Laugh like you will never get hurt, Breathe like you are running out of oxygen, Live like you are never going to die... But be careful of who you smile with...

Emily Gilmore. Brown straight hair, warm chocolate eyes, skinny body and shy personality. She has never been the kind of girl to stand out. In fact, she always preferred standing in the background, reading her books and not bothering anyone else. Scott Preston. Light brown hair, electric grey eyes, sculpted body and outgoing personality. He has always been the kind of guy who befriended everybody. Popular, kind and gentle. He spoke his mind without a second thought, and he didn't care what anybody thought of him. Emily was sure Scott had no idea who she was, even though they had been going to the same schools since she can remember. Scott has no clue who this mysterious, quiet Emily is, yet, something about her calls to him. He wants to break her shell, even when she's enveloped in countless layers of protection and social anxiety. After an assignment joins these two together, Emily is bound to not make a fool of herself while Scott does his best to be her friend. #1 in romance-friendship: 08/24/2018. Thanks for giving my story a chance! I really hope you enjoy it :D

Confusion. The disorientation during a situation which can result in misguided decisions being made, which one will highly regret when they are no longer confused. This is what defined the worst moment in my life; confusion. This basic concept is what led to many sleepless nights, followed by long, agonizing days. This simplistic idea brought me to tears, and, eventually, led me right over the edge of my sanity. Because of my regretful decision, I have lived only in part, with more than 75% of me flashing back to the calm before the storm; To a time where happiness fueled my smile, and you were the only one that I always turned to. Now, I sit here idly, watching my phone in sorrow as I realize that another message will go ignored while living under the wrongful pretense of being "just friends". And to think... my life would resolve down to nothing more than binary code, and a letter to seal my gruesome fate. Let this be a message to all who stand in the grey area that is confusion: rethink your decisions, because should you pick wrong, you will regret it for the rest of your life. The number of people who truly know the contents of these pages is few, but in the end, I am only really writing to you: the colorblind prince.

|| 3rd Place, Teen Fiction winner of the Lavender Awards|| Right out of high school and starting her first year in university, Claire Paisley thought she knew what she wanted. Following in her father's footsteps seemed like the right thing to do to make her parents proud. There's only one problem, she doesn't actually want to be an accountant for the rest of her life. In fact, her brother telling her to drop out seemed like the best thing to have ever happened to her. Maybe for the first time, she'll finally take a leap of faith and question everything she thought she knew about herself. And ending up across the ocean, with her stupid advice column, might just grant her the wish she's always dreamed of, to know what it's like to be in love... and also learn what that means. ***Completed May 17th, 2019!!!***