If you cool with the shit baby then it's on you

BOOK I "The past is the past. Still, I'll always be your best friend, right?" Jermaine said, and I couldn't help but laugh. Clearly, he had forgotten what being a best friend really meant. I was focused on finishing my master's, teaching, and spending my free time at my friend's club-there was no space for anyone else in my life, especially someone I thought was gone for good. Xoxo, The best friend 💋

When Iris Maicei Gray returns home in search of a luxury condo, she doesn't expect to find Silas Jamar Smith: the quiet boy from her childhood who grew into a self-made construction company owner with a past as solid as the buildings he restores. As unfinished spaces force them into close proximity, old assumptions begin to crack. Silas sees Iris beyond her polish, while Iris is forced to question the life she built to keep herself untouched. Torn between the comfort of status and the vulnerability of being truly seen, Iris must confront the belief that has shaped every relationship she's ever known: that she is easier to 𝐰𝐚𝐧𝐭 than to 𝐥𝐨𝐯𝐞. Because sometimes, the person who builds everything from the ground up is the only one who can see what's worth keeping.

tyriq withers x reader / ex!tyriq / 2.8k words.

FANFIC UNDER EDITING !

"She not like the others, Ma. She real." Phoenyx spoke with conviction. "She makes me feel-" "Like a bitch." Persephone cut in, raising off of the couch. "You lettin' her soften you up. I ain't raise you to be no simp." "Forreal, Ma?" Phoenyx felt the heat rising to his face, a mixture of embarrassment and anger. "Why can't you just let me have this?" "Have what?" Persephone scoffed. "This shit ain't you. You gon' start actin' like somebody's fuckin' husband now? You think love gon' save you in these streets?" • • • • • • 𝙰 𝚗𝚎𝚐𝚕𝚎𝚌𝚝𝚎𝚍 𝚜𝚙𝚊𝚛𝚔 𝚌𝚊𝚗 𝚌𝚊𝚞𝚜𝚎 𝚊 𝚛𝚊𝚐𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚏𝚒𝚛𝚎. ❤️‍🔥👻 𝙱𝚘𝚘𝚔 𝟹 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚅𝚊𝚕𝚎𝚗𝚝𝚒𝚗𝚎 𝚜𝚎𝚛𝚒𝚎𝚜 (𝚜𝚙𝚒𝚗-𝚘𝚏𝚏)

He holds her heels. She lets her guard down. And in the space between city lights and silence, two people who weren't looking for love start to feel something they can't explain. No drama. No rush. Just raw connection and a spark that won't quit.

Best friends turned lovers.