PUBLISHED UNDER LIB Note: If you're not into flawed characters who make wrong decisions, don't read this. Save yourself from stress. Started: 10/07/2020 Ended: 11/18/2020 Elora Chin Valencia grew up in a toxic Christian family where she was viewed as the black sheep. Araw-araw ay ipinaparamdam sa kanya ng mundo na wala siyang lugar sa sarili niyang tahanan. She was a consistent dean's lister and an obedient daughter, which left her wondering what she had done so wrong to be disregarded as a speck of dust in the wind. They made her feel like she was just dirt, filling up the empty space. The one who would never have her own safe place. Feeling all of this contributed to her endless suicidal ideations. Baka nga tama sila. Baka nga wala siyang halaga at kailanman ay hindi na sasaya. She almost believed that. She almost held onto that notion. Not until she met the man in his BS Civil Engineering uniform and gorgeous grin, Troy Jefferson Dela Paz. He kissed her forehead, and her loud thoughts were silenced. Her demons calmed down. Her foes were defeated. For the first time in her life, she had proven her family wrong---a happy Elora Chin was possible. She was loved and well-taken care of. Troy embraced her sharp parts, not minding the wounds he might get. But fate had a lot of cruel things in store for her. Because when she thought she had reached the peak of happiness, she found myself drowning alone in the ocean she now called home, alone in her shame, alone with the waves she couldn't tame.

Wounds heal, but scars remain. So even with the possibility that one can accept and move forward, it's impossible to forget. Because there will always be an irremovable mark that will remind you of every bit of pain. Growing up without a mother was Zarih's first heartache. It scarred her more than anything else. She sees how her dad grieves for her mom all the time-even after years-and it breaks her. When Zarih learned about the possibility that she might have inherited her mother's heart disease, she knew she couldn't afford to love because she wouldn't want anyone to suffer at her death. She wouldn't want to love someone just to wound him at the end. It was easy not to fall in love, only if Ace Timotheo Salvador, her summer enemy, didn't dare touch her scars... as if they were the most beautiful parts of her existence. Zarih feels like losing it... She wants to love and be loved. Maybe he can heal her scars. Maybe their story is different from her dad's. Maybe they can have a happy ending. Or maybe... She should've not risked it at all. Maybe she could've not scarred her heart more. Finished: July 21, 2022

WATTYS WINNER When her fiancé ends up in a coma and his secret mistress, Halley, shows up, Mary feels like her world is falling apart. What she doesn't realize is she's actually falling in love...with Halley. ***** Eight years after a traumatizing accident that killed one of her loved ones, Mary Kincaid is about to marry her childhood sweetheart when the universe yanks the rug out from under her yet again, leaving her fiancé badly injured and in a coma. Of course this is when his secret mistress shows up, a beautiful person whom Mary should by all rights hate - so why does she find herself inviting her to stay in the spare bedroom? She soon learns that sometimes the person you're looking for comes when you're not looking at all. Content and/or trigger warning: This story mentions violence, addiction, and childhood trauma, which may be triggering for some readers. [[word count: 150,000-200,000 words]]