Express / React and functions working in dev not in prod

I’ve had this app deployed on netlify for a bit but recently updated my codebase to use a backend express app to hide api keys and do some backend processing. That said I know want to/have pushed that code base to netlify and realized that I ether need to create a production server somewhere or use serverless functions.

I’ve never done this before so bare with me.

I came across this resource - Express on Netlify | Netlify Docs
and followed it to a T. I’ve attached a few screenshots so you have an idea of my file structure - my TOML file and a test function i created.

When i run this locally and lets say hit - http://localhost:8888/api/hello im getting my expected response but when i deployed it and try to hit - https://deft-kitten-82350e.netlify.app/.netlify/functions/api/hello which is what shows up in my console orr at least - https://deft-kitten-82350e.netlify.app/.netlify/functions/api does i get 404.

anyone have an starting tips or trricks - i feel like ive tried and read everything to no avail. Really appreciate the help. sorry for the crammed image i can only upload one.

It seems to work. Have you resolved this?