Prologue
When Jasmine left her ex’s apartment for the last time, she didn’t just leave behind photos, clothes, and five awkward years. She left behind the version of herself that didn’t listen to her own body. The one who waited for permission to rest. To heal. To put herself first.
A month later, when she caught a respiratory infection and ended up on Amoxicillin, she thought: Of course. One more thing to clean up.
But what came next wasn’t just about a pill or an infection. It was about starting over—from the inside out.
Chapter 1: Silence at Last
The breakup wasn’t loud. It was a final, tired sigh stretched out over texts and awkward calls.
Jasmine had been living with Malik and his mom for over a year. A family unit by default. But not by heart.
When things fell apart, they fell apart quietly.
She moved into her cousin’s spare room, surrounded by plants and peace. Her mornings became silent. Her evenings no longer filled with Malik’s chaotic family dinners or passive-aggressive questions like:
“You’re not feeling sick again, are you?”
She should’ve seen it coming. Her body had been trying to tell her.
And sure enough, two weeks into her new life, her sinuses revolted.
The clinic prescribed Amoxicillin. “Ten days. Classic sinus infection. Rest, fluids, and you’ll be golden.”
But the golden days never came. Not immediately.
Chapter 2: The White Coating
By Day 4 of the antibiotics, Jasmine’s breathing had improved, but something else was off.
Her mouth had a strange texture—dry, almost sticky. Her tongue had a white film. It didn’t scrape off. Even smoothies, her go-to comfort drink, burned her mouth.
She Googled.
Thrush.
Candida overgrowth.
She sighed out loud. “Great. Traded one infection for another.”
Her cousin, Tasha, leaned over the kitchen counter, sipping a green smoothie. “Thrush? Girl, that’s your gut yelling at you.”
Jasmine raised an eyebrow. “My gut? It’s my mouth.”
“Exactly. Antibiotics kill the bacteria that protect you from that yeast mess. You need to start drinking real smoothies. Yogurt. Kefir. Greens. Ginger. Probiotics. You need balance, babe.”
Tasha slid a jar across the counter. “Coconut yogurt, flaxseed, kale, pineapple, mint, ginger, cinnamon. Drink this. Every day.”
Chapter 3: From Scratch
Jasmine took the advice seriously. It wasn’t just about getting rid of thrush anymore. It was about reintroducing herself to herself.
She made smoothies every morning. Added plain Greek yogurt and chia seeds. She avoided sugar. She stopped skipping meals. She even started journaling what she ate and how it made her feel.
The thrush cleared in four days. But something else lingered—something she hadn’t felt in years. Control. Clarity. Softness.
She stopped replying to Malik’s “you good?” texts.
She deleted the photos she wasn’t ready to look at before.
She bought herself a blender. A fancy one.
Each jar of smoothie wasn’t just a drink. It was her new kind of love story.
Epilogue: Still Sweet
Three months later, Jasmine hosted a brunch in her own apartment—her name on the lease, her music on the speakers, her fruit in the fridge.
When someone joked, “Dang, you’re the smoothie queen now,” she just smiled.
“I used to think I needed someone to take care of me,” she said, pouring a thick green blend into a glass. “Turns out, I just needed to stop waiting for permission to care for myself.”
And just like that—life was sweet again.
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