Top 25 Finalist for Target's Once Upon Now contest He's trapped. He couldn't breathe. The white walls were smothering him, the barred windows were taunting him, the ticking of the clock was killing him. Now the nurses, of course, they were there too, they were there constantly choking him, forcing the colored pills down his throat. He wasn't just the amusement of the place. No, he was the beast of the place. Adam was suffering from insanity. Insanity from being locked in one single room for eleven years. Eleven years he has been stuck in the psychiatric hospital. He couldn't get out and he couldn't be saved, so what was left for him? What was there for the beast besides death? There was only one answer, one answer that not even he knew just yet, but it would all start with a single name. That single name that would bring a new feeling to that white room. That single name being Belle. ----------- A/N: This story is entered into the "Once Upon Now" story contest by target. This story is my version of a modern day "Beauty and The Beast" Anyways, thanks for reading!(: Xx Cover made by: Playboystiles

(The second installment in the 'My Life' series. Can be read alone) Meet John Ace, the hot shot at campus. With his killer looks, charming personality, and great wealth, he's got it all. Girls fall for him left and right, but too bad he's never serious. But what happens when one night at a party changes his views on Amanda forever? Problem is Amanda is his little sister's best friend. Throw in a jealous ex, a sweetie with a dark secret, a shy twin, an unwanted past, and some drama. What do you get? A hot mess.

What if you woke up next to a guy wearing a suit, exactly in the same spot where your teddy bear is supposed be? Yeah, you probably won't freak out as much as me.

Noelle Grimes is good at keeping people at a safe distance. Then she meets Damien. He's the stranger who catches her staring in an elevator. The man who listens while she spends twenty minutes praising a painting-without telling her he's the one who painted it. And somehow, between late-night phone calls, stolen coffee breaks, shared dinners, and a jacket that slowly becomes a permanent fixture in her hallway, Damien starts slipping past every wall Noelle has spent years building. He should be exactly the kind of complication she avoids. Instead, being with him feels dangerously easy. But Damien has scars of his own, and when Noelle discovers that their first meeting wasn't quite as accidental as she believed, the fragile trust between them begins to crack. Because for Noelle, letting someone close has never been the hard part. Believing they won't hurt her is. And just when she finally starts to imagine a future she never planned for, someone else's attention turns into something far more dangerous-forcing Noelle to decide whether protecting herself means walking away... or finally letting herself fall. An emotional contemporary romance about trust, chosen family, healing, and finding the courage to choose love without losing yourself. © 2026 Jessica M. S. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or distributed without the author's prior written permission, except as permitted by law. This is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to actual persons or events is purely coincidental. *Let Yourself Fall* A novel in **The People We Choose Series**

Twenty-one-year-old waitress, Hope, can only dream of living a better life. Keeping her little brother safe is her top priority no matter the cost to her own happiness. So when she meets Caleb, who seems too good to be true, her instinct is to resist - but what if he's the only one who can save her? ***** Hope is struggling to make up for her mother's absence and provide for her six-year-old brother. Enter: Caleb, who comes from money and lives a good life, but can't help feeling like there is something missing. Tired from a long day's work, he stumbles into the small café where Hope works. When fate gives him the opportunity to help his enigmatic waitress, he finds himself in a world where all that matters is saving Hope. But knowing that danger is on the horizon, would Hope let Caleb into her world? Content/trigger warning: This story mentions drug use and addiction. [[word count: 50,000-60,000 words]] Cover designed by Ren T.

Archer is Ivy's drug; he's overwhelming and addictive. But like any other drug, the effect it has slowly kills you. Until, there's nothing left.

❝If I'm going to write a book it will be about you − about your flaws − because when I first fell in love with you it was because of your flaws.❞ All rights reserved @ o p t i c a l i t y | 2017

Emma has everything she wants. Good friends, family who loves her and the boyfriend of her dreams. She's also finally rid nemesis Bianca Smythe from her life. But life is full of twists and turns. The first is a phone call from her mother, the one who abandoned her twenty years ago. Suddenly she wants a relationship, to patch things up with the daughter she dumped. Will Emma let her in to her now happy life? The second is a chance encounter with Bianca in the school library. Their conversation will plant seeds of doubt in the only man Emma's ever loved. Could Bianca be telling the truth? And if she is, will Emma ever be able to forgive Zach? Just a note that you should probably read book 1 first - The Senator's Son