Other studies

The background in the top right is amazing. As for the expressions on the bottom, the heads do look a bit blocky, and the hairline on the right one is very rushed. try thinking more roundly? I'm not sure how to put it, but think about the curves as well as the angles.

Perhaps the inanimate blockyness comes from my lack of confidence in drawing faces. I seem to lose fluidity in lines, and shape, when it comes to drawing faces and expressions (seeing that even my hands drawings look more fluid than the face).
As for how to make resolve the issue, I'm not too sure. I think I ultimately need to be able to perceive facial structure in my mind better but... it always vagues up when I try. Hopefully it'll improve more practice. I'll try to keep more natural line/shape expressions in mind next time.

I love how you captured the essence of people in the mall scene!

Don't be afraid to stay in your messy construction phase (rough) as long as you need! For drawing hands, DO draw at least one a day! This has helped me alot (and I'm picking it up again). Two books that helped me alot are: "Figure Drawing: Design and Invention" by Michael Hampton and "Drawing the Head and Hands" by Andrew Loomis.

I love the hands! For the faces, i suggest to try exagerrating the features of the face, by simplyfing it and to focus less on shading, and more on line thickness to show angles. In addition, pre plan the entirety of the cranium before sketching the face. imagine the person is bald; it's important to recognize the angle the head is at, which is hard to do when you focus on hair instead of structure. Especially at the size of the drawing, it's hard to express a a face through complicated and entagled lines.