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2023, February 24 5:00 pm
📍London
✦✦
Maria sighed, tapping her pen against the blank notebook page. The studio was quiet, too quiet. She'd been staring at the same line for what felt like hours, trying to get her mind into the right space, but nothing was clicking. She needed a break—or maybe just someone to talk to. Her fingers hovered over her contacts, and before she could second-guess it, she hit Ddot's name again.
the facetime dial tone sounded, and after a moment, ddot's face filled the screen. but it wasnt just him.
"Yoo, its amariii" he greeted her, a smirk on his face, and she immediately caught sight of the crowd behind him—dd, jay, jstar, and a girl she didn't recognize, sitting a little too close to dd. They were all laughing, talking over each other, clearly having a good time.
"oh damnn we got mars on the line," Jay said, leaning in with a grin, "What's up, big artist?"
"Mariaaa, wassup!" Jstar chimed in, raising his cup.
"heyy yall," she replied, not knowing how to act suddenly it felt ... awkward, "didnt know I'd be interrupting the whole gang"
ddot laughed. "youn interrupting nothin we was just chillin'."
but Maria's eyes kept drifting to dd and the girl beside him, who was playfully nudging his arm, making him laugh. The sight made her chest tighten a bit, but she kept her expression steady.
"so whats up? how them london niggas treating you?" DD asked, making the others agree on the question wanting to know too.
maria rolled her eyes at the question, "them british niggas be taking care of me gawd thats all i know" she joked knowing her answer will piss them off.
"don play wit us like that, yu know damn well we da only ones that take care of yu" dd said making maria mug him.
"shut the fuck up nigga but jokes aside they be really sweet ova here."
"okay, superstar, dont forget us little people when youre all famous out there." Jay teased, lifting a drink.
"yeah yeah whatever," she said with a smirk.
dd finally glanced back at her, raising an eyebrow. "why yu look so pressed, yu good?"
she gave a small laugh, waving him off. "Pressed? boy please im just tryna catch up. aint seen yall ina minute."
Jay jumped in, smirking. "you over there missin us, huh?"
"not that much yk" she shot back, grinning, "I got things goin on here too" she smirked.
just then, the studio door creaked open behind her. She looked over her shoulder, curious, and her tension melted when she saw Rel and Mia walking in. Instantly, she got up from her chair, a grin breaking across her face.
"yall finally made it," maria said, going over to greet them.
mia hugged her first, laughing, and then maria turned to rel, who wrapped his arms around her waist, holding her close for a beat longer than expected. When she glanced back at the screen, she noticed the boys watching with mixed reactions—dd's face, especially, looking tight as he gave them a slight mug.
"ayo, who the baddie?" Ddot asked, nodding toward Mia with a smirk, clearly impressed.
mia tossed her straight hair back, grinning. "Who me? you got good taste," she said, playing along, which made Jay and Jstar snicker.
rel glanced at the screen, still holding onto Maria's waist casually, looking just a little smug. "These your people, yeah?"
maria pulled away from him slightly, giving her phone an amused look. "yeah, some of my friends from back home." she said, though she couldnt ignore dd's hard stare through the screen.
dd finally spoke up, his tone a little colder than before. "so, thats how it is now?"
maria raised an eyebrow, smirking. "wha you mean, thats how it is? I got friends here too."
dd just nodded, glancing away from the camera. "aight, do you."
the energy felt different now, and she could feel DD's eyes lingering even after they all moved on.
maria shot dd a quick look, sensing his mood through the screen. but instead of addressing it, she turned back to rel and mia. "yall still down to grab food later?" she asked, her tone light.
rel leaned against the wall, nodding. "obviously. aint you hungry already?" he teased, throwing her a grin.
mia laughed, glancing at marias phone. "they really don't feed you in this studio, huh?"
on the screen, ddot raised an eyebrow, leaning closer. "oh, we not good enough for this lil food trip now?"
maria shrugged, giving them a smirk since she was trying to hold her laugh from the tension. "yall too far away," she said, the hint of a tease in her voice.
dd leaned back, clearly irritated. "aight, london got you all switched up, I see. forget harlem then."
rel caught the tone and raised an eyebrow, nudging maria slightly. "your boys always like this?" he said with his british accent coming out.
maria waved it off with a laugh. "don mind em—they just dont know how to share."
dd's voice dropped, low and just a bit sharp. "funny. didnt think I'd need to."
maria narrowed her eyes, feeling a flicker of irritation heat up. "oh, so you pressed now? Thats crazy, cuz you were the one lookin real cozy earlier." she raised an eyebrow, crossing her arms as she looked at him through the screen. "dont act like this cant go both ways."
ddot let out a low "Oop," while Jay grinned, clearly eating up the tension.
dd didnt break her gaze, but the tightness in his jaw softened just a bit, like he was rethinking his words. "aight, I feel you," he muttered, looking away.
rel, sensing the vibe shift, smiled softly and said, "Yo, let's keep it chill, yeah?"
maria let out a small laugh, shaking her head. "fr, whos got time for that?"
she turned to mia, her energy returning as they chatted about their plans for the day.
ddot, glancing at the clock, said, "aight, I gotta bounce. My dukes callin me." he shrugged, not making a big deal out of it.
"same here," Maria said, feeling the urge to wrap things up. "I should get back to the studio anyway."
As they said their goodbyes, the moment felt lighter, the earlier tension fading away like it never happened.
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