ˡⁱᶠᵉ ᵒᶠ ⁿᵇᵃ ʸᵒᵘⁿᵍᵇᵒʸˢ ᵈᵃᵘᵍʰᵗᵉʳ

At North Ridge, reputations are everything - and this year, hers might be the one everybody's trying to ruin. Because being "Ms. Banks" comes with attention. And not all of it is love.

Skye moves with a purpose. Every candle she lights, every sketch she draws, every mural she paints is a piece of her heart, a reminder that life is meant to be created and celebrated. Out of state and far from the familiar, she carries her art as both armor and invitation, hoping the city will respond to her vision. Micah watches from the sidelines. Quiet, observant, and often demanding, he's never been drawn to anyone like this before. Her brightness unsettles him, challenges him, and slowly awakens a part of him he thought had been buried for good. As the city becomes their canvas, Skye and Micah discover that growth, love, and creativity aren't things that happen alone. Sometimes the most unexpected partnerships - like a quiet man and a wildhearted artist - can transform not just walls, but lives, and help beauty bloom in even the loneliest places. WRITTEN : MARCH 1ST. PUBLISHED : MARCH 13TH. FINISHED :

"𝐘'𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐠𝐨𝐭𝐭𝐚 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐦𝐢𝐬𝐞 𝐦𝐞 𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧," 𝐀𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐢 𝐬𝐚𝐢𝐝 𝐬𝐨𝐟𝐭𝐥𝐲. "𝐍𝐨 𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐬... 𝐰𝐞 𝐚𝐫𝐞𝐧'𝐭 𝐠𝐨𝐧𝐧𝐚 𝐥𝐨𝐬𝐞 𝐞𝐚𝐜𝐡 𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫." 𝐈𝐬𝐚𝐢𝐚𝐡 𝐥𝐚𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐞𝐝 𝐚 𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐭𝐥𝐞. "𝐘𝐨𝐮 𝐬𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐧 𝐝𝐫𝐚𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐜." 𝐄𝐥𝐢𝐣𝐚𝐡 𝐬𝐡𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐝. "𝐍𝐚𝐡... 𝐬𝐡𝐞 𝐫𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡." "𝐖𝐞 𝐟𝐚𝐦𝐢𝐥𝐲 𝐚𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐩𝐨𝐢𝐧𝐭." 𝐓𝐚𝐢𝐥𝐚 𝐬𝐚𝐢𝐝, 𝐥𝐚𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐬𝐨𝐟𝐭 𝐥𝐨𝐨𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐠𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐩. Set in South Central Los Angeles, this story follows a tight circle of friends navigating love, loyalty, and life shaped by the streets. As relationships spark, fade, and collide, each choice carries weight, proving that in a city that doesn't slow down, love shows up in more ways than one and not everyone makes it out the same. "In the city of angels, everybody had a love story. Not everybody survived it."

"𝘾𝙝𝙞𝙘𝙖𝙜𝙤 𝙙𝙞𝙙𝙣'𝙩 𝙨𝙘𝙖𝙧𝙚 𝙈𝙚𝙠𝙖𝙞 𝘽𝙚𝙣𝙣𝙚𝙩 - 𝙪𝙣𝙩𝙞𝙡 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙠𝙞𝙡𝙡𝙚𝙧 𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙧𝙩𝙚𝙙 𝙡𝙤𝙤𝙠𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙗𝙖𝙘𝙠 𝙖𝙩 𝙝𝙞𝙢."

"I don't know how to do this." He was almost embarrassed to admit it. "I ain't been right with you in a long time, but I'm gon' ask anyway. Please don't take her from me." His plea cracked something open inside of his chest. "I know I ain't a good man. I done did some shit that I can't take back and I can't make it right. But she is, she's good. She's the light in so many places I didn't know were dark." "So if there's a price that needs to be paid for all the pain that I have caused in this word and done onto others put it on me. I'll pay it. I swear I will. I'll protect her with my last breath. I'll listen and heed her warnings. I'll slow down and come home more and stop thinking that I'm alone in this world." "Just please let my baby wake up. I love her, I'm in love with her and I can't do this without her. If waking her up means I got to sacrifice letting her go so she can be safe. I'll do that. Just don't take her from this earth." "In Jesus name I pray. Amen."

❛𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒔𝒄𝒂𝒓𝒆𝒅 𝒐𝒇 𝒎𝒆?❜ he asked, voice low like it wasn't meant for nobody but her. 𝒛𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐚𝐡 didn't speak, just tilted her head a little and stepped in close. she traced one of the tattoos on his arm, finger light like a whisper...when she finally looked up, slow and lazy, doe eyes glinting beneath her lashes--she kissed the corner of his mouth. once, twice--then pulled back. 𝒐𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐢 smirked. ❛𝒅𝒊𝒅𝒏'𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒌 𝒔𝒐.❜ ▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄ She doesn't speak-not out loud, not anymore. Zariah Hart's been quiet since the night she lost everything, and moving to The Palisade at Skyview Apartments was supposed to give her a fresh start. No expectations. No questions. Just peace. But peace gets complicated when a man like Omarion Jordan starts showing up in it. He's nothing like she expected. Tatted, quiet, with eyes that read people better than they speak. A mechanic with a past he doesn't explain-and a presence that says more than his mouth does. He doesn't ask about her silence. She doesn't flinch at his reputation. Somehow, that's enough. What starts as simple glances turns into shared space. What feels like comfort turns to something neither of them planned for. But Atlanta doesn't forget what people try to bury. And sometimes, the loudest truth is the one you never say out loud. 𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐑𝐓𝐄𝐃: 𝐉𝐔𝐍𝐄 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

" 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