|| Featured FREE story with exclusive paid chapters - previously a paid story || When Haley discovers the truth behind Xavier, whose silence holds a deeper meaning, she sets her mind on making his life better one small step at a time. ***** Haley Rosamond is happy with her simple life, content under the wing of her father. Well-protected, she has no idea of the darkness surrounding Xavier Hunt, with his all-black attire and infrequent presence in school-accompanied by his bruises and scars. That is, until Haley catches a glimpse of Xavier's reality and is made to question everything she knows about family and life in general. The truth, she realizes, couldn't be more different from everything she has heard. Supported by her father, Haley sets her mind on helping Xavier any way she can, and what begins with tutoring sessions, free food, and random acts of kindness blooms into friendship and something a little more. But when Haley's admission into her dream college and another tragedy in Xavier's life threaten to undo everything she has worked for, Haley needs to decide if she'll stick by Xavier or simply be another person in his life that disappears. [[word count: 80,000-90,000 words]] Cover designed by Holly Thurston

| a true story about a boy who hides his pain behind his smile and a girl determined to see it | - FREE story with paid Exclusive Chapters and Writer Reveals - Twice Featured - Taylor Ming is trying to cope with the aftermath of her twin brother's suicide, and her depressed mother and avoidant father aren't really helping. With one of her friends' self-harming while another deals with a chronically ill boyfriend, being diagnosed with Diabetes and forced to use insulin thrice a day is Taylor's worst nightmare. When she catches the school's golden boy Shane Gray popping pills in a bathroom, then, Taylor is sure she's in a living hell. Is he depressed? Is he using drugs? She's afraid of losing more people and strikes a deal with Shane. He'll tell her if he ever has the urge to hurt himself and she'll keep his secret. What neither of them knows, however, is that he's already hurting himself without knowing it. And Shane's life is falling apart quicker than Taylor's. Because life isn't black and white and, sometimes, seeing gray can make all the difference. Warning: The story talks about suicide, self-harm, drug use, and mental health problems which may be triggering for some readers.