Alongside Carmelo Anthony, they dominated the Catholic league. But when Melo left to play in Virginia, Pimp decided to get money like his brother.
Swervo was upset and wouldn’t put Pimp on. So he went out on his own and started hustling in Edmonson Village with some homeboys. After he got knocked off a few times, though, Swervo agreed to take him under his wing. He felt like Pimp was going to do it anyway, so he might as well keep an eye on him and make him do it right.
Swervo used to always talk about Pimp making it to the NBA. That was his dream. Too bad that shit never came true.
“What’s up fellas?” Pimp shook both of their hands.
“What’s up?” they replied.
“How shit looking up the village?” Cho asked.
“Lovely. I was just making my rounds,” Pimp said as he took a seat. “I need to drop some T’s up Garrison though. Some niggas came out with something alright. It ain’t fuckin’ with our shit, but I wanna show the fiends some love and make them forget about that other shit.”
“Cool. I’ll call Terrell and let him know to make you up some,” Radi said. “How many you tryin’ to give out?”
“Like 200.”
“That’s cool.”
“Alright, that’s a bet.” He looked at Cho. “What’s up with the bitches, Cho?”
“You got ‘em, you tell me,” Cho smiled. Pimp reminded him so much of Swervo. They looked and acted so much alike, he thought. Swervo used to ask him the same question. “They probably down . . .” Before Cho could finish his statement, his phone vibrated. He glanced at the ID to see who it was, then answered.
“Woeday… Oh yeah?... Alright, let me know if you see them niggas again…Alright…later.”
Damn, Cho thought. Just as he was thinking about Swervo, Leroy called to tell him that he was in in Owings Mills Mall and saw the dudes who killed his nigga. Cho didn’t want to repeat it because he knew how Pimp would react. Leroy was with his family so he couldn't do shit. By the time they got to the mall from downtown, them niggas would be long gone anyway. There was no need to fuck up niggas’ moods for nothing. He just sighed.
Radi saw the expression on his face. “Who was that?” he asked.
“Oh, ain’t nuttin’. That was Leroy.”
“Is everything cool?” Pimp asked.
“Yeah, everything is everything. When you wanna drop?” Cho asked, trying to take the focus off of himself.
“Tomorrow. That way we’ll be good for the weekend.”
“I feel you. I’ma call Terrell.”
Terrell was their table man. It was his job to mix the dope for them. They dealt with so much heroin every day that they didn’t have time to scramble it themselves. Terrell stayed at the table every day, so he had it to a science.
Cho hit Terrell on the phone. He always waited until the fourth ring to pick up.
“Hello?”
“What’s up, nigga? A, make sure you put a 2x white T-shirt in that bag for Pimp. Make sure it’s tight too, like a Rocawear or Polo or something.”
Terrell understood. “OK. It’ll be ready.”
“I’ll holla.”
“Aight. Later.”
Cho got up from his seat, and everyone followed. They walked down the steps and out the door.
“A, I’ma go holla at Tato to see what’s poppin’,” Radi said as he got into his car.
Pimp nodded. “I’ma see what’s up with this bitch out Lansdowne. She off today. Cho, you remember the bitch Lisa?”
“Yeah.”
“Yeah, I need some of that in my life!”
“Alright, I get up wit y’all niggas later.”
Cho looked around perplexed. “Pimp,” he asked. “What are you driving?” He scanned the parking lot.
Pimp smiled. “That.” He pointed his keys towards a row of cars that were against the wall and pushed the button for the doors to unlock. When Cho saw the lights on the 2006 GS430 light up, he couldn’t believe his eyes. “I copped it yesterday,” Pimp explained. “Check it out.”
This nigga’s crazy!, he thought. They made a rule that no one would get anything flashy. Cars brought attention and even though they had money, they felt it was best to stay on the low. A GS430 wasn’t too flashy, but it was 2004. Cho thought the new body style wasn’t supposed to hit the market until 2005. And this nigga got an ’06? He couldn’t believe it. Pimp had to be the only nigga in town with this car. Who wouldn’t notice?
Cho and Pimp walked over and Radi pulled his car in front of it. He felt the same way Cho did. They both had to admit the new body style was fresh. The car was black on black with 22-inch black BBS rims.
“Yo, you crazy! What made you buy that shit?” Cho said, frustated.
“Man, check this out! Look at all that money my brother made and he ain’t do shit with it. I mean, he bought some properties or whatever and made sure our family would be straight, but he didn’t really enjoy himself. I’ma do me! I ain’t promised tomorrow. I’ma get it how I live. Fuck dat shit!” Pimp yelled, pounding his fist into his palm for emphasis. “You niggas can sit around and be conservative wit y’all cake. I would’ve brought a Bentley, but ain’t enough of them in the city for me to do that yet. We’ve been on this run for almost two years and you niggas still ridin’ Honda Accords and shit. If I die tomorrow, at least I’ll be satisfied with my life. I got bitches, whips, houses, my family straight and my nephews are definitely good. You niggas is trippin’ over a whip?”
“But you just copped that truck a month ago,” Radi added.
“And I might cop another one next week,” Pimp said sarcastically. “As long as my paper straight, I’ma do me!”
Cho interrupted. “Nigga, you need slow down. I ain’t saying don’t enjoy yourself but you better pay attention to what you do. We ain’t tryna get knocked off. That’s why we been able to stay on this run for so long. We stay low key. Be easy. Stop being a hot head.”
Pimp had become a live wire. Since Swervo died, his whole personality had changed. He didn’t give a fuck about anything. He said he fully planned to do him regardless of the consequences and he kept proving that he meant it. He valued Radi and Cho’s opinion, but he was on some “what Pimp wants, Pimp gets” shit.
Cho looked Pimp dead in his eyes. He wanted him to feel how serious he really was. “Don’t buy no more cars for a while and please don’t ride through the ‘hood stuntin’. You know it’s hot.”
Pimp shook his head and smiled at the car. “OK. I’ll put it up, but you niggas do need to start livin’. I’ll get at y’all later.” He got in his
