Family Over Everything

(Unknown POV)

Watching my older brother play, I couldn't help but admire him, how good he is. I wish I could be like him honestly, he always seems to have things under control. I know going pro is his dream, and I just hope he gets there honestly.

(POV switch)

"Hey E! Come over here! And bring a water!" I call out to my little brother. Just got done with my street ball game, and I know he loves the sport just as much as me, so might as well teach him how to get better. After all, if I really do join, might not even graduate, but we need the money, now, he can handle the future.

"Sure!"He says and tucks the ball he was dribbling with on the bench under his arm and comes over with a water bottle in his hand. Handing it to me I open it and chug it and throw it to the side.

"Alright. Now your pretty decent at dribbling, but that's about it, and I know you wanna practice your three shot, but right now just practice the basics. Now give me 3 shots at the 5 spots, and make sure the free throws are both in a row, Ima be watching you, and each free throw shot you miss is another suicide." I finish, and seeing the horror on his face was hilarious, cause dribbling is all he really got going for him, but this is to help him, all of this is.

(Later)

Looking at the clock, it said 7:10, it's already dark outside, for a while now really since it's fall, but I've made my choice. To help and protect May and my little brother, I'll do whatever it takes. Blood is thicker than most things after all.

Getting out my room, I see Aunt May, seemingly waiting on a chair in the living room.

"Where are you going at this time?" She asked, and rightly so.

"To hang out with some friends, don't worry we ain't leaving the projects, probably just gonna go to the court." I said dismissively and kept walking to the front door, I'm not letting her stop me.

"Listen, Peter, I know it's been hard since Ben passed, but we'll survive." She said, knowing what ima do, by now I'm already half way through the door.

"Don't worry, I'll make sure we do." And I walk out the door fully and close it, but I stand there, really thinking about it. And then when I heard her soft cries, it really made me want to go back in and hug and cry with her, she's basically my mother after all. But to make sure my brother doesn't grow up like I probably will, I walked away from the door, to the stairs and down.

Getting out the building, I see them at the bottom of the stairs, waiting.

"So I take this as your in?" T, the leader and oldest at 22 asked seeing me.

"I'll be able to make money?" I asked back, it's my whole reason why after all.

"If you work hard, then yeah, as much as selling on the block can get you in the end really." He answered, and I took a deep breath and nodded.

And then suddenly I felt two different guys bro hug me on my left and right.

"I knew you would!" Justin, the one on my left exclaimed.

"Facts! Ya was dead doubting our judgment just because he was a gringo!" Brian, the one on my right continued, these guys are my three man team when it comes to balling. Though I'm younger I'm good enough to play with them. They're also the ones who told me to join, knowing the situation I'm in.

"Alright calm down, he still got prove himself, so he not really in yet." T said calming the two guys down.

"So what I gotta do?" I asked, if it isn't killing I'd do it, maybe in the future I'd do it, but not yet, not right now.

"Well as you can see, we live the projects, and sadly there's a lot of competition when it comes to this area, but there's only one main rival that's really a problem." T started explaining, and if I'd know anything from living here for a while now is not ask no dumbass question, or interrupt somebody who you not close with, even then, unless it's some opps.

"Now we've been able to figure out one of they peoples routes and times. Right now one them is gonna be heading back from the bodega, and you gonna rock their shits, with some help. But it'll be you fucking him up, got it?" And seeing it's my queue to talk, I answer.

"Yeah I got it." I say, tryna keep my nervousness under control, after all so many things can happen or go wrong, but I chose this, I have to do this, for him.

"Aight, follow me, the rest of you block off his routes to escape like we talked about." T ordered as he started walking away and I followed, and honestly he's kinda huge compared to me. He clearly ocky, after all he's only wearing a basic black tee and some jeans so it's pretty easy to see his biceps at least. Then let's not even talk about the height between a 12 year old and a man who should be in college.

Following him, we eventually start following behind somebody, who I guess is the unfortunate guy.

"Yo bro! Let me holla at ya real quick!" T called out, and he turns around as I see the face of a teen who's probably fresh in high school, and seeing the despair on his face, was disturbing.

Then he ran, but suddenly Justin and Brian jumped outta nowhere, blocking his path.

"Hey man! Where you headed to?" Justin asked sarcastically, but then the guy pulled out a knife.

"Is that the same one you used to fuck up our boy?" Brian asked menacingly, seems like this shit is personal, but I still follow T as he gets closer behind the guy.

"Oh don't give me that look, the guy you hospitalized? Yeah, this is just our get backs." Brian continued, but the look on his face made it look more personal. By now we were pretty close behind they guy, he still not realizing we were so close, T goes up quickly disarms him, holding him down to the ground putting his arms behind his back.

"Come out boys!" He calls out as everyone from before at the stairs came. They then got him off the floor and were holding him up by his arms. T then comes up to me, blocking my view of the poor kid.

"This is your real chance now to prove if you're in, or out." And he then stepped to the side, giving me full sight of the guy. Seeing he didn't want words but actions, I did exactly what he told me to do earlier, fuck him up.

That was the first time I've ever really seen a guys tooth get knocked out for real, and people start, laughing at it.

That was the first time I felt happy from violence.

I felt good. Is that… sickening?