The++Night+Tony+Got+Shot

One night as I walked out of the house after midnight, my father confronted me. "Where are you going?" he asked. I shot back, "I'm going out!" My father was finally sick of my attitude and said what was on his mind. "All right, you don't want to listen to anything I've been telling you to do," he shouted. "But you will one day---if you live long enough." I jetted out, slamming the door behind me. I went cruising through the southwest side of Detroit with my older cousin Tony and my younger brother Paul. Tony and Paul had been drinking. I had gotten sloppy drunk the night before, so I told them I would just chill out. It was about two o'clock in the morning when we pulled up to a red light at the corner of Main and Broadway, next to the White Castle restaurant. In fron of the White Castle were two pay phones. A group of seven or eight guys were standing by the phones. When we pulled up to the light, a staring contest began. They were looking for trouble and we, being young and stupid enough to play the street game, did not avoid it. So instead of going straight on Broadway, Tony turned his dark blue Honda, driving right past them. They were on the right side of the car, the passenger side, my side. As we drove closer to them, the tension got stronger. Just before we became parallel to them, one of them made a quick move. His hand jetted from his jacket. I saw a flash of silver, and then I quickly ducked down. One...two...three gunshots rang out, slicing through the silence of the night. I did not feel anything hit me. The car jerked forward, then began slowing down. My brother's voice alarmed me, "Kyle...Kyle! Tony got shot!" I looked over at Tony without raising my head. I will never forget what I saw. Tony was shot in the head. His hand was slipping from the black steering wheel as his head slowly fell against the neck support of his seat. I sat motionless, shocked, for five or six seconds. As I picked up my head, I caught a glimpse of my passenger-side mirror. It reflected seven or eight guys running up behind our two-door Honda. They were about fifteen feet away. With all my strength, I pushed Tony's thick leg out of the way because it was blocking the gas pedal. I sped all the way down Broadway to get to a gas station. In about one minute, the police arrived with their red lights flashing and loud sirens scareing my brother and me. As we sat in the back seat of the police car, my eyes were locked on Tony. I could not believe what had just happened-- one second we were talking, and the next Tony was dead. The horror of that night made me realize that I had chosen the wrong path in life by trying to be a gangster. Since that night, I learned that I can jump over any hurdle that stands in my path. I love rapping and have turned that love into a new experience. I started my first semester of community college. I am going to major in English. I love writing. I just earned my first A in my writing class. Every day when I return home from school, I feel as if I have done something worthwhile. I know that more accomplishments lie ahead and I just need to keep jumping.