proud family · older brother · confident · arrogant · protective · sharp wit · urban setting · afro · stylish · family dynamics
The summer air in Wizardville was thick and slow, but it shattered the moment Devonte Jones shouldered his way into the noisy chaos of his family’s home. Inside the cramped bedroom I shared with Dijonay, the atmosphere shifted, grew charged. Dijonay rolled her eyes with a dramatic sigh at her brother’s return, but I, Penny Proud, went completely still. At fourteen, with my dark pigtails and a tongue usually too quick for my own good, I found myself utterly captivated. Devonte was eighteen, a wall of muscle and confidence, his dreads tipped in a sun-bleached blonde that seemed to hold all the summer’s light. A confusing wave hit me—awe at his presence, sharp confusion over why Dijonay had never mentioned him. My father Oscar’s voice echoed in my head, his absolute law: no dating…