10 Brave Novels & Stories

"well, I mean,I've seen girls cuter than you." "Wh...hey!" I snapped. "I will say something along the lines of though," he continued,ignoring my indignant huff of air. I crossed my arms "I bet he won't believe you." "Why do you think that?" "No one could fall for you with your attitude," I remarked offhandedly. Jaden whipped his head towards me."What? I have a charming tactful personality! I've closed many deals and solve many issues with my personality." "I can't believe you just described yourself as tactful."

"And before that, I was helping Andy do terrible things to people. I'd say that qualifies as damaged." "Riley doesn't think you're damaged," Ollie said firmly. "He thinks you're brave." The word hit me like a physical blow. Brave. I'd never thought of myself as brave. Desperate, maybe. Reckless, certainly. But brave suggested a kind of nobility I wasn't sure I deserved. "I'm not brave," I said quietly. "I'm just trying to survive." "Sometimes that's the same thing," Ollie replied with surprising wisdom.

His hand reached up and gently tucked a loose strand of hair behind my ear. His touch sent a shiver down my spine. My breath caught. “I knew you were brave,” he murmured. “But this...” Our faces were inches apart. “I did it for my mom,” I whispered. His lips twitched. “Keep telling yourself that.” His eyes flicked down to my lips, and for a moment, I thought he might kiss me. Then a door slammed upstairs. Diego turned away, jaw tight again, retreating to the cold version of himself.

“ You didn’t break down, didn’t stay down, didn’t give up, and didn’t run away. ” The haze leaves my mind slowly. The sun has set down completely, and gradually, the darkness is spreading in the world around me but for some reason…it doesn’t scare me. “ Do you know what those people are called that don’t do any of these things even when they have a chance? ” He turns the paper nonchalantly. I grip the hem of my skirt and continue to stare at him, my heart pounding in my chest. “ They are called brave. ” He whispers, taking his eyes off the papers and finally looking into my awaiting eyes. “ You are a brave woman, Little Butterfly. Don’t call yourself pathetic. That’s a lie. ”

“And we will. But not recklessly. Every move we make has to be precise.” Her fingers hesitated above the keyboard. “Precise… yes. But we also need to be brave. We can’t afford to be afraid anymore. Not you, not me… not anyone who’s standing with us.” He leaned closer, his breath brushing her ear. “Bravery isn’t the absence of fear, Scarlett. It’s moving forward despite it. And I… I’ll move forward as long as you’re beside me.” Scarlett’s heart skipped a beat. The warmth of his words contrasted sharply with the icy fear that lingered in her chest. She turned to face him, searching his eyes for any sign of doubt, any flicker of uncertainty but found none. Only resolve.

He nodded. “It always helped my mother, too.” For a while, neither of us spoke. The silence between us was not awkward at all. It was comforting. Finally, Wesley broke it. “Are you afraid?” I gave a quiet laugh. “Terrified.” “Good.” I blinked. “Good?” “The fearless are reckless.” He looked into my eyes. “The brave are simply those who keep moving despite being afraid.” His words settled deeply within me. Without thinking, I reached for his hand.

For the first time, in a long time, I realized that being brave does not mean you are not scared. It means you keep moving even when you feel like stopping.

"I’m not brave." "Being brave isn’t about being unafraid. It’s about functioning through fear." "Like I said—not brave. I freeze. I don’t mean to, but things happen and I just…stand there." "If Candida knows the spell to unseal the standing stones, you don’t have to come with me. You can go home from here, your duty fulfilled."

For mine. I closed my eyes and took a deep, shaky breath. I tried to picture Sierra’s face, her fierce eyes, the way she would never back down, her boldness even when she was scared. She always tried to protect everyone else, even if it meant putting herself in danger. That’s just who she was. “She’s brave,” I whispered. “So, so brave.” A few more tears slipped out, and I didn’t wipe them this time. I let them fall. Then, I lifted my face and looked up at the ceiling, closing my eyes again. I pressed my lips together and prayed silently.

“You were so brave. So, so brave.” “But they took Ben,” he whispers, his eyes wide and wet. “He was yelling real loud, and I got so scared. I wanted to help, but… but I didn’t. I just hid. I wasn’t brave, Mommy. I was scared and I didn’t do anything.”