Imperial Dreams

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[distant siren blares]

[barking]

This is you coming home.

Nothing's changed.

[helicopter circling]

[young men shouting]

You can't splash back into the projects.

You gotta slide in.

[siren blares]

No ripples.

They don't give you a parade.

- [light snoring]

- Mom.

'Sup, little man?

You know who I am?

Daytone.

When you go to school,

we got to get you new clothes, right?

- Yes.

- What kind of clothes you like?

- Um...

- We gotta get you some Timbs.

- Nice jeans.

- Yes.

Yeah?

And some... some yellow sh...

And a yellow shirt.

A yellow shirt?

And get some Timbs shoes, too.

[men chattering and laughing]

Wow.

- Nephew.

- Yeah, man.

Oh.

- [Fat Rat] What's crackin', Bambi?

- What's up?

- Good to see you, man.

- Hey, man, likewise.

Well, you strong.

[both laugh]

- God bless you.

- No doubt, man. You been all right?

I'm good, man.

You know what it is, business as usual.

What's up with my mom?

I don't know. He needed watchin'.

She his grandmama.

She was the only one around.

Now I got my sister-in-law, you, your kid.

It's a damn hotel.

Unc, thank you for taking care of Day

while I was away.

I appreciate that, loved one. For real.

Thank you, man.

You take care of Uncle Shrimp, man,

Uncle Shrimp will take care of you.

You take anything you need.

Fat Rat will hook you up

with a little pistol or something.

- I'm good, man.

- Yeah?

- Thank you. Yeah.

- Hey, take Gideon's room.

- Yeah. Where he at?

- Ah, he ain't doing too good.

That boy dodgin' cops.

He got a lot going on.

- Yeah?

- Yeah.

But you know what?

Let's talk about that in the AM,

all right?

- [laughs]

- That's cool.

Come on.

- You got a girl?

- Yeah.

[clippers buzzing]

What's her name?

Asia.

Boy, you ain't got no girl named Asia.

What you been doing all day?

[distant siren blares]

"The hood is the cruelest of prisons."

"The most unusual of punishments."

"You're born into it."

"Like those poor niggas in North Korea

who have to serve time

for something their granddaddy thought."

"They don't even have to build walls

to keep people in."

"And when you're born in prison,

you don't know what to do with freedom."

"No matter how shiny they make it."

What, you in here jacking off?

Reading bedtime stories?

Nigga.

- G, man.

- I love you back.

I love you, too, man.

I told them niggas you was getting out,

Cuz!

Yeah.

I heard Delano

was hot as a motherf***er, man.

You know how it is, Cuz.

Man, that sh*t was inhumane, man.

Ah, it don't matter. You in perfect time.

Man, niggas been coming through here

shooting, Cuz.

I need your help.

I got a book I'm writing.

Trying to take care of Day. You feel me?

Respect.

I respect that, man.

[grunts]

Man, what the f*** is that?

What? Oh, it ain't nothing.

Damn, G!

F***, man!

You gotta go to a doctor with that, right?

I ain't going to no doctors, Cuz.

The police looking for me,

for this sh*t that turned into a shoot-out

a couple of nights ago at a...

at a party, man.

We gotta take the bullet out.

[rap music plays]

[groans]

[grunts]

[bullet clatters]

We good, Cuz?

Yeah. We good.

[Gideon sighs]

[Bambi] Hey.

Give me that.

Go to your room.

[groans]

What the f*** are you doing?

Man, I don't need the cops

coming back here looking for you.

Pops, ain't nobody see me come back here.

No one.

Ah, nigga, you gonna be fine.

Bambi, you know what? Come here.

Let me holler at you for a minute.

[sighs]

Listen, I got a real easy one for you.

I got a car load of OxyContin

need to be up in Portland by Friday.

What'll we say, four racks?

That'll set you up.

[scoffs] Across state lines?

It's very low-risk.

[Gideon] Pops.

Let me owe you a few dollars,

until I get on my feet.

[sighs]

Gideon, can you lay low?

Can you do that, huh?

Yeah.

Hey.

Call me if you need me.

Love you, nigga.

Comfortable?

Mm-hm.

[sighs]

I know this is f***ed up.

But I'm working on

getting you out of here.

And go to Victorville.

I heard it's real safe out there.

They got good schools.

All right, go to sleep, OK?

OK.

Good night, Angel Boy.

[engine revving]

That's where your mama is.

We'll go see her later.

All right.

[man] Hey, hey, hey, Bambi.

Isaac.

- I ain't seen you in a while.

- Yeah, man.

What's up?

Just chillin' with a feelin', you know.

Hey, word to the wise, though.

There was a killing last night so,

you know, you want to stay in and...

stay inside as much as possible,

and, you know, be safe.

- All right.

- I'll see you in the third.

- All right.

- Be good, man.

- Yeah.

- OK.

I see you got them new lights.

Oh, yeah, you know it.

Just a little somethin' somethin'.

[disguises voice] It's the LAPD.

Please open up.

[Day giggles]

Wayne!

Come on. Get your ass downstairs!

[Day] Come on, Wayne!

[banging continues]

- [laughs]

- Oh, sh*t.

[Bambi] Oh, man!

- Are you back for good?

- Yeah, I'm back.

- What's up, little man?

- Oh, my God. What's going on?

- For real?

- Looking all grown up.

- Man, I'm trying, man.

- Yeah.

Yeah, come inside, man.

Good to see you, and your big-ass head.

[laughs] Come on, man!

I ain't little no more, man.

[Bambi laughs]

- You reading Latin?

- Yeah, I'm working on it.

- What's that?

- Oh, man, I got a...

partial scholarship

to study business at Howard,

so now I'm just raising enough capital

to pay the difference.

That's beautiful, man. Congrats.

I got loans, grants.

Nigga, man, I maxed them all out.

I still need to come up with some money,

though.

What's up with the suit?

- A nigga's got to look the part.

- Oh.

You know?

[Bambi snorts]

You seen mom?

Kinda.

She still a mess?

I knew you'd get published,

but a short story in McSweeney's,

from jail?

Now, that's next level, bro.

- You gotta sign it for me.

- For sure.

I'm proud of you. Like real talk, man.

Thank you.

Listen, man. Um...

Can me and Day stay here?

What do you think?

You gotta ask Gramps, but I doubt it.

Look, man, I understand your predicament,

but the housing authority doesn't allow

any convicts or parolees

on these premises.

Just for a few days,

till I get on my feet.

No.

What if they have an inspection?

We all get caught, we all get kicked out.

- It's not worth it, Bambi.

- Man.

Welcome home, dog.

They say I bang

They never toy with me

Royal from the crown

To my f***in' feet

They say talk that talk

Walk, but please avoid the streets

Lock the jaw, lock the door

Avoid the speech...

Bambi Jones.

[door buzzer]

What were you in for?

Assault with a deadly weapon.

You know you got flagged by the detectives

in the Watts projects, right?

Yeah.

I need to know where you at at all times.

I need for you to get a job ASAP.

If you can't figure it out,

I'm gonna start crawling your ass,

which is a violation,

which means I will issue a warrant,

and back in you go.

But I just got out.

Do we understand each other?

Yeah.

Now what you gonna do?

I'm trying to be a writer.

You know, teach these kids

not to make the same mistakes I did.

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