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He stepped closer, his tall, lanky frame towering over her. “Try me.”

She slid into his space without overthinking it, her arms laced around his neck. His hands fell to her hips—low and respectful.

It wasn’t a club two-step or a crip walk. They moved like something slow had settled between them…something unspoken. Her chest close to his, eyes locked, and their hearts somewhere in between.

Malik leaned his head against hers. “I ain’t danced with nobody since… Shit, I don’t even remember.”

“You doing good,” she murmured, her fingers drawing light circles at the base of his neck.

He closed his eyes…letting the moment hold him…letting her body—warm, steady, soft—show him a version of peace he didn’t know he missed.

This didn’t feel like a fluke.

It felt like something waiting for them to admit it was already real.

When the song ended, neither of them moved at first. They just continued to sway in silence.

“I should go soon,” he whispered, though he didn’t pull back.

“Then go later.”

That cheeky smile and that freckled face, was all it took for Malik to be sucked into Aku’s world. “But I ain’t ‘bout to dance with you all night.”

Aku pushed his chest playfully. “Umm, you ain’t gotta dance with me now. Sit yo’ hard ass down,” she tried to keep a straight face, but it cracked when he stared into her eyes.

Malik tapped her nose, watching her sway her little hips back to the kitchen to pour herself a glass of wine.

Malik sat back down on the couch and Aku tucked one leg under herself again, passing him her wine glass without asking.

He took a sip and handed it back. “You really be drinking like this?”

“Like what?”

“Cute-ass wine…out a plastic cup, feet up, blunt in hand…all fancy and hood at the same time.”

She smiled, chewing on her lip. “That’s the goal…balance.”

He looked around. “Looks like you balancing just fine…no need to create a goal on some shit you already achieving.”

“When you put it like that…”

“You live with them?”

She shook her head. “No, I got my own spot in Madison Heights. But I’ve been staying at the beach house with my best friend who’s also Siasia’s little sister.”

“Cool.” His head bobbed, in a slow rhythm.

She looked at him sideways. “You still at home?”

“Yea...my parents’ house.”

“No shade - that’s smart.” Aku sipped her wine, feeling great from the weed and the drink mixture.

“Not really,” He stretched his legs out. “But those the cards I’ve been dealt...life is all about choices.”

She blinked. “So true.” Aku let the vibe settle between them, quiet but full.

Her eyes traced the fine details of his face.

His hair was long, jet black, the type that looked soft even when it wasn’t.

His lashes curled naturally, making her store-bought ones feel unnecessary.

But it was the subtle scars and the tattoo above his brow that kept pulling her in.

That was her favorite feature. It reminded her of how her mama used to look at her daddy—like the rough edges were the whole point.

Malik had that same kind of presence. He looked like a lost boy, but moved like a leader, and somehow, both made sense.

They sat embracing the quiet for a moment. She played with the drawstring on her pants, then turned her body a little more toward him.

“How you know Zaire?” she asked, desperate to fill the space with words. “The pro golfer?”

He nodded like he expected the question. “He grew up in Crescent too. We used to play basketball on the same block. Then one day he showed up with a golf club talkin’ about ‘I’mma change the world.’ We clowned him for like a year. Then he started winning…”

She grinned. “He seems really grounded.”

“He is…always been different…real focused. Never let the hood box him in…”

“You either?”

He looked at her for a second, then shrugged. “I tried.”

“You succeeded...you have a fuckin’ app, Malik?!”

He nodded, but didn’t say anything.

“You always been into tech?”

“Not always. Pharoah started it, pulled me in and I ain’t looked back yet. I like building shit… solving stuff.”

“That’s dope. Who’s Pharoah?”

He closed his eyes, picturing who Pharoah was before now. A ghost of a smile tugged at his lips. “Pharoah, is my reminder…life ain’t always for the living, sometimes it’s for the lessons.”

Aku gulped, her chest aching at how smooth pain seemed to ease off his lips. Her fingers tingled to touch him. Even if only to remind him that he was still there.

“What about you?” Malik asked, trying to ease the tension of his ominous words. “How you end up styling people?”

She perked up. “That’s easy. My mom used to let me pick out my clothes. I’d throw fits if she tried to change anything. Then my cousin made me style Jacory… you know who that is?”

“Yea, cuh,” Malik laughed. “Don’t start throwin’ round famous folks and shit.”

“I’m not!” Aku shrieked.

“I’m just fuckin’ with you…tell me more.”

“You really wanna know or you just being nice?” Aku’s body leaned in, without her mind telling it to.

His tongue swiped across his lips, before he tucked them in then released them. “I ain’t big on talking so if I’m asking, it’s cause I really want to know.”

Aku blushed. “So, Little Lunar kinda made me style Jacory and the rest was history. Like, I’ve always loved fashion but I think I felt I would just be the heir to my parents’ empire… But like their Lunar gave them a dream, my Lunar gave me purpose…keep shit in the family.”

“You ever think about doing something else?”

She leaned her head against the couch. “I mean…yea, sometimes.”

“Like what?”

She hesitated, then spoke it casually. “Being somebody’s mama…running a household…having a full fridge.”

He raised a brow, “That sound like a dream.”

Girls from Crescent didn’t talk like that. They didn’t grow up dreaming about love or wanting to be somebody’s mama. Survival came first. Everything else felt optional.

“Kinda.” She glanced at him, looking for judgement. “Not just that, though. I still wanna run a business, build a brand. But I want a life too. I don’t wanna be successful and lonely.”

He let that sit before asking, “So…you want the home part to come with the hustle?”

“Exactly.”

He leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees and looking over at her. “You really wanna be somebody’s wife?”

She narrowed her eyes, smiling. “You asking like you about to propose.”

“I’m asking ‘cause you said you wanna be a mama. I’m tryna see if the wife part come with it.”

She laughed and nodded. “Yea, definitely - I wanna do it all…trips, babies, matching pajamas, movie nights…I wanna decorate for fall…that kinda shit.”

“That’s fire.”

She looked at him…serious now. “What about you? You ever think about having a house? Not a mansion, just…something steady?”

He ran his hand over his beard. “Yea, sometimes.”

She waited, but he didn’t say more. He wasn’t hiding—just didn’t have a lot of words for it yet.

Yawning, Malik looked over at her, basking in how inquisitive her eyes felt—like she was looking for all the shit his mouth hadn’t said yet. “Aye, it’s getting late and I ain’t tryna be ridin’ dirty in this neighborhood.”

“Okay,” she said, standing. “Let me walk you to the door.” Aku reached for his hand and he casually placed his in hers. Like she’d lifted him, she smiled when he stood over her, just staring into her almond eyes.

Hand in hand, Aku walked him to the front door like he would get lost if she didn’t. Malik just let her, loving the gentleness of her skin against his.

As they stepped onto the porch, Malik looked up and down the street. It was so quiet - Sky deep blue…wind low.

She leaned against the rail, looking out while he hit the bottom step. “You gon’ message me when you get home?” she asked, voice low but sure.

“You want me to?”

“I wouldn’t say it if I didn’t.”

He smirked and gazed at her. “You always this straightforward?”

“Only when I like somebody.”

“I ain’t nobody to be liking, Dorothy.”

Resting her hand on her hip, Aku swirled her neck. “I don’t like nobody telling me what I should and shouldn’t do. You cool - got good weed. What’s the harm?”

Malik just listened to her logic and even though he had so many rebuttals about all that was wrong with someone like her…liking someone like him, he tucked all of them into his hoodie when he lifted his hood to cover his head.

He nodded once. “Aight.”

They stood there a second longer, letting it be what it was.

“Night, Key.” She snickered.

“No call me Malik…Night, Aku.”

Then he got in his car and pulled off. Aku didn’t move until his taillights disappeared. And even then, she went inside slow, like she was still carrying a piece of the moment with her.