Noa never forgot Eli-the best friend she secretly loved in high school before she had to leave without warning. A decade later, Noa has become a renowned photographer, known for capturing people in ways they've never seen themselves. Eli, now one of the world's top models, is untouchable-effortlessly beautiful, endlessly photographed, and always just out of reach. When Noa is unexpectedly assigned to shoot Eli for a major campaign, she braces herself for the inevitable collision of past and present. But when Eli greets her with the same easy charm she had all those years ago-without the slightest hint of recognition-Noa makes a choice. She doesn't remind her. What starts as a professional partnership turns into something more complicated. As they travel from city to city, working in foreign studios and sunlit sets, Noa watches Eli through her lens, searching for traces of the girl she used to know. The way she tilts her head, the way she laughs, the way she bites her lip when she's thinking-it's all still there. And yet, Eli remains distant, unknowingly standing on the other side of a story she doesn't remember. Noa tells herself it's enough to be near her again, to exist in Eli's world, even if she can never say what she really feels. But emotions are harder to edit out than a photograph, and the more time they spend together, the more Eli begins to notice the way Noa looks at her. Somewhere between the shutter clicks and stolen moments, Eli remembers and starts to wonder: has Noa always seen her this way?

[WLW] An ambitious scientist won't let anything get in the way of her dreams--not even death. ⚓︎ When Malia set out to sea, she expected to make a life-changing discovery; instead, she received a life-ending doom. But death isn't her end, and she's granted another chance by the very ocean that she died in. That's according to Beatrice, a thousand-year-old water spirit that shows her the ways of their kind. After all, Malia isn't the first to be reborn, and countless souls lost at sea still live underwater, tasked with saving mortals from the same fate. It's a tough job, but if Malia does it right, she can win back her life on land. However, vengeful souls lurk in the waters, determined to destroy the mortals above them. These ghouls were the ones that killed Malia, but if she wants to return to the surface, she'll have to face them in a fight for her mortal life or eternal death. ⚓︎ SURVIVAL KIT ✓ Sapphic romance ✓ Magical "mermaids" ✓ Underwater adventures ✓ Science (specifically physics) FEATURED: ★ For AAPI Heritage Month and Pride Month ★ @FreeTheLGBT Pride Awards 2024 - Grand Winner ★ @Fantasy, @adventure ★ Former Amb profiles @talesofthedeep, @CitifiedFantasy, @ReshapeIt, @mythandlegend, @QuickFantasy, @YAFantasy, @The_Reading_Room ★ @AstaniaCommunity, @PrideReads ONC 2023 ENTRY Word Count: +33k Genres: Fantasy/Low Fantasy, Adventure, Romance Written: 05 FEB 2023 - 24 FEB 2023 Narrative: Third Person Limited, Past Tense ★ Cover and graphics made by the amazing @MoranaInDesign! ★ This story is only available on Wattpad by @laurendoubleu.

~ "Love is like a puzzle; it's at first confusing, then frustrating, but if you figure it out, it's a beautiful thing." ~ Moving to a new town to start over after a heartbreaking breakup with her longtime partner. Zaria Regan takes a job working for a company run by Aubreyanne Kaine, a strong woman in the business world. They both have prior scars that prevent them from opening their hearts again but as they become closer those chains holding them back begin to rust and crack, releasing theirs enslaved hearts. Two individuals who think they're broken in different ways. One believes she has no love left to give, and the other thinks she simply never had any to begin with. But they just might be two lost pieces of the same puzzle.

A stranger to her own existence, Kayla moves to a small town with the hope of finding comfort in a fresh start. But as she steps inside the unfamiliar classroom on the first day, standing in front of the class is a mysteriously familiar face, one that rouses memories of a time she believed had gone by. With past baggage catching up in the most intrusive ways, she stumbles upon unexpected comfort of friendship, unconditional love of found family, and a beautiful yet complicated bond between two hesitant souls. "This book was like a warm hug, and I might believe in love again." "I would give everything, especially my soul, to have the opportunity to read this book for the first time again." ────── CW: Substance abuse, harsh language, sexual content, mention of self-harm and suicide. ────── Started in January 2018. Re-published in November 2022. First draft finished in April 2023. ────── Copyright 2018 © Renee Steinberg All rights reserved. This work may not be reproduced, copied, translated, or republished in any form without the author's permission, except for brief quotations or reviews with proper credit.