny man… When you start hustling?

  Never mind, I saw you on the news last year, you know that situation was crazy. I’m glad you cool though. Damn my little brother turned into a full grown hustler overnight. Hows mom doing?” “She cool.” I responded.

  “So I heard you got them youngins putting in some work? Remember Rich, them youngins… riders or not. It’s only a matter of time before some real niggas start coming at you. You gotta start surrounding yourself around a few real get money O.G. Niggas that’s gone ride wit you, smell me?”

  Seeing my brother was uplifting. It felt good just to hear him talk. I told him everything from the time Manny handed me the gun until today.

  PJ gave me plenty of good advice and put me on to a few niggas in the street. One of them niggas was Gusto, who ran Tompkins projects. PJ set it up for us to meet the next day. Gusto was cool as shit. He was PJ’s old connect. He was a big time angel dust, weed, and hash dealer. Since we didn’t have any of that on the ave, PJ thought it would be perfect for me to hook up with Gusto.

  First Gusto had plenty guns, and plenty experience. Second because he didn’t deal coke, our interest would not conflict. Third, I would have a O.G. That’s well respected as a partner. Me and Gusto got along well. It was on and popping. His girlfriend hooked me up with some fake pay stubs so I could cop a brand new Range Rover. I put twenty-six inch floaters on it. Shakita took me shopping for clothes as promised. I laced Akira and Jocelyn too.

  I fell back from the neighborhood joints like the Hot Bar as per PJ’s advice. I partied with Gusto at a few Spanish spots uptown. I had to break my routine now that I was getting attention in the hood. Mostly because of my new Range Rover. I only had it for a week and it seemed like everywhere I went, so much pussy was being thrown at me. I had to pick and choose who I would or would not dick down. Wilson Avenue was the talk of the city. I had the rawest coke. Throw in the meanest goons, a thorough O.G., wet, weed, and hash. It was a rap. Those same goons were molding all my youngins from the Ave. Niggas and bitches knew who I was and knew I was getting at a dollar. Because Gusto was my partner, I received a lot of respect from other O.G.s in the game. They also had love for Manny, the person whose void I was filling. It was all love.

  I was still watching my body and those around me. We quickly checked anyone who attempted to bring heat to the area. We kept our strip nonviolent to keep the cops away.

  Dave and Xavier kept the block pumping twenty-four seven. Jocelyn was another story. Lately she started falling back. Usually she was busy up in every other niggas face that was willing to give her some change to do something strange. She also stopped smoking weed and drinking. It happened all of a sudden one day, with no warning. I guess she was just tired of that life. Who knows.

  Akira

  My life was finally on track. Everything I needed, wanted, and ever dreamed of was in place. I finally had a family and I was complete. Rich was doing what he does best: getting money, and keeping me happy. I was confident that Rich loved me and that no bitch could ever take my place. I was still worried though. Gusto, Rich’s new partner had been around for only a week. The very first day he came around, Rich bought a brand new Range Rover. Since then all these bitches been coming at Rich like never before. Gusto was in the way I thought, taking Rich to those Spanish clubs. I was ready to snap on him last night. My mom just sat me down and explained to me how I would just be playing myself. She told me that if I played my part, Rich might fuck another bitch, but his heart would be with me. I wasn’t trying to hear that shit. She told me that every man needs four basic things: good food, good sex, good companionship, and a little bit of space to do him. She told me I would never be able to have one hundred percent of a man. Akira Hood Rich

  Just a piece, a nice big piece. She said to make sure that my piece of him is the part that really counts… his heart. I had that, and I was happy.

  Rich

  Everywhere I went with Gusto, we received VIP treatment. Friday night we rolled out Long Island to check out the Iguana. This was one of those high siddity clubs that played all kinds of music from hip-hop to heavy metal. No thugs or hood rats. Everyone was dressed fresh to death. Fly shoes, jewelry, hats, and accessories. The parking lot was full of Benzes, Beamers, and Bentleys.

  I followed Gusto as he walked past the line and gave the doorman dap. He slid security a few twenties and we walked in. At the bar I attempted to order a smooth bitch.

  “What’s that?” The bartender responded as if I was talking about Chinese arithmetic.

  “Never mind, just give me a double of Grey Goose with a shot of Sloe Gin.”

  Damn I missed the hood, I thought. Gusto sat next to me and ordered a Rum and Coke. Some Asian chick came over and sat next to me. I looked her up and down, taking note of all the hair honey had hanging down her back. She was built nice. Slim with a little bit of titties, ass, and hips. Her face made the body look even better. I locked eyes with her.

  “Hey ma’, what you drinking?”

  “Double shot of Patron, no ice.” She responded. I beckoned for the bartender to get shorty her drink. “So what’s your name?” I asked her.

  “Lisa… what’s yours?” she asked.

  “Rich… what’s good wit you. Why you at the club by yourself?”

  “The same reason why you left your girl or your baby mom at home… so you can party!”

  “Naw ma… you got me confused, I just came through wit my man to have a few drinks, nothing major.” “Well, I came to party.” She responded.

  “That’s whats up.”

  “So is we gone sit here and drink and talk all night?” “I’m not really the dancing type ma’. I’m more of the smoke a Dutch and fall back type nigga, you smell me?”

  I gave her a good looking over.

  “Let me guess… you must be one of those Brooklyn niggas right… figures.”

  “Damn ma… it’s like that?”

  “Yeah, y'all Brooklyn niggas is real disrespectful.” “Naw, not me, I’m different, I chill regular. Where you from?”

  I thought to myself, she was a little aggressive to be Asian. I heard they was mad submissive.

  “I’m from Chinatown.” She responded.

  “Maybe you can teach me Chinese.” I asked

  “I don’t speak Chinese.”

  “How you Chinese and don’t speak it.”

  “I’m not Chinese.” She lashed at me.

  “So why you live in Chinatown?”

  “So why you live in Brooklyn?”

  “Ha Ha you funny, so what are you?”

  “I’m Thai.” She said.

  “Well, you can teach me that then, right?”

  “So what language you gone teach me?” She asked as she finished her drink.

  “I only know english so I guess I can teach you body language.”

  Lisa laughed, the corny lines always work I thought to myself. I pulled out my Blackberry, keyed in her name and passed it to her. She passed it back after entering her number. Gusto was talking to some spanish chick. He tapped me on my shoulder.

  “Yo… I’m bout to grab a champagne room, what you waiting on sun, you already got shorty bagged. Don’t waste your time on small talk, she a freak. She came
here by herself B. I’m telling you. Ask her if she wanna go upstairs after two more drinks.”

  It took me two-seconds to consider what Gusto was saying. I turned back to Lisa.

  “Are you ready for your first lesson?”

  “In what?”

  “Popping bottles.”

  I ordered a bottle of Moët.

  “Y'all Brooklyn niggas swear y'all ball. What part of Brooklyn you from?”

  “Bushwick… Wilson Avenue.” I replied

  “Mmmm… hmmm, so you a hustler?”

  “I’ll tell you when we get upstairs in that private room.”

  “Hey are you trying to get me drunk?”

  “Yeah… I’m trying to get us drunk… didn’t you come here to party?”

  “Yeah.” She said as I grabbed the bucket with Moët and glasses and we headed up to a champagne room. The champagne room was plush. It had a love seat facing a one way mirror overlooking the dance floor. We could see out, but the only thing everyone else could see was their reflections. The couch was soft and the light was dim.

  Lisa was already tipsy before we got upstairs. The Moët took her over the edge. I started out nibbling on her neck. I reached up her short jean skirt and found my way to her wet box. In less that a minute I had her exactly where I wanted her. I pulled her panties off and she turned around and straddled me. Lisa rode me to 112‘s Peaches and Cream until I came inside of her. It only took a few minutes as tight, wet, and warm as she was. She got on her knees and sucked me off until I was hard again. This time I bent her over the love seat and punished her ass to Cam’ron’s Suck it or not. After busting that second nut I was feeling sober again. We drank some more Moët before I looked down to the dance floor and saw Gusto back at the bar. He smiled showing his platinum and diamond fronts when I came back to the bar.

  “Sun, I know you popped!” Gusto blurted.

  “Of course my nigga.” I said, disregarding the fact that Lisa was next to me.

  “See y'all Brooklyn niggas is some ignorant motherfuckers.” Lisa spat.

  “Come on, we out.” Gusto said and we exited. Just as we left the Iguana my Blackberry started ringing. It was Akira.

  “Hello.”

  “Hey baby.”

  “What up?”

  “Your wifey miss you, that’s what up. What time you coming home?”

  “I’m on my way now, I’m stopping at the Hot Bar, you want something?”

  “No, I just want my husband to hold me while I go to sleep.”

  “Aight baby, I got you. Give me like fifteen minutes I’m on the Long Island Expressway.”

  Traffic was crazy for it to be two in the morning. There was an accident so you know that slowed everything up. I jumped off the e-way and took the streets thanks to the navigation in my Range. Akira was sitting on the stoop with Jocelyn when I pulled up.

  “Hey Baby.”

  Akira

  “Aint no what’s up baby, nigga I talked to you forty minutes ago and you said you would be home in fifteen minutes. Every time you go somewhere with Gusto it’s some bullshit.”

  Rich smiled and kissed me on the cheek.

  “Baby it was an accident on the Long Island Expressway, I had to take the streets, what do you want me to do.”

  I wanted to, but, I couldn’t stay mad at Rich. I passed him the Dutch and he sat down between me and Jocelyn.

  “You hungry?” I asked him.

  “Naw, I’m tired though.”

  After a few puffs, Rich got up and went in the house. He headed upstairs straight to the shower. I looked at Jocelyn and passed her the Dutch, she declined it. “You not smoking? Never mind, anyway, you think Rich fucking around on me?

  Jocelyn shrugged her shoulders.

  “Rich aint going nowhere girl.”

  “I don’t know, but every time he come home, he getting right in the shower. I’m not feeling that. This nigga put a lock code on his phone.”

  Jocelyn laughed.

  “Stop worrying.” She said.

  I got off the stoop and went in the house. Rich was in the bed watching The Wire. I took my clothes off and got in the bed with him.

  “I love you Rich.”

  “I love you too.” He replied.

  I climbed on top of him and pulled at the hole in his boxers. I slid him inside of me so I could ride him. Rich turned me over and hit it from the back. I couldn’t get into it because I smelled a funny odor. “Hold up, stop baby.” I said as I slid my finger down inside myself.

  I pulled my finger back up and I could see I had a greenish yellow discharge. The smell was coming from inside me. Tears poured down my face. “What the fuck… Rich you burnt me.”

  “Bitch, I aint burn you, you burnt me.”

  Rich got up and went to the bathroom. I wanted to spaz out, but I kept quiet. I didn’t want him to get mad and leave. I knew I didn’t burn him cause I hadn’t been having sex with anyone else since he came home. When Rich came back in the room, he went on.

  “Probably from one of those crunchy ass niggas at Club Wet.”

  “Rich I been to the clinic twice since then, you the one that went with us. Remember, it was me, you, and Jocelyn.”

  “Well, you know that shit don’t always pop up right away all the time.”

  I wasn’t stupid. I knew better but I kept my mouth shut. We all went to the clinic again. Jocelyn was clean surprisingly. I had Gonorrhea, but Rich had Gonorrhea and Chlamydia. The doctor treated me for both though cause the Chlamydia would surely show up soon enough. There was no question in my mind… Rich was cheating. It was weird how the nurses in the clinic knew Jocelyn on first name basis. I guess she’s been there more than us.

  Anyhow I was mad at Rich. I didn’t fuck him for three weeks. It would have been for longer if it wasn’t for him waking me up in the middle of the night by eating me out. I gave in and let him back in. I couldn’t help it. I love Rich and didn’t want him to have to get his needs met by another bitch.

  Rich

  With business going well I turned my attention to Akira. We just made up. She was mad at me for the past three weeks for giving her Gonorrhea and Chlamydia. I blamed it on her and those dirty ass Club Wet niggas, but deep down in my heart, I knew it was me. Since I been hanging around Gusto I been fucking so many broads I lost count. Every other night we would hit a different spot. I would get home two or three in the morning some nights.

  I wanted to make it up to Akira. I wanted to make her feel special given the fact that I had her on the back burner for quite some time. I wanted to take her out for her birthday. Too bad Shakita had already made plans to take her to Atlantic City. It would just be Shakita, Akira, and Jocelyn.

  I had no choice but to let that go, because they were trying to bond. Shakita was trying extra hard to make up for those lost years. I couldn’t blame her. I would just have to wait until the next day to take her out.

  Akira

  It was September 1st, 2005, my birthday. I had just turned seventeen. My mom surprised me with a card. I opened it up and it was New Jersey Transit bus tickets! I thought to myself… bus tickets though? When I finished looking over the tickets I realized they were to Atlantic City. I was ecstatic.

  Jocelyn bought me a candies perfume set. It was perfect. Rich told me I had to wait until the next day to get my big birthday surprise, although he did give me a card with seventeen hundred dollar bills inside. As we approached Atlantic City, there were huge billboards advertising everything from Teena-Marie live in concert to the Price is Right live taping. The sky was beautiful. It was early in the afternoon. We checked in our suite at the top of Caesar’s, then got into our bikinis and hit the beach. It was my first time at the beach. I had a ball. Jocelyn was scared to go in the water but we still had fun.

  After the beach, we ate at the buffet inside of Caesar’s. The food was banging, I ate mostly seafood. We went to the day spa and got our manicures, pedicures, and facials. I felt like a queen. Next was the massage parlor. I received a massage fr
om a Russian guy whose name I could not pronounce. After an evening of pampering we went back to the suite to get dressed. We were all shitty sharp.

  Jocelyn and I were armed with fake identification cards to get into the forty-forty club. Once inside,we had a ball. Amazingly Jocelyn was laid back. Any other time she would be up on some niggas about a dollar. She wasn’t drinking either.

  That didn’t stop me, or my mom. We both shook our asses like it was going out of style. This was the best birthday I’d had in my life. One to remember. I wished Rich was there to celebrate and share the moment with me. We stepped out of the club around three a.m.

  Atlantic and Pacific Avenues were busy with nightlife. There was enough bright lights to deceive your internal perception of time.

  We were all tired and after hitting the boardwalk to take in some fresh air, we were about to go back to the suite. My mom had a headache so we were on a detour to the convenience store on Atlantic Avenue to get some Advil. Jocelyn was holding her mouth. I turned to see if she was okay.

  “You good?” I asked her.

  “Yeah I’m good.” She replied before she threw up right in front of the store.

  “You okay?” My mom asked Jocelyn.

  “Yeah… I think…”

  Jocelyn threw up again, this time getting it on her shoes. My mom went into the store and got her Advil and some napkins and bottled water.

  “Are you done?” I asked Jocelyn.

  “Yeah, I’m okay, it’s my stomach, I’m…”

  A car screeched to a halt almost jumping the curb. Two niggas got out. My mom and Jocelyn both dropped the paper towel, water, and Advil. I screamed.

  Jocelyn

  “Get the fuck in the car… bitch… get in the car. If you run I’m gone shoot you… get in the car… you think I’m playing… get…”