Sometimes all you really need is a place to call home. *** Claire is lost and scared and utterly alone. Her family is in shambles after the death of her older sister Ina, and she's left to pick up the broken pieces of herself as her life heads into a downwards spiral of loneliness. Her heart leads her to 5:48, a little cafe by 33rd street, where she finds her new home. With a broken heart and a speech disability, Jasper has his heart and mouth sewn shut by the winding threads of hurt and fear. Painting and serving coffee in cafe 5:48 are one of his last few saving graces, but the smile he's been painting on himself will soon fade away as everything he's ever held dear slips away from his grasp. Ezra is out-of-sync and oddly cold by the way life has treated his young self. Abandoned by his single mother at an early age, he has grown up thinking that he is a mistake. His constant shaking hands are a reflection of what he often thinks of himself, but the delightful pastries he bakes for 5:48's customers are a reflection of what others see of him. Drew is a quirky rarity. He is a dash of loud, a pinch of exuberant, and a cup of eccentric - just like the meals he serves in the cafe as the only chef there. Behind his playful grins and outlandish clothes, however, are his jutting ribs, hollowed cheeks, and too-thin arms. Sometimes he cannot stomach being in his own skin as much as he cannot stomach food. This family has gone a long way from finding each other, and they'll be going a long way together too as reality comes catching up to them, threatening the newfound happiness they've found with each other. Secrets are revealed, pasts become presents, and lives are changed. Slowly but surely, they find their way back home. *** NOTE AS OF 08/2026: This is the old version of the story from 2012, posted in FULL. Another story that will be considered a reprise of this old version is in the works, and will be posted under the name "Hiraya House."

"If you're going through hell, keep going." Winston Churchill This here, is a story about a girl, who, without a moment of hesitation left her own life to be there for her siblings when her mother committed suicide. She nurtured them, cared for them, and was the one responsible for putting food on the table and clothes on their backs. Because her father, on the other hand, turned away. Drinking whenever he could, her father, slowly but surely, drank away what savings there had been in the bank. The girl became a single mom at the age of fourteen to her younger siblings. Not just anybody can do that. But Jazmyne did. And this is her story.

“Suicide is man's way of telling God, 'You can't fire me - I quit!” - Bill Maher.

This is the story of Annabella-Natalie Eltiise, as told by her friends and allies. This is where Annabella learns who she is, and how easy it is to die. This is where Meredith learns she's very special and how dumb she can be sometimes. This is where Augustus learns that Destiny has a purpose for him, and it's being her own personal puppet.

Abused. Neglected. Alone. Aaron Byker can't escape the pain his father tortures him with every waking hour, and takes his anger out on those around him at school. He's the school bully, the one person that everyone despises and avoids unless they want to be beaten up. But what happens when Byker meets someone who isn't intimidated by him or anything he does? Can this person turn his warped world upside down? WARNING: contains violence!

Peter Holmes is a tailor in Liverpool, England. He has his eyes set on a gorgeous showgirl, Jennie Willis, who he hopes to marry someday. However, life throws him a new chapter when he comes home one night and finds a six-year old girl on his front steps. Little does he know she's his daughter of his former lover. He has two choices: send her to an orphanage, or do what his last lover could not do... -- All Rights Reserved © 2012 - do not steal, copy, or plagiarize. Story belongs to E. K. Sloyer - in editing process --

After years of living on the streets 17 year old Lie Jacobs has hammered the last nail in her coffin. Found on state property, in the middle of the night, with a spray can in hand, it as the last straw. With a long line of crimes to her name already, its time for a serious change. Or so her probation officer thinks. And so Lie is shipped off to Spike Island, the juvenile delinquent center for troubled teens. There she’ll have to deal with the crowds, the teenagers and one in particular bad boy who seems to have taken a shine to her. Noah Lennon. “I rested my hood clad head against the wooden boards and closed my eye. I was tired, so tired. Not having slept in days, I hadn’t eaten a good meal in weeks. People looked at me, not really seeing. All they took in was my appearance, the pale skin, deep purple bags and a server attitude problem.”

She was just the girl with the right connections. He was the president's son. How would their affair look in the eyes of society? Or how about the entire nation? *********************************************** I guess you could call it a scandal. I guess you could say it was "unprofessional" or "unlady-like" on my part. But it was my desire. *************************** I knew it from the moment I laid eyes on him, his hazel eyes almost beckoning me to draw near, I wanted him. I wanted him to be mine. His body language said it all as the glances turned to stares. He walked by, and with a small touch he gently caressed my back. I flirtatiously moved my eyes to his and he was looking back with a smirk. Oh, that devilish smirk that made my whole body dance with pure enjoyment. Who was he? What was his name? Oh, but did it matter? His eyes said it all.

After losing the Aethernum Bellum--a watch rumored to have the ability to break time itself--in the middle of a heist, Elliot's lifespan has been cut in half and smashed into a million tiny pieces. The Big Evils want his head on a platter, his boss is pissed and an annoying Warlock keeps hitting on him. With his only option to retrieve it or die, he sets off into the chaotic magical underworld for any clues that will lead him to sanctuary. When he discovers it's in the hands of a preteen with a snotty disposition and a permanent chip on his shoulder, he's more than a little peeved. Said snotty teenager is also displeased. Fifteen year old Minkah Madlen's life is put on hold when the watch appears in his bedroom. A wild thief shows up out of nowhere to antagonize him, his best friend isn't completely human and his older brother is a part of a not-so-secret organization dedicated to ridding the world of supernatural creatures. While Minkah attempts to protect the watch, he is hurtled through time with Elliot, to places only read about in history. From Victorian London to Ancient Greece, Minkah and Elliot will have to travel the ends of the Earth to keep the watch out of the hands of the...unsavory.