Emma looks an utter mess and is enveloped by her morning mood when she runs into a woman in the supermarket. They quarrel over the last pack of coffee beans, until the stranger offers her a free cup of coffee in a nearby bakery if she gets the coffee beans. Emma obviously accepts.

Mabel's life is falling apart. Between her long-time situationship who wants to be more than friends now, her rapidly deteriorating grades, and a group of friends who've been conveniently excluding her from their plans lately, nothing is going her way, and the pressure keeps building up from all sides. That's when Katie comes along, a brilliant new student who is quickly arranged to be her tutor. She seems like everything Mabel could never be. And yet, she understands her better than anyone ever did before. As the two start spending more time together, and Mabel's life becomes increasingly messier day after day, Katie will add another problem onto Mabel's plate-one that, if not handled properly, could leave a bitter taste in their mouths... and hearts. ~ 🍋 ~ Entry written for Open Novella Contest 2025 Prompts: 126, 118, 134, 69 Genre(s): Contemporary YA Romance PUBLISHED: 2/1/2025 COMPLETED: TBA

When two best friends end up sharing a night filled with pleasure, one confronts feelings she never knew she had and the other tries to hide feelings she always knew she had. • #1 in office romance?! #1 in sapphic?!

They didn't speak. Didn't count steps. They just... moved. Her hand on Aleah's waist. Aleah's fingers brushing her wrist. One step forward. Two back. Turn. There was no rhythm but them. No choreography but instinct. No noise except the beat of Niki's heart and the slow, sure way Aleah never looked away. At the end, they didn't stop moving. They just slowed. Held on. And didn't let go.... When a salsa class throws two stubborn women into each other's rhythm, the sparks fly, the friends meddle, and the footwork gets a whole lot more complicated. A queer romantic slow-burn full of witty banter, found family, accidental eye contact, and the kind of tension you can't dance your way out of. Author's Note: The story is mainly in Niki's POV, but changes in between as per the story requirement.

A citywide blackout, a girl about to give birth and the mysterious neighbor who is so much more than she lets on. This is the story of how Aelia and Nina got together.

When Amelia books a last-minute flight to the tropical island of Cacuna, it's meant to be a bold act of spontaneity: a rebellion against the dull reputation she's tired of wearing. But the sunny beaches and vibrant streets of Cacuna offer her more than just an escape from her life in England. As Amelia immerses herself in island life, she begins to peel back the layers of who she thought she was and who she might still become. Between unexpected romance, new friendships, taking risks and the freedom that comes with being far from home, she starts to ask herself the questions she's spent years avoiding: What do I truly want from life? Whose expectations am I really living by? Every day, Amelia steps closer to becoming a version of herself she never thought possible. Yet as her holiday draws to an end, she must face the hardest choice of all: whether to return to the life she knew or to carry her newfound courage and identity into the future. Join Amelia on her journey of self-discovery, love and the empowering magic of taking control of your own life.

"No... it's just... I don't want to date some random girl, Olivia." "Good," she says, her voice back to normal. "I wouldn't want you to either. We've established what you're looking for: you want a really close friend, that knows you really well, who you trust and are comfortable with, and for those feelings of friendship to grow into something more. You aren't going to get that with a random girl, or guy for that matter." I sigh. "You're right. That's what I do want. It's what I had." I wipe my eyes. "I know sweetie. And all of us loved that for you." Grabbing a tissue, I blow my nose. I think of Danny every day; I love that Liv indulges me, but then I know she really cared for him too. Like me, she's an only child: Danny was her brother from another mother. She smiles at me warmly on the screen. "You can have that again, you know," she says softly. "But how? Who else could come close? The only other person is..." I gesture towards her, "but it's a dream, Olivia, a fantasy." "There's nothing wrong with trying to make your fantasies come true," Olivia says. "Hmmmmm." Something about the way she says that makes me wonder. "Anyway," I say, "this is all moot. You're in Brighton. Ergo, I can't date you. So... what are we even talking about?" "So, what you're saying is that if either you moved to Brighton or I moved to Bristol, you would date me." She's not going to let this drop, I can tell. "Fine," I say, "if that was the case, I would date you."

In which the popular boy attempts to use an exchange student to make his ex girlfriend jealous, but his ex ends up (fake) dating the exchange student instead. - After nearly three years of breaking and making up with her ex-boyfriend, all that Silena Valentine wants is some peace and quiet. Instead, she gets Mena Skelin- a handful of a temporary roommate, whose otherwise extensive vocabulary doesn't seem to include either of those words. Soon enough, Silena finds herself volunteering to do things she never would have even imagined: like kissing someone in front of the entire school, and catching very real feelings for her very fake girlfriend. And the latter kind of sucks, since she's pretty certain that Mena is only doing this in order to get revenge at the boy she actually likes. But then again, everything isn't always what it looks like.

As she approaches forty, Liz Bradford, BBC Radio journalist crosses paths with Ramona Kato, a twenty-something mechanic. As their friendship leads Liz to discovery and Ramona to recovery, radio may be the medium that leads them both to something more. Praise for "Forty" (from another site): "Absolutely wonderful. Your stories always are wonderful but this, spectacularly so. Thank you x" JacquiUK41 "So well written and moving. The quality reminded me of Anne Enright and Sally Rooney. The location made me nostalgic, it's a long time since I was in Goldney Hall. The intersection with Twenty was skillful." BristolGrad "Above all the wonderful tales you have told, I believe this is your masterwork. A triumph, a tour de force, your magnum opus. A chef-d'oeuvre, a jewel and an absolute treasure. One of may favourite stories on this site, thank you for the gift of your storytelling. Please forgive the gushing, but as you may be able to tell, I really rather liked it." JusteenK "So I saw this was [80,000 words], and thought, well, I love some THB, so I'll give it a go, probably too long for sure, but what the heck. My Lord....you so amaze me. This was not a word too long, and could have been longer and still be fine. So beautifully crafted, so sensitive, brilliantly paced...I loved every bit. Loved Liz, Mikayla, And Ramona....Thank you for this. Leaky eyes but grateful eyes too." Marbury1803 This is the concluding part of the Ramona story cycle, which began with "I have seen love", "I have touched love" and "I have made love". It's not necessary to have read those at all... because if you haven't you'll be squarely in Liz's shoes. This is also a love story for the Bristol music scene of circa 2003-2008 and local radio.

In 1992, Jane lost her best friend in the whole world: her stepsister, María. With her went her emotional centre, her sense of self-worth. But now, maybe, she thinks she may have found her again. But will the reunion be everything she wanted? How will the years apart have changed them? Explicit, with references to self-harm and eating disorders, this is a passionate and emotional read. Praise for Thirty: "Beautiful story. The quick moving plot was still full of detail, heartache, and character development. Thanks for sharing!" author CreatingKate "There's a manic energy to the opening page and I picture Jane rocking, clenching in anguish at losing Maria. That mania that hollowed her out, that fed self-harm, that threaten to snuff her out.. She was lucky to survive and surely it was Maria that kept her going and fuelled the obsessive search? Then what do you do when you meet your salvation? How do you deal with that? Now we know, or at least we know how you lived it. This was so real, it didn't read like fiction. Raw and beautiful. Thank you." author stickygirl