I come from a culturally diverse background. In a neighborhood full of projects, you could basically call it ghetto. It wasn't a rough town but it was it pretty bad to grow up in. There are gangs and drug fiends that surround my hood to this day. I could've chosen that path, but that was the easy way out. For example, I have a friend like many others who exercise the use of drugs and are in a gang. I went to school with him throughout high school and his experiences is what makes me realize the right path I chose. .
He's just like any average teenager in high school; he can't really define himself in terms of who he wants to be when he grows up. His name is Tony but dudes refer to him as T-money. I refer to him as Tony and he's a good friend of mine, still. But it was his curiosities and seeking for definition which made him attracted to the gang life. We use to always chill after school whether it be up in the hood or in somebody's house. I can't say that I was perfect because I was similar to them. I didn't want to fit in the crowd as badly as he did so it had greater impact on him. We often went to parties, not together though we seen each other there. At these parties teens would smoke marijuana and if anyone ever offered him some he would gladly take a hit.
After getting into the whole marijuana thing, he started selling drugs after seeing how successful all the other kids were at our high school. Making easy money was irresistible. He was a down low seller meaning that he only sold outside of school or only to his close friends. You could see the change in him; pricy clothes, fresh attitude. He turned from being an amateur supplier to pushing a lot of weight. I could see trouble just heading towards him. It was going to come sooner or later.
His risky way of life all backfired on him one day when he was caught with weed on him. They found it in his locker and later gave it to the cops.
