In a world where loyalty means everything, Brielle Banks must choose between the family she's always known and the man who could destroy it all. Caught between revenge and unexpected attraction, sparks fly behind bars. Will she fall into Sincere's dangerous world-or will their violent past rip them apart?

" 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

𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘢𝘭𝘺𝘻𝘦𝘥 𝘤𝘢𝘶𝘴𝘦 𝘸𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥𝘯'𝘵 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘦𝘢𝘤𝘩 𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘢𝘭𝘰𝘯𝘦, 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘧𝘦𝘭𝘵 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘸𝘦 𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘴𝘶𝘧𝘧𝘰𝘤𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘥.

𝐚 𝐧𝐮𝐫𝐬𝐞 𝐧𝐚𝗺𝐞𝐝 𝐃𝗼𝐯𝐞 𝐢𝐬 𝐜𝐮𝐫𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐥𝐲 𝐛𝐮𝐬𝐲 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐰𝗼𝐫𝐤, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝗺𝐚𝐧𝐲 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐫𝐞𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐢𝗼𝐧𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐩 𝐁𝐔𝐓 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐬 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐬𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐚𝐯𝐞𝐝 𝐚 𝐩𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐟𝐫𝗼𝗺 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐡𝐞 𝐠𝐫𝗼𝐰𝐬 𝐚𝐧 𝗼𝐛𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐞𝐢𝗼𝐧 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐡𝐞𝐫...

𝙆𝙞𝙡𝙡 𝙤𝙧 𝙗𝙚 𝙠𝙞𝙡𝙡𝙚𝙙 𝙞𝙩'𝙨 𝙖 𝙫𝙞𝙘𝙞𝙤𝙪𝙨 𝙘𝙮𝙘𝙡𝙚. 𝙃𝙚𝙧 𝙡𝙞𝙛𝙚 𝙨𝙤𝙢𝙚 𝙬𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙧𝙪𝙞𝙣𝙚𝙙 𝙬𝙝𝙚𝙣 𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙢𝙤𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙡𝙚𝙛𝙩 𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙖𝙩 𝙨𝙪𝙘𝙝 𝙖𝙣 𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙡𝙞𝙚𝙧 𝙖𝙜𝙚, 𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙙𝙖𝙙 𝙡𝙚𝙖𝙫𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙮𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙨 𝙡𝙖𝙩𝙚𝙧. 𝙒𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙥𝙖𝙧𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙨 𝙗𝙚𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙜𝙤𝙣𝙚, 𝙨𝙝𝙚 𝙛𝙞𝙣𝙙𝙨 𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙨𝙚𝙡𝙛 𝙩𝙧𝙖𝙥𝙥𝙚𝙙 𝙞𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙝𝙖𝙣𝙙𝙨 𝙤𝙛 𝙚𝙫𝙞𝙡. 𝘼𝙨 𝙢𝙖𝙣𝙞𝙥𝙪𝙡𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙘𝙤𝙧𝙧𝙪𝙥𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣 𝙩𝙖𝙠𝙚𝙨 𝙥𝙡𝙖𝙘𝙚, 𝙬𝙚 𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙧𝙩 𝙩𝙤 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙠; 𝙖𝙧𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙮 𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙡𝙡𝙮 𝙜𝙤𝙣𝙚 𝙤𝙧 𝙖𝙡𝙡 𝙖𝙥𝙖𝙧𝙩 𝙤𝙛 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙡𝙞𝙩𝙩𝙡𝙚 𝙜𝙖𝙢𝙚.

"I made the decision to cheat on my wife because I liked the way you made me feel vulnerable and comfortable enough to open up to you the night before it happened. I ain't never did shit like that before and that's what made it easy for me to choose to risk everything I got for you." "That shit probably not a big deal to you but a nigga like me ain't never opened up to nobody but my best friend-and still..that's rare. I hate even talking about her with you but I don't even feel comfortable talking to Ariana about my feelings 'cause I know she gon' judge me. You don't make me feel like that."

"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

Hakeem Esias Jones grew up with nothing. From the very moment he could walk and talk, he learned to survive by any means necessary-stealing, fighting, and looking out for himself. Raised on the streets, the street code became his only guide, and he accepted the life of a thief as his fate, believing it was all he'd ever be. But when life took an unexpected turn when gang leader Sosa, the man who had lifted him off the streets, gave him a high-stakes mission. Confident in his skills, Hakeem-known for his cocky, unshakeable demeanor-thought he could pull it off without a hitch. Hakeem had no idea just how wrong he was. The target was, Sailym and Kaism Hills. Hakeem had no clue how powerful or dangerous they truly were until he found himself caught, red-handed, breaking into their house at three in the morning. Let's just say, nothing went as planned. | DISCONTINUED