At 16, Malory has been tending to her blind mother, Elizabeth, for as long as she can remember.
When resources grow thin, she, in hopes of fleeing her past, pretends to be a man to enroll in the Recruitment, working for the government.
She befriends Amell, a boy from her neighbourhood, finds within herself a passion for boxing and, above all, experiences peace of mind for the first time; she lives her best life 6 months into her enrolment.
What she doesn't expect is that she'll be caught in a nasty mess.
Consequently, when she doesn't feel like life is worth it anymore, Malory is tasked with saving everyone from the claws of the governors and she cannot back out.
Her only consolation is that when you're at rock bottom, you can't sink any further.
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Trigger Warning: violence, abuse, drug use, firearms, intimacy, suicide, mental health.
Flat Earth AU!
~"You don't- you don't need me."
I stared in shock. This was the first shred of emotion he'd shown since he started avoiding me, and I had no idea how to respond. What was I supposed to say to something like that? So I let myself be honest, and I told him exactly how I felt. "But I do." I almost choked on my words. "I do need you. I can't talk to anybody else. I can't eat. I can't sleep. And I know you know what that's like."~
Liliana is now an orphan. Just 17 years old, she lost her parents in a boating accident and now she must live with her best friend, her best friend's parents and her best friend's brother, Joseph. She struggles through her grief as well as dealing with the mysterious but obnoxious Joseph, and it soon comes to light that he isn't the only one around her keeping secrets. Living under the same roof, tensions arise, and Liliana begins to discover that a perfect family may not be so perfect after all."
If you like a good old slowburn, enemies (ish) to lovers, bonding over tragic backstories type beat then this story is for you, I promise :)
#1 in #bestfriendsbrother (didn't note the exact date - some time in January 2021)
#1 in #dealing with death (11/04/21)
amazing cover by @sixty6ix !!