Page 32 of Falling Into Gravity

“Why you didn’t come say anything to me?” she asked.

Malik huffed. “Everybody don’t need to know you know me…it ain’t always safe, Dorothy.”

She kissed her teeth. “You telling them to stay away from me don’t plant the seed that maybe you know me?”

The air between them hummed.

“Truth is…” Malik scratched at his jaw. “My life hella loud right now. Like, the streets won’t shut up…my thoughts either. So, no I ain’t want the world to know I’m orbiting close to you, but I had to let my people know you was off limits.”

Malik wasn’t the type of man that expressed his feelings. Until now, he never really acknowledged he had feelings. In Crescent, feelings got you killed and came at an expense he was tired of paying.

“Damn,” she whispered. “You tryna make a bitch blush at 4:18 in the morning?”

“Nah,” he laughed. “I’m just tryna fall somewhere safe for once.”

The line got still again, like even the cell towers were holding their breath.

Aku’s voice cut through, “You ever think about gravity?”

Malik frowned slightly, confused. “Like the force?”

“Yea,” her tone was dreamy and a little playful. “How it always pulls you where you supposed to be. No matter how far you float off, it brings you right back.”

He let her words sit…let the weight of them hit places inside him he didn’t even know was open. “You fallin’?” His voice a little rough now.

“I might be,” she confessed. “But don’t let me hit the ground.”

Malik closed his eyes, the streets, the demons—all fading out. “I got you...I promise.”

“What’s your biggest fear?” Aku could tell she had him wide open, so she wanted to dig deeper.

Malik rubbed his hand over his head, eyes scanning the ceiling. “Bein’ remembered for all the wrong shit.” He didn’t have to think long and hard because he already knew the answer.

“Like what?”

“The streets...the mistakes...the version of me that only exists in old beef and bad memories.”

Aku gulped. “But that’s not all you are.”

“I know that. Youthinkyou know that, but sometimes the streets don’t care. It just wanna label you and move on.”

He heard her shift again, maybe onto her side.

“You want kids?” she asked, holding her breath. She’d asked Devin this and even when he was honest, she stuck around longer than she should’ve. Not this time though.

“Yea…I think I do. But only if I’m healed enough not to hand them my demons.”

Aku’s breath caught. “I respect that. My mama always said love ain’t supposed to complete you—it’s supposed toholdyou while you become who you’re meant to be.”

“She sounds wise.”

“She is,” Aku’s voice smiled. “She’s a wild card sometimes, but Solar has the best heart.”

Malik’s shoulders relaxed for the first time all night. “I like you, Aku.”

“I know.”

“I’m serious.”

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