Promise Walker was sheltered, sweet, and way too innocent for the world Dave East ruled. She heals kids for a living. He breaks men for a living. They were never meant to meet- But when soft meets savage, nothing stays the same.

My works #3 infatuation /ɪnˌfatjʊˈeɪʃn/ noun an intense but short-lived passion or admiration for someone or something. first it was infatuation, then it was love.

Two guarded souls who recognize the ache in each other, trying not to fall too hard but drawn together anyway. Their love simmers beneath the surface-fierce, quiet, and complicated. He's her storm in silence; she's his peace in chaos *Unedited 𝑷𝑼𝑹𝑷𝑳𝑬𝑹𝑨𝑨𝑰𝑵 _® Started: 12/13/22 Published: 12/23/22 End: 12/29/23

"You can't see the future. I might have a chance. You don't know for sure." He mumbled, making her expression soften. "M-my mom used to tell me t-that birds still sing even after a storm. Why shouldn't people feel as free t-to delight in whatever sunlight remains to them?" Samir stopped talking for a moment to regather himself so that he didn't stutter, but Nina froze completely. "You don't have to settle with him Nina. It's been five years an-and you're not a-as happy as you should be. You smile differently with me.. and you cry a lot with him. I just think that you deserve to enjoy your time with someone other than h-him for a minute because there's still sunlight out there for you too, even if you can't see it yet." How did he become her source of 𝐩𝐞𝐚𝐜𝐞 so 𝐞𝐟𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐥𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐥𝐲? A short story.

Sometimes life gets weird. You lose hope, then you'll fall down, but then you'll get back up again. Sage did. So hang in there; it gets better, with time. A short story.

Janeisha "Neisha" Bambi has always survived by staying small. Head low. Mouth shut. No waves, no risks, no getting caught up in the kind of business that comes with bodies, secrets, and street names that echo. But all it takes is one night-one favor for her best friend-to slide her straight into the orbit of Seven "Saint" Carter. Saint is discipline wrapped in quiet menace. A man the streets don't just respect-they fear. The type Neisha promised herself she'd never look at twice. He doesn't chase. He doesn't beg. He doesn't explain. Yet somehow... he does all of this for her. And when that calm, unreadable gaze settles on Neisha, her careful world starts to crack. Now Saint's patience is running out. Neisha's defenses are falling apart. And the pull between them is starting to feel less like a choice and more like fate. He's trying to shield her from the life he lives. She's trying to decide if loving him is salvation... or self-destruction. Because in a world built on loyalty, violence, and revenge; love is the most dangerous thing you can touch.

"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."

"We shouldn't be doing this and you know it. It's so wrong.....but I've never felt something so wrong, feel so right." "If it feels right even when you know you got a man then it may not be wrong. Either way I'm yours still."

The line between loyalty and love was thinner than they imagined.

I was always lost on what freedom and love looked like. I thought it looked like moving away at first, then it turned into just being able to go into town without worry. After that it looked just like a man I used to know, and after he left. I had no idea what exactly freedom should look, taste, sound or smell like anymore. I thought I had everything I needed growing up, and that freedom didn't exactly matter. Why care about it, as long as we were locked away together? Now years and a few months later, I was forced to figure that out. What freedom looked like for me.