Diamond:
I’m Diamond Jada Stapleton, it’s okay, I don’t expect you to know who I am just yet. I mean, I do have a famous father and a semi-famous boyfriend, so you’ll definitely see my name in the blogs one day. I think you’re more likely to find out about me through my boyfriend than my father though. My father is DJ Two-Six-Eight (or you could use the numerals, it’s totally up to you) and he is known all over the world for simply moving crowds and keeping people on the dance-floor. He has deejayed literally everywhere from Japan to Russia, Egypt to Dubai, from South Africa to every major city in the United States, as well as Canada, South and Central America, and all of the West Indies. I don’t remember any South Pacific Islands offhand, but I’m sure he’s been to a few of those too. Why does he call himself Two-Six-Eight? That’s the area code in Antigua, the tiny island he was born on. When he first came to The Bronx in the 90s, people insisted that he must have been Jamaican, and it infuriated him. Not that there’s anything wrong with being Jamaican. Jamaica and Antigua have a lot of similarities and the people mix and mingle often, but Antigua is still an entirely different island with its own contribution to West Indian culture. So my father, Lawrence Stapleton, decided he would be called DJ Two-Six-Eight, to as he put it “color” his name with Antigua. I love my dad. He does a helluva job taking care of us… my sister Sapphire and I. He didn’t even really know about Sapphire until my ninth birthday, but that’s a whole other story. He’s a good dad, except he travels so much and says so little about us, that I don’t know how well he actually knows us, and I know the public doesn’t know about us at all.So my fame will probably be gained through blogs or reality shows that have to do with my fine ass boyfriend Cory Davis. Oh my God he is so fine. I have loved him since the first time I saw him, which was in elementary school. He’s Jamaican… see what I mean about Antiguans and Jamaicans mixing and mingling? But yeah, he’s a dancehall artist. He is the new millennium Little Vicious out here, only not as cocky and better looking. The way these bitches can’t stay out his face though, I’m for sure going to catch a case before my sixteenth birthday. They are just unbelievably disrespectful and outta order. They say all kinds of shit about me, and keep testing my gangsta. It’s all good though. I’m not worried about Cory. He’s all about me. I don’t take kindly to disrespect though, and I don’t hesitate to let bitches know.
My mother, the crazy-ass Judy Watson swears I’m going to college to do some legit shit. I don’t understand why though. She lives well, and when I say well… she is living better than a lot of women I see out here with acronyms behind their names. Not long after I was born, and my father started globe trotting, she married Carl Watson. Carl is a major player in the east coast drug game, and he has provided Judy, my three brothers, and myself with a comfortable ass life. Why would I waste time and money in college? It just don’t add up. But to be honest, I don’t even know how I would get around not going. My mama crazy… crazy might be an understatement. I’m her princess, her mini me. She has high expectations, and I’d better meet them.
Sapphire
It’s amazing how the universe just moves how it moves and aligns things the way it does. Like how is it that our mothers didn’t even know each other and yet my sister’s name is Diamond, and my name is Sapphire? How did it even happen that DJ Two-Six-Eight’s two estranged daughters ended up with similar names? As different as our mothers are, they must have some hidden similarities, same baby daddy, stone names for their babies. Something in their personalities has got to be the same. I like my name, Sapphire Alexis Taylor. I don’t have my father’s last name because my mother kinda kept me away from him at first. Several years after I was born, she dated and married a co-worker, Kevin Anderson. She went from being Patrice Taylor to Patrice Anderson. They then had my sister Kenya Anderson. Here I am, the only Taylor receiving mail at our address. It’s okay being the only Taylor though. We’re still a cute little family of four. We started off in Charlotte, North Carolina where my mother had ran off to, to be with family while she was pregnant with me, but when I was eight, my grandmother’s heart disease had gotten the best of her. We moved to The Bronx, into my mother’s childhood home so that she could take care of my grandmother. A year later, my grandmother was gone and the house was officially my mother’s. This is where we have been ever since.
Patrice and Kevin aren’t rich, but they ain’t broke either. Don’t ask me what they do, I can’t explain it. They both work in corporate finance, and my mother is pursuing a Master’s degree. She’s always complaining that me and Kenya don’t do enough around the house. I guess she thinks she’s the only one with a life. I work hard in school. I’m a straight A student, and with that, I deserve a social life. I like hanging out with my sister Diamond, and our two best friends Elise and Channel. Most of all I like spending time with my boyfriend Chris… when he has time. I gotta be careful about my situation with Chris. He’s older… as in five years older. That’s strike one. He got his GED and he’s not pursuing higher education. In Patrice’s eyes, that would be strike two. He’s also from the projects, doesn’t really know who his father is, and has been arrested a few times. Okay, okay, he checks all the boxes for ghetto Black male stereotype, and I suppose you can gather those last few facts and make them one big fat third strike. He’s cute though, and he likes me. So he’s my boyfriend, and that’s that, no matter who disapproves.
I don’t know what to think when I think about my future. I know I’m going to college though. As I said before I’m a straight A student. I’m good at school and I actually like it. I love maintaining my 3.8 gpa streak, and the way things are looking for me, I’m most likely going to graduate high school early. That means I’m going to college early. Going to college early means getting out of Patrice’s house early. I love our little nuclear family but that doesn’t deter me from looking forward to days without Kenya annoying my soul, Kevin banging on things that he claims he’s fixing on Saturday mornings, or Patrice’s incessant complaining about how we don’t do chores and when we do them they haven’t been done well enough. I’m also ready to break away from her rules. I can do away with her unspoken but understood dating standards, and curfews. I can straight up date who I want, and do what I want. Yeah… I’m going away to college and as early as possible. Like I said, I love my family, but I’d like to only see them on the weekends.
I’m Diamond Jada Stapleton, it’s okay, I don’t expect you to know who I am just yet. I mean, I do have a famous father and a semi-famous boyfriend, so you’ll definitely see my name in the blogs one day. I think you’re more likely to find out about me through my boyfriend than my father though. My father is DJ Two-Six-Eight (or you could use the numerals, it’s totally up to you) and he is known all over the world for simply moving crowds and keeping people on the dance-floor. He has deejayed literally everywhere from Japan to Russia, Egypt to Dubai, from South Africa to every major city in the United States, as well as Canada, South and Central America, and all of the West Indies. I don’t remember any South Pacific Islands offhand, but I’m sure he’s been to a few of those too. Why does he call himself Two-Six-Eight? That’s the area code in Antigua, the tiny island he was born on. When he first came to The Bronx in the 90s, people insisted that he must have been Jamaican, and it infuriated him. Not that there’s anything wrong with being Jamaican. Jamaica and Antigua have a lot of similarities and the people mix and mingle often, but Antigua is still an entirely different island with its own contribution to West Indian culture. So my father, Lawrence Stapleton, decided he would be called DJ Two-Six-Eight, to as he put it “color” his name with Antigua. I love my dad. He does a helluva job taking care of us… my sister Sapphire and I. He didn’t even really know about Sapphire until my ninth birthday, but that’s a whole other story. He’s a good dad, except he travels so much and says so little about us, that I don’t know how well he actually knows us, and I know the public doesn’t know about us at all.So my fame will probably be gained through blogs or reality shows that have to do with my fine ass boyfriend Cory Davis. Oh my God he is so fine. I have loved him since the first time I saw him, which was in elementary school. He’s Jamaican… see what I mean about Antiguans and Jamaicans mixing and mingling? But yeah, he’s a dancehall artist. He is the new millennium Little Vicious out here, only not as cocky and better looking. The way these bitches can’t stay out his face though, I’m for sure going to catch a case before my sixteenth birthday. They are just unbelievably disrespectful and outta order. They say all kinds of shit about me, and keep testing my gangsta. It’s all good though. I’m not worried about Cory. He’s all about me. I don’t take kindly to disrespect though, and I don’t hesitate to let bitches know.
My mother, the crazy-ass Judy Watson swears I’m going to college to do some legit shit. I don’t understand why though. She lives well, and when I say well… she is living better than a lot of women I see out here with acronyms behind their names. Not long after I was born, and my father started globe trotting, she married Carl Watson. Carl is a major player in the east coast drug game, and he has provided Judy, my three brothers, and myself with a comfortable ass life. Why would I waste time and money in college? It just don’t add up. But to be honest, I don’t even know how I would get around not going. My mama crazy… crazy might be an understatement. I’m her princess, her mini me. She has high expectations, and I’d better meet them.
Sapphire
It’s amazing how the universe just moves how it moves and aligns things the way it does. Like how is it that our mothers didn’t even know each other and yet my sister’s name is Diamond, and my name is Sapphire? How did it even happen that DJ Two-Six-Eight’s two estranged daughters ended up with similar names? As different as our mothers are, they must have some hidden similarities, same baby daddy, stone names for their babies. Something in their personalities has got to be the same. I like my name, Sapphire Alexis Taylor. I don’t have my father’s last name because my mother kinda kept me away from him at first. Several years after I was born, she dated and married a co-worker, Kevin Anderson. She went from being Patrice Taylor to Patrice Anderson. They then had my sister Kenya Anderson. Here I am, the only Taylor receiving mail at our address. It’s okay being the only Taylor though. We’re still a cute little family of four. We started off in Charlotte, North Carolina where my mother had ran off to, to be with family while she was pregnant with me, but when I was eight, my grandmother’s heart disease had gotten the best of her. We moved to The Bronx, into my mother’s childhood home so that she could take care of my grandmother. A year later, my grandmother was gone and the house was officially my mother’s. This is where we have been ever since.
Patrice and Kevin aren’t rich, but they ain’t broke either. Don’t ask me what they do, I can’t explain it. They both work in corporate finance, and my mother is pursuing a Master’s degree. She’s always complaining that me and Kenya don’t do enough around the house. I guess she thinks she’s the only one with a life. I work hard in school. I’m a straight A student, and with that, I deserve a social life. I like hanging out with my sister Diamond, and our two best friends Elise and Channel. Most of all I like spending time with my boyfriend Chris… when he has time. I gotta be careful about my situation with Chris. He’s older… as in five years older. That’s strike one. He got his GED and he’s not pursuing higher education. In Patrice’s eyes, that would be strike two. He’s also from the projects, doesn’t really know who his father is, and has been arrested a few times. Okay, okay, he checks all the boxes for ghetto Black male stereotype, and I suppose you can gather those last few facts and make them one big fat third strike. He’s cute though, and he likes me. So he’s my boyfriend, and that’s that, no matter who disapproves.
I don’t know what to think when I think about my future. I know I’m going to college though. As I said before I’m a straight A student. I’m good at school and I actually like it. I love maintaining my 3.8 gpa streak, and the way things are looking for me, I’m most likely going to graduate high school early. That means I’m going to college early. Going to college early means getting out of Patrice’s house early. I love our little nuclear family but that doesn’t deter me from looking forward to days without Kenya annoying my soul, Kevin banging on things that he claims he’s fixing on Saturday mornings, or Patrice’s incessant complaining about how we don’t do chores and when we do them they haven’t been done well enough. I’m also ready to break away from her rules. I can do away with her unspoken but understood dating standards, and curfews. I can straight up date who I want, and do what I want. Yeah… I’m going away to college and as early as possible. Like I said, I love my family, but I’d like to only see them on the weekends.