If We Were Heroes | ONC2022

OPEN NOVELLA 2022 LONGLISTED

FEATURED ON @STORIESUNDISCOVERED'S AUGUST READING LIST

Olive Rodriguez has always known he was different, but this was something else completely.

Cursed with the ability to inflict pain, Olive struggles to come to terms with the fact that he could've killed somebody. He would've killed somebody.

To help him to control his curse, he is sent to a specialist school, only for him to move back six years later.

But as old friendships rekindle and sparks fly, Olive begins to find it harder and harder to to fall back in love with his old home.

But something more sinister is brewing and it's up to Olive to stop it. After all, it's his fault it happened in the first place.

prompt 22: For ten years your family has waited and watched, hoped and prepared. You were cared for, but never truly acknowledged. It left you wondering why you've always felt like an outcast, a little bit of a burden. Today you discover they all knew about the curse... they all knew you were chosen to carry it.

prompt 93: You attend the same elementary school from kindergarten through to fifth grade before moving away. You find yourself returning to that same school district when starting high school. Faces look familiar as you walk through the hallways. Will childhood friendships rekindle or have they changed too much?

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