Friday morning came gray.
Rain tapped against the windows of the Connors apartment, light and steady, turning the Brooklyn streets below into dark ribbons beneath passing cars.
Jermaine Connors stood in front of his mirror, half-dressed and already tired of the day.
He checked the clock.
Then his phone.
Then the clock again.
"Man, fuck school."
His phone buzzed.
Rome: you getting up?
Maine stared at the message.
Maine: unfortunately
The response came almost immediately.
Rome: cap and gown
Maine closed his eyes.
Right.
He had promised Monique she could customize his cap and gown, and the bag was waiting at school.
That was literally the only reason he needed to go.
Memorial Day was Monday. Three days without teachers, crowded hallways, bells, or pretending to care about assignments that barely mattered anymore.
Graduation was close.
Too close.
Maine grabbed his hoodie and pulled it over his head.
"Let's get this over with."
By the time he reached Du Bois Prep, the rain had picked up.
Students crowded through the entrance beneath umbrellas, shaking water from their jackets and complaining about soaked shoes. The halls smelled like wet pavement, cheap body spray, and whatever the cafeteria had started cooking for lunch.
Rome was waiting near the lockers.
He looked Maine up and down.
"You look sick."
"I feel sick."
"You always say that."
"Because school makes me sick."
Rome laughed.
"You got your gown?"
"That's why I'm here."
They headed toward the office together.
The building carried the restless energy of a school year already finished in everyone's head. Seniors were counting down. Underclassmen were talking about summer. Teachers seemed more interested in making it to the end of the day than enforcing every rule.
Maine had spent four years wanting out.
Now that the finish line was sitting right in front of him, he couldn't decide what he felt.
Freedom, probably.
Mostly impatience.
They collected their bags and stepped back into the hallway.
Rome looked at his.
"Monique better not mess mine up."
"She said she's got it."
"She said that about yours too?"
"Yeah."
"Then yours definitely getting fucked up."
Maine laughed.
"Man, shut up."
The bell rang.
They split off toward their classes.
The morning crawled.
By lunch, Maine was ready to be anywhere else.
He spotted Jada across the cafeteria and caught her attention.
"Yo, Jada."
She walked over.
"What?"
"Where Lia at?"
"She left."
"When?"
"Earlier."
"Why?"
"Her abuela needed her in the Bronx."
Maine nodded slowly.
"Oh."
Jada watched him for a second.
"You could text her, you know."
"I'm good."
"Sure."
"I'm serious."
"Okay."
She walked away.
Maine looked down at his food.
His phone sat beside his tray.
For a second, his thumb hovered over Lia's name.
He didn't press it.
Instead, he locked the screen and finished eating.
Outside the cafeteria windows, rain streaked down the glass.
The rain hadn't let up by the time they left school.
Maine and Rome stood beneath the awning outside Du Bois, watching water hammer the sidewalk.
Rome looked toward the park.
"Yeah, that's dead."
Maine laughed.
"Obviously."
"No basketball?"
Maine glanced at him.
"You know better."
Rome thought for a second.
Then his face changed.
"SSU."
Maine looked over.
"You think they'll let us in?"
"They got open gym."
"You sure?"
"I've been there before."
Maine looked toward the rain.
Then toward the campus a few blocks away.
"Fuck it."
They headed out.
Sovereign State University rose above the surrounding blocks in pieces of old brick, newer stone, banners, and glass.
Even in the rain, campus was busy.
Students hurried between buildings beneath umbrellas. Cars crawled along the wet streets bordering the grounds. Music leaked from somewhere near the student center.
Maine had walked around SSU plenty of times.
Being inside it still felt different.
Maybe because soon enough, he wouldn't be visiting.
Rome pulled the door open to the student recreation facility.
"Come on."
Warm air hit them as they stepped inside.
The smell of hardwood and sweat replaced the rain.
A game was already running on the main court.
Rome grinned.
"Told you."
Maine dropped his bag against the wall.
"You always gotta prove something."
"That's why you love me."
"Don't push it."
They checked in and joined the open run.
The next couple hours disappeared.
No school.
No graduation.
No questions about what came next.
Just basketball.
Maine moved freely, letting instinct take over. He slipped around a screen, caught the ball at the elbow, and knocked down a jumper.
Rome shook his head.
"You got lucky."
"Scoreboard."
"There ain't no scoreboard."
"Exactly."
A few possessions later, Maine threaded a pass through two defenders.
"Okay, Maine!"
"That was nasty!"
Maine grinned.
"Play defense!"
Rome laughed.
"You talking like you nice now."
"I've always been nice."
"Man, get outta here."
They kept running until their shirts clung to their backs.
By the time they finally left the facility, the rain had weakened to a mist.
The campus lights reflected off the pavement.
Rome stretched his arms over his head.
"I'm hungry."
"You're always hungry."
"And you're always broke."
Maine laughed.
"Leo's."
"Obviously."
Leo's bodega was still busy.
The radio behind the register played low beneath a dozen conversations. Someone near the refrigerators was arguing about basketball. Two kids stood at the candy rack trying to decide what they could afford.
Leo looked up when Maine and Rome walked in.
"There go trouble."
Maine pointed at Rome.
"That's him."
"Don't listen to him," Rome said.
They moved through the aisles, grabbing drinks, chips, and whatever else caught their attention.
Maine stopped near the tobacco counter.
"Let me get two Backwoods."
Leo slowly looked over his glasses.
"Now see, I'm not gonna say or ask why you boys need Backwoods."
Rome placed his drink on the counter.
"Leo, we just partaking in a little relaxation."
Leo stared at him.
"That what we calling it?"
"Absolutely."
Maine started laughing.
Leo shook his head and slid the package across.
"Just don't come back in here asking me why you coughing."
Maine paid and grabbed the bag.
Leo nodded toward him.
"Tell your father I said hello."
"I will."
They stepped back outside.
The rain had left the pavement shining, and the air was cooler now.
Rome looked at the bag.
"You got everything?"
"Yeah."
"Good."
"Why?"
"We going to my crib."
Maine looked over.
"Your mom home?"
"Probably."
"Probably?"
"You know my house."
Maine laughed.
"That I do."
The Neal apartment was only a few blocks away.
Rome pushed through the front door.
"I'm home!"
"Keep your voice down!" his mother called from somewhere deeper inside.
Maine stepped in behind him.
The apartment felt exactly the way he remembered it: crowded, loud, warm, and somehow always moving.
Tyler was stretched across one end of the couch with his phone in his hand.
"What's good?"
"What's good," Rome answered.
Veronica glanced out from the kitchen.
"Hey, Maine."
"What's up?"
Aaron called from the living room.
"Rome, did you bring something to eat?"
Rome stopped.
"Why is everybody asking me for food?"
"Because you went outside," Aaron answered.
Maine laughed.
Mrs. Neal appeared from the kitchen, exhaustion visible around her eyes but a smile still finding its way onto her face.
"Hey, Maine."
"Hey, Ms. Neal."
"You boys eating?"
"We just came from Leo's," Rome said.
"So that's a no?"
Rome grinned.
"Probably."
She shook her head.
"Go do whatever nineteen-year-olds do."
Rome raised his eyebrows.
"You sure?"
"Don't get smart."
"Yes, ma'am."
Maine followed Rome toward his side of the apartment.
The hallway settled behind them as they disappeared into his room.
Rome opened the window.
Cool air rolled inside.
Maine climbed through first.
The fire escape was still damp from the rain.
They sat against the brick, looking out over the neighborhood.
Brooklyn stretched beneath them in layers of rooftops, headlights, windows, and distant music.
Rome pulled the Backwoods from the bag.
"You rolling first?"
"You bought 'em."
"You just wanted me to roll."
"That is exactly what I wanted."
Maine shook his head, smiling.
They settled into an easy rhythm.
No rush.
No plans.
Just the two of them above the neighborhood while Friday night unfolded below.
When they finished, they lit up and passed them between each other.
Rome leaned back against the brick.
"Man."
Maine glanced over.
"What?"
"Nothing."
"You said 'man.'"
"Because I'm relaxed."
"You're stupid."
"I'm relaxed and stupid."
Maine laughed.
The conversation wandered.
Graduation.
Summer.
Basketball.
Girls.
Whether either of them would actually miss Du Bois once they were gone.
Rome said no.
Maine didn't believe him.
"You gonna miss somebody."
"Maybe the cafeteria."
"That's not a person."
"It counts."
Maine laughed again.
The second blunt made its way between them.
For a while, neither said anything.
Below them, somebody shouted from a passing car. A train rolled somewhere in the distance. Music spilled from an open window across the block.
Rome looked over.
"You realize this shit about to change, right?"
Maine looked at him.
"What?"
"Everything."
Maine shrugged.
"That's the point."
"Yeah."
Rome looked back toward the street.
"Just saying."
Maine let the words sit.
He knew things were changing.
Everybody did.
Graduation.
College.
Summer.
Whatever came after.
But sitting there with Rome, with the neighborhood stretched out beneath them, tomorrow didn't feel complicated.
It felt far away.
Maine checked the time.
"I should head home."
Rome nodded.
"Yeah."
They climbed back through the window.
Inside, the apartment had quieted down some.
Maine grabbed his bag.
"Tomorrow?"
"Tomorrow."
They bumped fists.
Maine stepped into the hallway.
Rome watched him disappear before closing the door.
The walk home was peaceful.
The sidewalks were still wet, reflecting the lights from storefronts and passing cars. People stood outside talking beneath awnings. Somewhere nearby, music played loud enough to shake a window.
Maine made it home a little later.
The apartment was quieter than the Neal place.
Nasir was in the kitchen.
He looked over.
"What's up?"
"Nothing."
"How was school?"
"School."
Nasir smiled.
"That bad?"
"It wasn't bad."
Maine opened the refrigerator.
"I'm just ready to be done."
"You got your cap?"
"Yeah."
"Good."
"Monique got it."
"She decorating yours?"
"Apparently."
Nasir laughed softly.
"Let her work."
Maine nodded.
He grabbed a drink and headed upstairs.
"Enjoy your weekend," Nasir called after him.
"I will."
Maine showered, changed, and dropped onto his bed.
His phone sat beside him.
A few notifications.
Rome.
Jada.
Monique.
He opened his messages.
Lia's name was still there.
His thumb hovered over it.
He thought about the cafeteria.
About Jada telling him she'd left.
About the look they'd exchanged earlier.
He locked the phone instead.
Maine tossed it onto the nightstand and turned toward the window.
Brooklyn was still awake.
Cars rolled beneath the streetlights. Music drifted between buildings. Somebody laughed somewhere down the block before disappearing into the noise of the city.
Tomorrow was Saturday.
Three days off.
Graduation was coming.
Summer was coming.
For once, Maine didn't have anything he needed to figure out.
He pulled the blanket over himself and closed his eyes.
Outside, Brooklyn kept moving.
Maine fell asleep.