Have You Ever

  In a forgotten corner of the city, nestled between shuttered storefronts and graffiti-tagged walls, stood Bella Vita , a once-bustling pizza shop now suffocating under fear and silence. The owners, Jaxon and Amara, were barely in their twenties, freshly married and fiercely hopeful. But that hope was eroding fast. Business had slowed to a crawl. A wave of violence had crept into their neighbourhood, pushing customers away and plunging the couple into debt. To make matters worse—or perhaps more poignant—Amara was six months pregnant. Their unborn child became both a beacon of purpose and a cruel reminder of everything at stake. Yet, even as the world turned its back, Jaxon and Amara turned to others. Each evening, with what little they had, they made warm slices for the city's forgotten—homeless men and women who gathered near the railroad tracks. One of them, a weathered man named Solomon, always lingered a little longer, always thanked them a little more earnestly. Unknown to...

  There I was, a weary traveller, far from home on a noble school trip, driven by nothing more than the innocent pursuit of pizza —a universally respected mission.  But fate had other plans, because standing in line before me, in a dazzling display of poor decision-making , was my dear significant other, passionately entangled with some dude from her school. Handholding. Hugging. Full-blown romance package , right there in the middle of my pizza sanctuary . Now, let’s pause to admire the irony— she knew I was in town. Either she had the IQ of a crouton, or she simply did not care. Either way, tragic. Did I make a scene? No, no. I had priorities —and my priority was pizza , not delivering a Shakespearean monologue of heartbreak. Instead, I executed the perfect stealth manoeuvre, approaching from behind like a villain in a psychological thriller, leaning in ever so slightly, and whispering a single, bone-chilling “hi.” She froze. Then, in true guilty-party fashion, she fl...