Soleia's POV – 2:09 AM, Harlem Streets
Soleia didn't go far after Khylah slammed that door.
She drove around Harlem, looping blocks that didn't need looping, letting the city noise drown out the chaos still vibrating in her fists. Her knuckles were red. Her jaw ached from clenching it too tight.
She knew she messed up. But damn if she didn't want to text her again.
Instead, she posted to her close friends story, petty-style:
[Close Friends IG Story @soblackwell]
🖤 selfie in the car, lip bruised slightly, captioned:
"love make u do dumb shit. good thing I'm smart again."
👀 seen by: @angelstyles, @kayxblessed, @jhenetraps
A minute later:
Khylah: Girl take that shit down. You real bold for a bitch that got swung on.
Soleia: I ain't delete nothing. Truth stay up.
Khylah: Fuck your truth.
Soleia: Bet.
She tossed the phone in her passenger seat. Let it ring. She was tired of arguing, but somehow couldn't stop showing up.
Khylah's POV – 10:47 AM, Campus Grounds
The bruises on her wrist had turned a pale yellow under the hoodie sleeve. She sat on the quad with her iced chai and too much attitude for a Tuesday. The weather was nice, and so was the silence—until it wasn't.
That's when he popped up.
"Yo, is this where the tortured soul of Harlem's baddest lives?"
Khylah didn't even have to look up to smile.
"Ant."
Her older brother, Anthony Malik Smith, dropped his duffle and spread his arms wide. "Ayo! You gon' act like you ain't happy to see me?"
She stood, laughing for the first time in days. "Boy, I thought you was back in Queens."
"Was. Now I'm here. Registered for classes. I'm on y'all campus now."
Khylah blinked. "Wait. What?"
Ant shrugged. "Had to transfer, sis. I'm tryna get my mental right and be closer to moms—and you. Heard you been going through it."
Khylah gave him a look. "Who told you that?"
"Mama. Then Kay. Then your messy ass Finsta."
Khylah groaned.
Ant pulled her into a hug. "You ain't gotta tell me nothin' now. Just know I got you. Always."
Later That Day – Dining Commons
Kay, Jhené, and Khylah all sat around the table like a bad rerun of Love & Hip Hop. Ant was halfway through his spicy chicken sandwich, throwing side-eyes at anyone who stared at his sister too long.
"So she really hit you?" he asked between bites.
"More like grazed," Khylah muttered.
"You hit her first," Jhené reminded.
"Y'all act like I don't know that," Khylah snapped. "I'm not proud of that shit."
"She was choking you!" Kay hissed. "That's not love. That's not even heartbreak. That's danger."
Ant nodded. "She ever pull up again, it's on sight."
Khylah laughed without humor. "I told her not to come back."
"But she will," Jhené muttered.
Everyone fell silent.
Later – Instagram
@angelstyles posted a carousel
Slide 1: A mirror selfie with bruised knuckles and fresh lashes
Slide 2: A notebook page with the words "Some people you gotta love from a locked door."
Slide 3: Boomerang of her and Ant at the dining commons
Caption: Resetting. Relearning. Reclaiming.
🖤 937 likes
💬 Comments:
@kayxblessed: "Proud of you always."
@jhenetraps: "Locked and BOLTED 🔒"
@soblackwell: 👀
8:17 PM – Dorm Room
Khylah stared at her phone. She'd blocked Soleia—but the girl was clever. Too clever.
New Account @soblackwell2:
"You block me but you still look at me. That's not hate, that's habit."
She texted Ant.
Khylah: She makin burner accounts now.
Ant: Want me to handle it?
Khylah: No. I got it. I'm not weak.
Ant: Being tired ain't weak, Khy. Let me know if she pull up fr.
Khylah sighed, turning the phone screen down. She wasn't sure how much longer she could keep pretending Soleia was just a chapter, not the whole damn book.
She lit a stick of sage. Played SZA too loud. Cleaned her room in a frenzy. Scrubbed her skin raw in the shower like she could erase Soleia's fingerprints.
But the quiet after?
Still full of her name.
Midnight Text Thread – Unsent Notes App
I keep pretending you didn't see me as disposable.
But it's me that keeps recycling you.
Maybe I'm addicted to hurting.
Or maybe I'm just scared no one else will know me the way you did.
YOU ARE READING
Again and Again
Teen FictionKhylah is sick of the heartbreak and the games, Soleia swears she loves her but keeps messing up. Will they be able to fix it?
