"Such a waste, you are. You could have been useful, even more powerful then you are now. But no, you have to 'save' your precious friends. Pitiful, really." I give him a vicious glare as the slab of concrete slipped a little in my grasp. My strength was dwindling quickly, I just had to tough it out until Andrew came to save my friends. I wasn't going to make it out alive.
"I'd rather be eaten by your pets then join you." The small hybrids opened their mouths and snarled at me, their sharp incisors dripping with fresh blood, probably from another 'snack'.
"Oh, don't tempt them Semira. They would love to rip out your throat right now, but watching you suffer is so much more fun." He turned to them and spoke in rapid hybrid-tongue, a combination of snake's hissing and human speech. The hybrids howled with excitement and half of them ran off to the other room. My lungs hurt every time I took a breath now, the weight of the stone slowly crushing me.
"You'll never win, Selena will send others. Much more powerful then us to stop you. Didn't you know? The bad guy never wins." I said in a strained voice. He laughs at me.
"Oh Honey, I already did."
Ella is falling apart trying to live a "perfect" high school life. Then she meets Ren, who can see past her scars. Suddenly perfection isn't her only option.
*****
Ella Volkov is a gifted music student, but she's depressed and starting to crack under the pressure of high school. Her overbearing father won't even let her choose what instrument she plays. Then she finds herself alone at a party with Ren, her best friend's crush. She'd always thought he was rude, but after that night he's all Ella can think about. Now she's trapped. If Ella dates Ren, it will ruin her friendship with Jenny. But if she stays true to Jenny, she's losing the one person who can see past her scars. It's up to Ella to decide if she will forge her own path, or stay in the "perfect" box designed for her...
Content and/or Trigger Warning: depression, anxiety, self-harm, violence, sexual assault.
[[word count: 50,000-100,000 words]]