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...
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
Sailym placed her hand on her bare stomach, rubbing on it softly as she walked down the small hallway into the living room, where Kasim was lounging on the couch, scrolling through his phone. Without hesitation, she walked over and perched herself sideways on his lap.
"Yo' stomach still messin' with you?" Kasim asked, setting his phone aside and replacing her own hand with his own, gently massaging her stomach. Sailym slowly nodded her head, leaning her head onto his shoulder, still looking a little worn out.
"Mhm," Sailym sighed. "I should've never had that Chinese food." She now regretted stepping outside her usual diet; the food was good, but her stomach clearly wasn't a fan of the change.
"You was tearin that shit up, though." Kai chuckled, resting his head against hers. Sae let out a laugh before the room settled into a comfortable silence―just the two of them, something they hadn't had in a while.
Suddenly, Sailym lifted her head, her face scrunching up as a thought crossed her mind. "Where's Keemy?" She asked, realizing he was nowhere in sight. Sailym had assumed he was in his room, but the open door said otherwise.
"Keem went out a lil' bit ago." Kasim replied, not thinking much of it.
Kasim hadn't pressed Hakeem about where he was going, choosing to give Keem space―especially after yesterday. Kai trusted him and figured he wasn't out doing anything reckless.
"What was his reaction?" Sailym questioned, referring to the kiss she and Kasim had planned for him.
Originally, Sailym was supposed to be the one to confront Hakeem and kiss him, but they had switched the roles at the last minute. Kasim licked his lips, the thought of the kiss lingering in his mind.
"He ain't say nothing after. Just looked like he was in his head. I thought he was gon' crash out." Kasim admitted. On the outside, Kasim had played it cool, but inside, he'd been a wreck.
Keem hadn't completely withdrawn after it happened, but his responses were clipped, and he avoided Kasim's gaze whenever their eyes met.
"Hmm," Sailym hummed, nodding slowly. "And now how do you feel? I know it's been a minute..." Her fingers traced his jawline as she spoke softly.
Kai shrugged, leaning his head into the crook of her neck. "Ain't gon lie, shit felt a little weird. I ain't messed with no dude in, what, seven years? But it felt... good. Like, it's still a part of me, y'know?"
Sailym bit her bottom lip, her mind racing. "Do you really think this gon' work though? We don't know if Keem's into guys like that. I don't wanna push this on him, and maybe we should just talk to him." She paused, the original plan feeling less and less right.
Their goal was to explore a poly relationship again.
Sailym and Kasim had tried it as young minded teenagers, loving the dynamic of being with someone different while still holding onto each other. But that all fell apart when their own relationship ended.
