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."

Serena Davidson leads two lives. At school, she's a morbidly obese, stupid, nerdy, bitchy, slutty, and a teacher's pet. But at home she's the scrawny vegetarian pushover. What would possess someone to wear a fat suit every day? And what happens when someone finds out?

What would you do if you lost everything that ever mattered to you? When Phoebe Miller loses her family in a car crash, her answer is to simply close in on herself. She is too scared to get close to someone new, due to the fear of losing someone else important to her. Plagued by depression, harrowing nightmares and full of guilt, she pushes away the very people who may be able to help her through. Only one handsome and charming teacher is able to break down her wall of defences. But can their love survive, or is their forbidden relationship simply not meant to be?

She was the annoying cheerleader, he was the cynical bad boy. She's withdrawing from her life, he needs her help. They hated each other but right now he's the only one who can give her what she needs. Follow up to Open mind for a Different view but can be read as a standalone.

'Standing up I looked straight at Professor Garrett, smirking evilly. "Hi, my name's Christy Evans and I'm an English major. Let's see," I said tapping my chin in concentration, all the while trying not to laugh out loud, "I'm the leader of a group of intergalactic beings who are here to terminate all those who are deemed too conceited for the good of civilization," pausing I gave Professor Garrett a pointed look of my own, "I live on planet screw you, and I'm allergic to bullshit." Smirking and feeling very satisfied with myself, I waited for Professor Garretts next move. ' -When Christy finds her long term boyfriend isn't who she thought he was, what will she do? She's about to begin college-the same one he chose to go to as well. With the help of her best friends and a new forbidden love interest, can she be persuaded to let go and love again?

Do you believe in fate? Kayleigh Brown does. She believes that everything happens for a reason, that our lives are mapped out for us before were even born. She believes in fate so much that when she meets the incredible guy at the bar, she knows it’s not meant to be. This guy can't be meant for her because he's on his stag night. He’s promising himself to another woman, taking himself off the market and committing to someone else. Fate was just messing with her this time; if he was the one she was meant to be with then there would be some signs to show that. He wouldn’t be that easy to cut out of her life. But even when the signs start appearing, Kayleigh chooses to ignore them, going against everything she’s ever believed in her life. Instead, she tells herself that fate is what you make it, fate is about choices, and she chooses not to be with him. But is it really going to be that easy?