Life has a way of taking you down and swallowing you whole. Just ask Aakeem Graham, who's sixteen years old and living a sheltered life. Things take a turn for the worst for Aakeem when she meets up with the wrong crowd and ends up being sentenced to ten years in prison. Aakeem quickly learns that friends aren't really friends, and the two people she expects to be there quickly disappear. Meeting a young sweet girl named Marley changes her life. With the loss of those "friends," she gains real ones in the process. But who will be there when her time is up? Maximiliano Sparks leads a simple life. He and his best friend, Azen, run the city. He does it legally while Azen, on the other hand, does it illegally. Neither one of them are thinking about settling down. Even though Max has a girlfriend named Joy, his mind is on other pressing matters, and Joy ends up having to take a back seat to those matters. Can Joy get Max's mind right, or will she get lost in the mix? Azen, or AZ as he is called by many, is who some would call a playboy. With great looks and large pockets, every girl wants a place by his side. AZ could care less about what a chick thinks or wants. That's just who he is. Is there a girl bad enough to bring this playboy to his knees? There will be crazy exes, jealous friends, and foes. Aakeem, Max, Azen, and Marley have to learn that it's a long way down when you're trying not to fall.