Money Hungry

At Zora’s house after school, both Mai and Zora now want to work with Raspberry and Ja’nae cleaning houses. Zora recently got the $60 she needed to pay her dad for the sneakers, but now she wants a pair of expensive jeans. Mai, on the other hand, is no longer working at her family’s food truck until she and her father can work out their issues and now needs to earn her own money.

Raspberry agrees to let Mai and Zora work with them and explains that their next job is at Ms. Baker’s house on Jade Street. Zora recants, saying that Jade Street is in a bad neighborhood. Raspberry agrees but explains that Ms. Baker will pick them up and drop them off and will pay them $250 for cleaning up.

Ms. Baker picks up the girls, but as soon as they get into the car, the engine dies. When they finally make it to Ms. Baker’s boardinghouse, the girls realize how much work the place needs. Ms. Baker has 10 people living in the home she runs with her daughter, and each tenant has significant needs.

Raspberry, Mai, and Zora are uncomfortable and want to leave, but Ja’nae at once tries to convince the girls to stay. She begins taking on tasks that go beyond their job description, such as stripping the beds of their linens and washing them. Raspberry knows that the needs of the boardinghouse go beyond their capabilities but understands that Ja’nae is going to want to help no matter what, so she delegates tasks to Mai and Zora and offers to help Ja’nae clean the bathrooms.

As Ja’nae goes to check on the washing machine in another room, Raspberry sets out on her own and ends up in the kitchen, where a man offers Raspberry something to drink. As she looks through the fridge's meager offerings, she notices a bundle of money stuffed in a half-empty bread bag. The man beckons her over and lets her in on a secret: “Never spend a penny, if you don’t have to” (108). He tells her that he has been saving for years and has money stashed in different places where no one can get it. Before Raspberry can leave the room, the man instructs her to grab some of the money out of the bag. Raspberry grabs about $70, and the man laughs, telling her that the amount she grabbed is nothing but “chump change” and that he still has more than enough for himself. He insists that she take the money and tells her that redheaded girls bring good luck.

When Ms. Baker drops off the girls, she pays them only $40 each instead of the $62 they were promised. Raspberry’s friends tell her that they will never work with her again on a money-making scheme and don’t speak to her as they wait for the bus home. Raspberry doesn’t tell anyone about the cash the man at the boardinghouse gave her.

Raspberry’s mother is furious when she gets home. Momma explains that Ja’nae’s grandfather called and accused Raspberry of stealing $200 from him after he read Ja’nae’s journal. Momma, in a fury, then says that the lawyer from Pecan Landing called and denied Momma’s application for the house. She says they think Raspberry and Momma are trash and that Raspberry’s behavior proves them right.

Momma starts throwing Raspberry’s money out of the window, and neighbors gather outside to try and grab some of it. Raspberry pleads with Momma to stop and even tries to smack the money out of Momma’s hand, but she loses about $200 before Momma stops. The answering machine interrupts Momma’s fit, and Momma and Raspberry hear Ja’nae’s grandfather apologizing, explaining that he was mistaken. Momma stops throwing away Raspberry’s money and tries to tell her everything will work out, but Raspberry cries at the loss of her cash.

As Raspberry cleans up what remains of her money, Dr. Mitchell arrives at the apartment. Upon seeing Dr. Mitchell, Momma begins to cry as she tells him about being rejected from Pecan Landings. Dr. Mitchell promises to do what he can to help. Raspberry watches the way Dr. Mitchell cares for Momma by setting her up in bed and decides to ask him outright how he feels about her mother. Dr. Mitchell says that he cares about her and enjoys their friendship but reveals that Momma will not commit to him because “she’s too busy trying to make something out of herself” (119). Dr. Mitchell explains that he and Momma have the same values, including loving their families, working hard, and trying to do what’s right.

Dr. Mitchell takes a phone call from Zora in the other room as Raspberry picks up the last of her money, finding only $10 in change. Dr. Mitchell leaves after another hour spent by Momma’s bedside, and when he leaves Momma gets up and begins making dinner. As Momma and Raspberry sit at the dinner table in silence, neither eating, Raspberry touches the money in her pocket that she got from the man at the boardinghouse.