{𝟑𝟔𝟓 𝐃𝐀𝐘𝐒}

𝔸 𝕪𝕖𝕒𝕣 𝕔𝕒𝕟 𝕔𝕙𝕒𝕟𝕘𝕖 𝕠𝕟𝕖𝕤 𝕙𝕖𝕒𝕣𝕥 ❤️
~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~

Esspennaé Dawson knew how to survive. 23, two boys, and not a damn ounce of help outside her grandma's side-eye and seasoned prayers. She was South Halewood born and raised-where the houses leaned like tired aunties, the corner boys were always posted, and love was mostly a lesson in loss. Sundays meant fried catfish, folding chairs in the front yard, and gospel bumping from a Bluetooth speaker somebody swore was "loud enough."

Esspennaé didn't have time for romance. She had daycare alarms, double shifts, and just enough energy to grease scalps and keep her boys outta trouble. Her world ran on routine-clock in, clock out, keep it pushing. That is, until she got transferred across the city to the North Crystal Heights branch.

Now that was a different world entirely.

North Crystal Heights had cold-pressed juice, yoga moms with French bulldogs, and elevators that didn't creak. The streets were cleaner, the rent was higher, and everybody walked like they had somewhere important to be. Esspenaé felt like a fish fry at a wine tasting-out of place but unbothered.

Then she met Mahliek Grimes.

He was all Brooklyn swagger and lowkey vulnerability. A 26 year old single dad with a soft spot for his daughters and a bad habit of ghosting when things got too real. Mahliek was the type to flirt just to see you smile, then turn around and blast Sade in traffic like his heart was somewhere stuck in 2004.

At first it was just banter by the vending machine. Then it was playlists, voice notes, car rides to nowhere. Laughter turned into touch. Comfort turned into complication.

But when two people are still healing-still trying to unlearn what love isn't; can they make space for what it could be in just 365 days?