" I don't even like you like that." Her face scrunched up in disgust watching water drip from curls in his hair. " 'Cause you love me. Just like I love you." He retorted with a grin, disregarding the deflecting she was doing. --- They were two sides of the same city-until one move split them down the middle. Elijah and London were inseparable once, bonded by childhood summers, beat-up bikes, and secrets too deep for anyone else to know. Unfortunately, when Elijah's mom packed up and moved her family across Onyx to a rival neighborhood, everything changed. She always thought when she spoke to him again he would've changed like her. She was witty, sarcastic, and had a low tolerance, but he was still the same calm , sweet, cute boy with a heart the size of the sun. Some things haven't changed. Some things never change. The pull between them, the memories that still burn etched marks in their brain, and the words they never said out loud. In a world where loyalty can be life or death, and love isn't always enough to cross old lines, Elijah and London find themselves circling each other again. --- STARTED; MAY 26th, 2025 PUBLISHED JUNE 6th, 2025 FINISHED; SEPTEMBER 27th 2025

"Beautiful things don't ask for attention." In a world that thrives on conformity, August is an anomaly. Raised in a secretive overbearing family, she was chosen to leave its hidden grounds-not for freedom, but for duty. Sent to college to become the strategic mind for her generation behind the family's growing empire, she tries to move through the world like a ghost, draped in gothic shadows with secrets too heavy to share but her style is just too much to go unnoticed by judging eyes unscathed. Then she meets Kason through his older brother. A rising rapper with a reckless charm and a hunger for something real, dealing with battles of his own, he's instantly drawn to August's eerie demeanor and the quiet storm that lingers behind her dark mysterious eyes. She's nothing like the women he's used to-unbothered by trends, and untouched by the need for validation. The more she resists, the deeper he falls, his infatuation turning into an obsession he can't shake. One he cant let go of. As their worlds collide, the slow burn of their connection threatens to ignite everything August has been taught to suppress. With her past closing in and expectations pressing down, she must decide if she's willing to defy everything she's ever known for the chance at something dangerously real. In a society that demands she fit a mold, August stands in defiance. Unfortunately, love has a way of making even the strongest question their silence. STARTED; February 22nd , 2025 PUBLISHED; MARCH 18th, 2025 FINISHED; MAY 27th, 2025

❝𝗜 𝗪𝗔𝗦 𝖮𝖴𝖳 𝗧𝗛𝗘𝗥𝗘 𝗢𝗡 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝖱𝖮𝖠𝖣, 𝗟𝗜𝗙𝗘 𝗢𝗨𝗧 𝗢𝗙 𝖢𝖮𝖭𝖳𝖱𝖮𝖫.❞ 𝗦𝗧𝗔𝗥𝗧𝗘𝗗 | 𝟰/𝟳 𝗣𝗨𝗕𝗟𝗜𝗦𝗛𝗘𝗗 | 𝟰/𝟵 𝗙𝗜𝗡𝗜𝗦𝗛𝗘𝗗 |

"I'll text you.." She said as they pulled away. "Yeah ight. You better." They walked inside the cafeteria together but went separate ways. Anija walked back up to where Kema and Kam were sitting with a goofy smile. "Look at her, happy as hell she got her nigga back.." Kam tapped Kema's knee so she could look up. Anija laughed as she sat back down next to them. "That's my boo forreal.." typical (not so typical) highschool love story 💖

❝𝐒𝐎 𝐈𝐅 𝐘𝐎𝐔'𝐑𝐄 𝐋𝐎𝐍𝐄𝐋𝐘, 𝐍𝐎 𝐍𝐄𝐄𝐃 𝐓𝐎 𝐒𝐇𝐎𝐖 𝐌𝐄❞

❝𝖶𝖮𝖭'𝖳 𝖥𝖮𝖱𝖦𝖤𝖳 𝖳𝖧𝖤 𝗠𝗘𝗠𝗢𝗥𝗜𝗘𝗦, 𝖲𝖠𝖸 𝖨𝖳𝖲 𝖭𝖮𝖳 𝗘𝗡𝗢𝗨𝗚𝗛. 𝖲𝖮 𝗚𝗥𝗔𝗕 𝖬𝖤 𝗣𝗨𝗟𝗟 𝖬𝖤 𝗖𝗟𝗢𝗦𝗘𝗥 𝖠𝖭𝖣 𝖳𝖤𝖫𝖫 𝖬𝖤 𝖶𝖧𝖠𝖳 𝖸𝖮𝖴 𝗪𝗔𝗡𝗧, 𝖸𝖮𝖴 𝖲𝖠𝖸 𝖸𝖮𝖴'𝖱𝖤 𝗟𝗘𝗧𝗧𝗜𝗡𝗚 𝖦𝖮 𝖡𝖴𝖳 𝖧𝖮𝖶 𝖢𝖠𝖭 𝗬𝗢𝗨 𝖲𝖠𝖸 𝖳𝖧𝖠𝖳 𝖠𝖭𝖣 𝖡𝖤 𝗦𝗨𝗥𝗘?❞ 𝚂𝚃𝙰𝚁𝚃𝙴𝙳 - 𝟤/𝟤𝟥 𝙿𝚄𝙱𝙻𝙸𝚂𝙷𝙴𝙳 - 𝟥/𝟤𝟨 𝙵𝙸𝙽𝙸𝚂𝙷𝙴𝙳 -

- 𝖣𝖨𝖣𝖭'𝖳 𝖳𝖧𝖤𝖸 𝖳𝖤𝖫𝖫 𝖸𝖮𝖴 𝖳𝖧𝖠𝖳 𝖨 𝖶𝖠𝖲 𝖠 𝖲𝖠𝖵𝖠𝖦𝖤?

Damn, college really is the best part of yo life. Especially at an HBCU.

❝𝐓𝐇𝐈𝐒 𝐀𝐈𝐍'𝐓 𝐇𝐈𝐆𝐇 𝐒𝐂𝐇𝐎𝐎𝐋, 𝐌𝐄 𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐌𝐘 𝐂𝐑𝐄𝐖, 𝐖𝐄 𝐂𝐀𝐍 𝐒𝐋𝐈𝐃𝐄 𝐓𝐇𝐑𝐎𝐔𝐆𝐇.❞

revamping, bare w me