A Mouthful Of Air

BLURB: He's a grief counselor who lost his own family. He's an immigrant fighting for permission to stay. When Owen meets Lucas at a small restaurant called Roots, neither expects what happens next. Owen is isolated after his family abandoned him for being gay. Lucas carries the weight of an entire family his disabled brother, struggling sister, and the constant pressure to prove they all deserve to stay in the country. What begins as a chance encounter becomes something real. Between stolen moments at the restaurant and late-night conversations, Owen and Lucas find each other. But as they fall deeper, the world closes in. When Owen's boss discovers their relationship and forces him to choose his job or Lucas everything shatters. Owen can't afford to lose his income. Lucas can't bear to be the reason Owen loses everything. They're trapped between love and survival, belonging and rejection. Because sometimes permission to stay isn't about immigration. Sometimes it's about whether love is worth fighting for.

"Are you sure you want to change your name, Ms. Anderson? You'll have to change your degree certificate, documentation, and passport once you do." Noelle Anderson nods. "I'm sure." The employee tries to talk her out of it. "It's quite troublesome for adults to change their names, and your current name sounds nice. Are you sure you don't want to think about it?" "No, I'm done thinking." She signs the form. "Sorry for the trouble and thanks." "Alright, then. The name you're changing to is… Aria Byrd, right?" "Yeah." Aria Byrd—it means a flight to freedom.

Wynter Aguilar is ordinary woman and a café owner. Isang lang naman ang tanging hiling niya sa buhay. Ang maayos at tahimik ang buhay na ibinigay naman sa kaniya. But everything changed when she met the man named, Cassiuz Velasquez. A drop-dead gorgeous man, rich and ideal man to every woman’s dream. Hindi lang maintindihan ni Wynter kung ano ang nagawa niya sa lalaki at lagi itong nakasunod sa kaniya. What she didn’t know that Cassiuz Velasquez will like her to the point of no return. Hindi rin naman maintindihan ni Cassiuz ang sarili dahil unang beses na pagkakita niya pa lang kay Wynter, nahulog na agad ang loob niya rito. Right at the moment, he wanted to make Wynter as his wife and he starts pursuing her. “You’re the one whom I want to be with.” – Cassiuz Velasquez.

Ethan Billionaire Ethan White was only in Colorado to support a friend. Without his help, Mia’s fundraiser for the kids could pull in less money. There was no way that he wanted to run into an old flame. Not at all. Well, maybe just a little… Laura Laura Corbett hated a certain billionaire with every fiber of her being. She thought he crushed her heart on purpose. So when he showed up at the same charity fundraiser that she was working, she thought it was the worst thing that could happen to her night. Not until her little brother went missing in the blizzard did she realize how bad it could become. Ethan and Laura must work together to find a missing child before its too late. Will this draw the once-lovers back together, or push them further apart? Will they find the boy in time?

"You keep saying he died of black magic, but you're not telling me exactly how he died. If what you're saying is true... what happened to him??" I ask her with a raise of my brows. "The magic consumed him. He became power hungry. He started absorbing the powers from members of our coven. He wanted it all for himself. He had to be put down. He had to be stopped" She explains "Mom, what are you saying? Are you insinuating what I think you are? What do you mean he had to be put down??" The windows to her room bang open and cool breeze is rushing in, making the papers in her room fly haphazardly. "Layla, you have to calm down." She motions towards me. "So the coven killed him?? They killed my father and you didn't do anything about it????" I scream at the top of my lungs, the lights still flickering, tears pooling in my eyes and wind blowing in through the windows. "He killed two people from our coven! His eyes were completely black! The magic had completely taken over him. Your dad wasn't there anymore. So yes, we killed him to protect the rest of the coven…"

Yan Zi, a botanist and author, accidentally transmigrated into her own historical novel as the notorious villainess. She meets Xu Kai, the handsome Co-Commander of the Imperial Military Guards, who is attracted to her during their dangerous missions together. However, knowing that she will not have a happy ending as a villainess, Yan Zi refuses to fall in love with Xu Kai. But somehow after escaping an unexpected intruder attack, watching the stars under the waxing moon, and spending a sweet and sweaty night together, everything starts to change..

"Just by looking at her, your heart starts to beat faster. If you look into her eyes, you want to respect her. Her skin is soft like silk. Just by looking at her, you want to cage her and never let anyone see her. Mafia king and my best friend, the most precious thing to Chands is none other than their mafia Princess , Ashly Chand".

My mom was born with a silver spoon in her mouth. Her life is smooth-sailing most of the time. The only mistake she's ever made is falling for my dad. That's why she insists on finding me a husband who's the complete opposite of my dad. My dad is tall and intimidating-looking, so Mom wants someone who's short and perverted-looking. My dad is a knowledgeable and well-read man, so Mom wants a guy who has only graduated from elementary school. My dad prioritizes his moral integrity more than anything else, so Mom prefers a guy who drinks, gambles, and sleeps around. She tells me, "This type of man is easy to manipulate, unlike your father, who just divorced me out of nowhere!" It's true that the man Mom has chosen for me won't divorce me. After all, he leeches from me on top of beating me up. It's not enough to leech my money from me, it seems—he just has to take everything from me. My mom says in a righteous tone, "This is the only way that proves you're valuable to him. He won't divorce you at all." I've fought back and escaped from my husband many times. Every time I do, my mom will trick me into returning to him by hurting herself. As always, I'm greeted with another round of beating whenever I do return to him. Mom will take me to the hospital to get my injuries treated. Then, she'll say, "Hurry up and give birth to a son for him. Once you have a son, you'll be extremely valuable to your husband. He won't beat you up anymore." Today is supposed to be the day Mom takes me to the hospital to check my ovulation timing. She spends a long time calling me on the phone, yet I never pick up. After that, she sends me a few audio messages that last for 60 seconds each just to lecture me. "Beatrice Anderson, what makes you think you can just ignore my calls? The hospital check-up is for your own good! As long as you can get pregnant with a son, your husband will be wrapped around your finger! He won't divorce you after this! Why can't you understand how much I care for you?" I seriously can't understand at all. After all, I've gotten beaten to death yesterday. My corpse is cut into 28 chunks, and they are being frozen in the fridge as I speak.

Sophia Grey has spent a decade plotting revenge against Ethan Blackwood, the man she believes destroyed her family. As Sophia's plan unfolds, she becomes entangled in a dangerous game of love and deception. The more she uncovers, the more the lines between revenge and redemption blur.

My mother-in-law gets into an accident and is taken to the emergency room. I call my attorney husband, but he only answers after over 20 missed calls. "What are you on about this time? Gigi has a bit of a problem, and I'm helping her. Stop being unreasonable." I suppress my grievance and say, "Mom's gotten into an accident. Transfer 100 thousand dollars to me." However, he believes Gigi Norris' lies and snarls, "What does your mother getting into an accident have to do with me? Don't even think of getting money from me to provide for your family. Now, leave me alone. I'm busy!" He hangs up, and my mother-in-law dies. Three days later, I see my husband in court. Gigi has been taken to court for driving under the influence, and he's there to defend her. He speaks eloquently and manages to get her off based on a lack of evidence. I lose hope in him and ask him for a divorce once the court is out of session. That's when he panics. "Think about how well my mother treats you! You'll break her heart by divorcing me!" I sneer. I throw the hospital bill and death certificate in his face. The idiot doesn't even know he no longer has a mother!