- unedited Ashia always felt like she wasn't good enough. This feeling came from a tough childhood where her family didn't give her the attention she needed. So, she tried to get noticed by doing everything: joining every club, winning every contest. She held onto her trophies tightly because they were the only things that made people see her. These wins weren't just about getting a prize; they were her whole world. But then Gio, the smartest guy in her class, seemed to easily take away what she worked so hard for. He didn't physically steal her trophy, but he beat her in a way that felt like he stole her pride. Ashia knew she had to push herself to her limits. She had to get back what felt like hers. But as she fought harder and harder against Gio, a thought started to nag at her: Was she really fighting for the trophy, or was she fighting for something else entirely? Started: June 2, 2025 Ended:

Move on. It was a phrase Thamarra Evangeline had been telling herself for months. After a truly mortifying incident at her old school, the only option was a fresh start. A new uniform, new hallways, and new faces-she hoped they would be the cure for the persistent dread that clung to her like a shadow. But even with the change, the memory of her past felt like a physical weight on her shoulders, making it hard to breathe, hard to smile, and impossible to truly move on. It remained within her until everything shifted the day she met Ruan Gideon, the over-caffeinated editor-in-chief of the school paper, The Aurora. Ruan was a whirlwind of energy, and his unexpected actions unwittingly dredged up painful echoes of her past. Each time he was near, Thamarra's carefully constructed walls of calm would start to crumble. She wanted to be invisible, but Ruan seemed determined to see her. Despite her every effort to keep him out, Ruan had his own ways to chip away at the fortress she had built around her heart. His persistence was annoying and endearing, and as days turned into weeks, Thamarra found herself questioning whether her walls were as solid as she thought. He wasn't just trying to get a story; he was trying to understand her, to find the person hidden behind the dread. And with every crack in her defenses, she wondered if he was a locksmith or just another reminder of the past. Will the key to her freedom be found in the one person who keeps unlocking her pain? Or just another lock with a crooked key? Started: September 2025 [Published first on January 5, 2026]