I don’t ask women out. Not ‘cause I can’t.27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRifvRlmylz
But ‘cause I don’t like giving people that kind of power.27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9G3Q4RoNvE
27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHVRxvXjqZz
27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKVsx7jjJeZ
But Brielle?27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡte6PpPs1Cz
27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡztAo3XzEx6
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She had me doing shit I don’t normally do.27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrVVNCHJ1Sd
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I’d seen her twice since that rooftop night. Both times, the vibe was there—undeniable. She’d look at me with those eyes like she knew I was dangerous but didn’t care. And I’d look at her like I already made peace with the fact that if this went bad, it’d be my fault for getting too close.27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXTnevftou7
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So I pulled up to No Chill ATL around closing time. Waited ‘til the last drunk couple stumbled out and the lights dimmed.27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡACpN5c8YvY
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She was wiping down tables, music low in the background, hair tied up, lip gloss shining like she was trying to distract me.27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ13gqUNTGOd
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I stood by the bar and waited. She didn’t even look up.27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8GB0vjZ985
27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDQEMHE0UVx
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“You just gon’ stand there breathing all heavy like you tryna memorize me?”27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡf3WgoTNSpO
27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwBrKCLOEo6
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“Something like that.”27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQRxA48figD
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She glanced at me, smirked, then went back to wiping.27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfmRwgZGS3F
27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0CAhY7UhjS
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I stepped closer.27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡt5zB67RH1S
27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLNBbKzzd1t
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“Let me take you out.”27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjgTtctHauz
27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGcqljlITCA
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She froze for half a second—barely—but I caught it.27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQmFfASvjyU
27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡw0vQOuWOx8
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“Out where?”27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6mrCxw3rx6
27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuAk2MabkKI
27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡN2C5GrlDoI
“Somewhere that don’t got dice, drinks, or dollar signs attached to it.”27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIYWUUmiQM2
27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXCPMAYR8oj
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“So… what? Church?”27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡd2uk0FHFBN
27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7yuKZsQpAo
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I laughed. She had jokes.27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgoEOgBxWH1
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“Nah, not church. But somethin’ light. You, me, real food. Real conversation.”27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlphlzD9XcG
27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡC9DWh90T3b
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She set the rag down and leaned on the table, eyes narrowed like she was trying to figure out if I was serious.27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSqSoJ3LV5M
27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8hg9lA5SmU
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“You asking me out? Or tryna collect a debt?”27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTUFO1aLy0r
27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQHegww7jUe
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“I’m askin’.”27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHjRhzydyg6
27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLIi1dwzglv
27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡS7Sa00O5RX
“And what if I say no?”27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdF2gLBlhWa
27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEIGeKIlbMz
27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3bH0QSdOtj
“Then I’ll ask again next week. And the one after that.”27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcDr1QOAUtc
27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeytA26PDAG
27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHkQCr7lWx1
She tilted her head like she was trying to hide her smile, then shrugged.27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIGHR1QzPXA
27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjYukd9XHEe
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“I mean… I guess if I ain’t got nothin’ better to do.”27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ87gX5iOBUo
27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAdcGSAfEDZ
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I stepped in a little closer.27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7bEbUWtzSA
27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqWJZGHfbAr
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“So that’s a yes?”27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZsKW7zFWhy
27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpIQ5EyL9u5
27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTYgU5xw7Kx
“It’s a ‘maybe I’ll let you spend your money on me if I get bored.’”27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgwSVbFxhL3
27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnNTKEbMUOe
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I just smiled.27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡT2AQPzJ21d
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“Cool. I’ll send you the address. Saturday. Don’t be late.”27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxbfzxC1660
27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSm3eUAFvLB
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“I don’t do late. I just do entrances.”27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHkoP0fKT2m
27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzzF7X5UBo6
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She turned around and walked away, hips swinging like she knew damn well what she was doing to me.27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4mM21ihRXr
27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgWkyxP9bFd
27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0cbGzSdKKh
And me?27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzkf8qiCu42
27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡO6qF6Pn6bx
27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7e06tsyuZ4
I left grinning like a damn fool.27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUpY2QeFyEz
27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlFg80GN775
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She said yes.27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡk4Qpsh2EVI
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Even if she tried to play like she didn’t mean it, I saw it in her eyes.27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTrWiLgQkGJ
27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfzt9IjQXBd
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She was just as curious as I was.27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGa0QcSZHPW
27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡI7P307I5w9
27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQSNPMbjped
And now?27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhxn2RuLXyP
We were about to find out exactly what that curiosity could turn into.
The restaurant wasn’t fancy—just a little spot tucked away with flickering candles and vinyl records playing low in the background. But to me, it was perfect.27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMj9r9xdWeo
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She showed up looking like she owned every room she walked into, lips curved like she was daring me to mess up. I couldn’t help but smile.27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡE5g8JZ1J9A
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We ordered food, talked about everything and nothing. Music. Childhood. The kind of shit that makes the world feel small enough to hold in your hands.27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡz0KgsefdyR
27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDC8TUWmk60
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But there was tension beneath it all.27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡS1JxGloCFw
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She kept glancing at her phone, like she was waiting on a message or trying to stay ready for a text from a past I didn’t belong in. I wanted to ask what was wrong, but I didn’t.27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjPS2MFUoi5
27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFa53B8V06E
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Until I slipped.27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZLFyTu9l3K
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I was telling her about growing up in a house with seven brothers—loud, chaotic, rough around the edges. Then I said something I hadn’t meant to say out loud.27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrahg9UMQnQ
27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdAXAsVQF38
27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyplX42B97Q
“Sometimes… I feel like I gotta control everything else ‘cause the one thing I can’t control is how people see me.”27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzio5ae7LPt
27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPSzerpBcmF
27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡARqMhholsq
She looked at me then, not like I was Kairo the tough guy, but Kairo the man hiding cracks under the surface.27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZ5zHBxJMjG
27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJXExqES67s
27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHAeYH7o2a7
That silence wasn’t awkward. It was real.27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJLr4ToWRle
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She reached across the table and brushed her fingers over mine.27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkHXKBctiKg
27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdBIAO2dG4d
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“That’s a lot to carry.”27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcDImzT6EV0
27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDmrxwIMqpn
27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0OFvDdXeNP
“Yeah… but it’s my shit.”27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5XvdkufiZm
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27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡr2HfMiTYjh
After dinner, I took her back to my place—a small, clean apartment with just enough space to feel like home. That’s where she saw it.27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7WNoyGRe1Y
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The way every book on my shelf was perfectly aligned.27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡB6NRQP7ErR
How the dishes were stacked by size and color.27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNg1SQq1JMK
The way I checked the locks twice before sitting down.27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcEtahnweHL
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“You’re kinda… particular.”27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4IcfH18vSM
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I laughed it off, but she caught the edge.27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqJm8r2UTGA
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“I got OCD. It’s like a voice in my head telling me things gotta be right or I can’t breathe.”27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxhRr89CCDW
27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtlOCLzKSef
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She nodded like she understood that struggle more than I’d thought.27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsPvYMVyUAO
27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOOZs8XkPH0
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Just then, my brothers showed up—three of them—each one a little different, but all loud and protective. They joked around with Brielle, throwing playful jabs but making sure she felt included.27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡByq6Or4pOS
27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVEIGRQM3WZ
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She smiled like she was already fighting her way into our world.27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHa2FSmHy1G
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27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡT3tktDcT6a
That night, between the neat lines and the rough edges, something shifted.27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡn4Id6gZJsi
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I wasn’t just a tough guy anymore.27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkFcvOBMPQs
And she wasn’t just the girl behind the bar.27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZDOobJlkvy
27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCY7hqnjBeF
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We were starting to be something real.27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5x9vi51Rp6
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27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0utN11Glke
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