Ari Callahan has no idea how to talk to boys -- or how to talk to anyone for that matter. Enter Zac, the cute new guy in town who won't stop texting her. But is his interest real, or does he have a hidden agenda? ***** Found as a young child washed up on the beach, 17-year-old Ari Callahan has never uttered a word out loud to anyone -- not even her adoptive family. Psychologists have diagnosed her with a condition called selective mutism, but Ari can't help identifying with her namesake character, Ariel, the little mermaid in the fairytale whose voice was stolen by a sea witch. Mermaid-obsession aside, Ari's silence makes socializing tough. She's never had a boyfriend or been asked out on a date. Not until Zac, the confident new arrival in town, asks for her number. But Zac has his own reasons for texting with Ari. He's part of a movement to sabotage the artificial music app called SirenSong, threatening to render human singing obsolete. Zac's collaborators have scoured the globe in search of a singing voice perfect enough to break the SirenSong spell, and their search has led them straight to Ari's beachside town. Will her relationship with Zac help Ari find her voice and unlock the secrets of her origins? Or will he use her and leave her high and dry? Title: Ari and Zac (formerly The Mermaid Hypothesis) Content Warning: This story contains references to selective mutism, suicidal thoughts, and early childhood trauma.

My grandmother always told me how the world used to be loud and filled with noises that would give people headaches. I always thought she was crazy until she had to die for what she believed. The world nearly ended because of a nuclear war. The planet earth went into complete silence. After years and years of little communication among the survivors, our bodies had grown accustomed to hearing little to nothing. Grandmother calls it being "deaf." This year marks the 100th anniversary of the silence, and I'm about to find out how this came to be. Why grandmother was so worked up about letting the past be known to the public that she had to sacrifice herself for it. Finding the truth won't be easy since many have died because of it, but I'm about to dig it all up from the past. Cover By: antidotal DO NOT COPY.

A small but ever-growing collection of original poetry from the mind of a 19 year old pothead. This is home to a large range of thoughts, feelings, and ideas that cloud my head in poetry form.

Hush a-bye baby, you're almost dead. You have no pulse, and you're pillow is red. This blades come to lift you, as you watch yourself bleed. Now sleep with the angels, 'cause they're all you need.

I want to see this wall crumble. If not with swords and hammers then with strength and strength of mind. Some of us will die but heroes will be welcomed by the Sky Father. We will open a way to the glorious kingdom beyond. Beat the drums, sound the horns. Let them hide behind their precious walls with the fear of death in their hearts. Let them see how mighty we Mongols truly are!

I'm in love with a boy. He has red hair and blue eyes, and skin as pretty and perfect as marble. And one of these days, he's going to burst into flames.

This is a poem book with an eerie twist to the holidays and seasons. Bringing you deep into the chilling secrets of winter and the hot deceptions of summer.

When death means life and life means death how do you keep the line from blurring? Man has long since been destroyed, nature has reclaimed the earth and all that remains are the Hylen – a race of alien-human hybrids indoctrinated since birth to believe one thing: they are the tainted souls of the humans that once took advantage of the earth, doomed to relive life in a never ending cycle. The only way to break free? Die the most painful death you can. When and how is left up to you – but dare live past twenty and you are doomed. Xeraelyn Reif is one of Seven Sacreds, the only ‘pure’ beings on the earth, believed to have returned voluntarily after breaking free from the cycle to help save those still stuck. She is the Priestess – the one that will guide her people into their next lives and has been raised since birth for this role. Able to recite the Book of Truth and apply it to any situation Xeraelyn is fully aware of what is expected of her. She steps into her role as Priestess gracefully and is the embodiment of what her people strive to be – until rogue forces from Beyond kidnap her and she is forced to realise that the one thing she believed was a part of her is a lie.

The year is 2267. In this future world order, the planet is under the guidance of the global government, the Provincial Syndicate. The peace is kept by an elite association of robotic superhumans, known as the Enforcers. Genetically engineered and enhanced, nothing can stop this ruthless and unfeeling force from completing its mission. When Bones, an Enforcer, is captured by the criminals he was sent to kill, he is confident that he will never relinquish any information to them. But can a determined young woman break him when all others have failed? And will Bones ever be the same if she succeeds?