The Little Spot on Lennox

 It started with Malik sayin’, “Man, I’m hungry hungry. Not that lil’ snack hungry—I'm talkin’ real-life struggle hungry.”

Soon as he said that, everybody in the group chat came alive.

Jay typed, “Lemme grab my shoes. Where we goin’?”
Tiana: “Ion care where, long as the food hittin’.”
Dre just sent the eyes emoji, which meant “I’m in.”

Next thing you know, they all met up on Lennox Ave, right in front of that hole-in-the-wall soul food spot with the faded sign and the line always out the door. You know the kinda place—no fancy logo, no cute décor, just pure flavor and somebody auntie in the back seasonin’ from the ancestors.

Malik rubbed his hands together. “Aight, we eatin’ GOOD today.”

Soon as they stepped in, the smell hit ’em—smoked turkey, collard greens, mac and cheese, sweet cornbread fresh out the oven. Tiana stopped mid-step like the aroma slapped her.

“Hold up,” she whispered dramatically, “I need a moment. This smell got me emotional.”

Jay laughed so hard she almost dropped her phone. “Girl, get up in this line before somebody mama cut us.”

They ordered enough food to start arguments: fried catfish, yams shining like they been glazed in holy water, chicken wings fried so hard they could survive the apocalypse, peach cobbler with the crust lookin’ like it had attitude.

They found a table outside, sittin’ on the curb like teenagers even though they were way too grown for that. Didn’t matter. The food required no decorum.

Jay bit into her catfish and froze. “Y’all. Y’ALL. I ain’t lyin’—this fish just healed somethin’ in me.”

Dre nodded with a mouth full of mac. “This mac hittin’ like somebody prayed over it twice.”

Tiana pointed her fork at Malik. “Thank you for bein’ hungry today. Real talk.”

Malik smirked. “You’re welcome. I do what I can.”

They ate, laughed so loud folks walking by started smiling too, play-argued over who stole whose cornbread, and roasted each other for absolutely no reason.

When the plates were empty and the sun started droppin’, Jay leaned back against the wall.

“Days like this?” she said. “Makes everything else feel lighter.”

Malik nodded. “Good friends, good food… that’s all you need sometimes.”

Tiana slapped her knee. “Aight, y’all bein’ sentimental again. Lemme finish this cobbler before one of y’all try to take it.”

They all cracked up, the sound echoing down Lennox like its own kind of music.