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."

About a boy and a girl whose love for each other far exceeds their love for food.

Being the sister of a world famous vlogger gets hard, but every year Lace Carter gets to escape it all at the Harleen Art Camp. This place is her safe haven, the one place where she can truly escape in her art. There's only one problem- Eli Evans; the most annoying boy to have ever walked on the face of the earth. Not to mention he always beats Lace in the annual art competition. But this year, her last, Lace is determined to win and more importantly beat Eli. Too bad Harleen has decided to have partners this year, and just guess who hers turns out to be.

Xavier doesn't speak; he writes.

At Willard's department store, none of the night security guards survive for long, and eighteen-year-old Daniel Gale is about to discover why. "At the heart of it, Night Shift is a haunting love story. It is equal parts moving and chilling, which is what makes it so excellent." - Carmen Ho @ HQ ***** Tired of living out of his backpack, Daniel ignores the rumors about the old building being haunted and accepts the latest vacated position of night guard at Willard's department store. As his life becomes more entwined with Willard's, Daniel senses unnatural changes and bizarre coincidences. Soon he begins to suspect Willard's is hiding something more sinister than gossip about ghosts - something that could make him the next casualty of the night shift. Now available as Paperback and Kindle! https://a.co/d/fy7RuHF

Vanessa Laine is a college student and aspiring musician. She's got the look and she's got the voice. The only thing that's stopping her is her stage fright...and an opportunity. But opportunity knocks when pop-punk band, The Velocity, holds auditions for a new lead singer at the restaurant that Vanessa works at. Getting in was the easy part. Surviving as the only girl in the band is the hard part. Can she do it?

"Give me ten days, and I can give you ten reasons not to die." Evan paused. "And if I can't change your mind by then, you can go jump off that cliff."

Stereotypes. I hate them. On my first day at my new school, a girl in a blue and white cheerleader's uniform told me I 'looked like a cheerleader' and asked me to come to tryouts. I almost decked her. Blonde hair and blue eyes do not a cheerleader make. Cheerleaders can be bitchy and mean but they can also act all happy and excited and they can drool and swoon over Finn Wallace – the hands-down hottest guy in school – like there's no tomorrow. Me? Well, I'm just bitchy and mean. So someone please tell me why Finn Wallace is suddenly chasing after me? *This is NOT a Bridgit Mendler fan fiction* Copyright © 2013 CrayonChomper

A short story of an abandoned bathroom stall door giving desperate, heartbroken girls relationship advice, hot guys incorrectly trying to woo hearts, a stupid dare in action, and irrationality ruling the minds of every character.

"Everything's gotta end sometime. Otherwise nothing would ever get started."