The Golden Hour

The scene flashes before me. I'm with him. A slow moan escapes my lips as his hands draw me closer. His finger traces my lips slowly. “How do you want to be fucked today, Chan?” I swallow. My eyes stay locked on his. Then they move from his eyes to his lips, then back again. He smiles. He knows what he does to me. “Just say the word.” I want this. My body wants this. He is temptation. No matter how I run, we always end up back here. He leans in. His breath is warm. Sweet. Our lips stand an inch apart. His hand slides onto my thigh. Slowly. It inches up, up—I close my eyes, biting my lip so hard. Then—a sharp sound. Like a powerbike. It’s loud, it sends rings through my ears. My eyes snap open. I'm gasping. My heart slams against my ribs. The sounds of cars and bikes rush in, clearer now. I see Ricky through the restaurant door. That's not— I could have sworn I saw River in that spot. For a second, I don't know if I'm awake or dreaming. It was supposed to be me and River. We

Last Updated : 2026-04-28

Vulnerability

"What are you doing here?" I slowly walk into my room, closing the door behind me. My mind races. Why is he here? And he used the front door? "Maybe because I missed you."I'm taken aback. Missed me? River Dawson missed me? No. I can't fall for that anymore. Something smells fishy. Is he just here for sex?"You know? Now I know why Cortney likes it here. Your mom is very nice." His eyes study me from head to toe. "You look really beautiful in that dress," he says as he stands up. Then he slowly circles me like I'm in an interrogation room. "But I thought you said you were staying in today."I clear my throat and look up at him when he finally stops in front of me. "Plans change." My voice sounds like it's trapped in a bottle. Anxiety fills it. I'm waiting for what he'll say next. Then his hand tucks my hair behind my ear. I stiffen."Hmm. I know you're keeping something from me. Are you keeping something from me, Chancé?" I gulp. A single laugh that sounds like mockery leaves his mou

Last Updated : 2026-04-30

Disgusting

***~~~RIVER~~~***If I say I'm not hurt by her words, I'd be lying. I wanted her to be all over me. I don't want to believe she's moved on from me. I can't. Not when she still feels the heat when I'm close to her. I know I told her the rules, and we should follow them. It keeps things in place. Makes things stable. Doesn't string her along. That's what I want. She shouldn't have hope that she and I will ever be together."Good night, Mrs. Rhodes," I say when I reach the living room.She smiles at me. "Goodnight, River. You should come to dinner sometime.""Thank you, Mrs. Rhodes. I'd love that."I walk out of the house and to my car. My eyes lift to her window. The light is still on. I wonder what she's thinking about. Giggling about the date? Thinking about Ricky? I guess I'll have to change all that. There won't be a second date.I get into my car and drive off. On the road, my mind goes back to her answer. She sounded happy about it, and it bothers me. I don't know why, but it bo

Last Updated : 2026-05-01

Little Miss Wannabe

***~~~CHANCÉ~~~***My eyes keep trying to close as the pastor preaches. For some reason, I feel tired all through my body. Maybe it was the series I stayed up binging and didn't sleep until around 2 a.m. I thought I'd skip church because at dinner yesterday, I told Mom I'd be opting out of service. But this morning, Mave showed up with the twins and her husband. Mom said it would be rude if I didn't come along.And the twins didn't make anything easy for me. Clementine and Cerise came into my room, started jumping on my bed to wake me up, dragged me. It was chaotic.Now I'm dozing off in church.Mave nudges me with her elbow. "We're in church, Chancé," she whispers."I know. I told you guys I didn't want to come." I yawn.Mom keeps giving me the eyes from where she sits. Finally, a smile appears on my face when the pastor tells us to say the grace.~~~I stretch when I'm outside the church. I turn back and see the twins running toward me. I groan as they hug me aggressively. "You tw

Last Updated : 2026-05-03

Pretend

I walk out of the bathroom like Sasha didn't just bully me seven minutes ago. The word she wrote on my forehead is completely gone. My smile is bright again as I head toward our table.Cortney looks up. "That was a long time. Did you get it cleaned?" She examines where the stain was."Yeah. It was kind of hard, but I got it off," I lie. At least now that saves me from a lot of questions."Are you okay?""What do you mean?""I don't feel the excitement anymore. I mean, you were so happy to come here and try the jelly tarts, and now I can't feel that aura anymore. Did something happen in there?""What? What are you—”"I saw Sasha and her girls, Chancé.” She cuts me off. “They were here. Did you bump into her?"I shake my head immediately. Then laugh. "Of course not." I wave it off.I really hope she doesn't see through my fake laugh. I mean, thinking about it, I'm actually glad she decided to leave my family alone. I can endure her bullying. Besides, school will be over soon. Just two m

Last Updated : 2026-05-04

New Tutor

***~~~RIVER~~~***The whistle blows as we get onto the ice. On Friday, we have another school to battle. If we beat them, our rank goes up and we have a chance to enter Regionals. Just 29 more schools to go. "Focus!" I yell at my teammates as we take our positions. At least this time, Ricky knows his place. My eyes meet his, and unlike every other time when he'd give me a look, this time, he doesn't.Practice goes as usual. I pass the puck to Marcus, the closest I can see, then he passes to Tom. Ricky is getting stronger with each training. And Riley? He's getting worse. Bad. Worse than last time.Even after yesterday's training, he never really improved. So I plan on talking to him today after practice. Maybe he'll open up and tell me what's really bothering him.Tom passes the puck back to me. My eyes meet Riley's. It's either me or him, but already seeing how bad he's been lately, I can't risk it. So I score.Coach blows the whistle, and we head to the bench for our break. I pul

Last Updated : 2026-05-05