Before We Drowned Novels & Stories

In the strict halls of Briarcliff School for boys, 18-year old Hosea finds himself drawn to his charismatic Gym teacher, Ms. Simeon. As their connection deepens, Hosea realizes he’s developed feelings for his teacher that go beyond admiration. But their love is forbidden, and the consequences of discovery could be devastating. Will Hosea and Simeon find a way to be together, or will the weight of tradition and dogma tear them apart?

I built my wife’s family business from the ground up, sacrificing everything so that her world could thrive. The night I collapsed from stomach bleeding after too many business drinks, she was out laughing with her childhood sweetheart. She even had the nerve to call me dull and uptight. I smiled when I finally handed her the divorce papers. “I wish you both a happy life together.” But instead of signing it, she tore it to pieces, tears in her eyes. “I’m not letting you go,” she said.

The world was divided into the mortal realm and the divine realm. The Rain Clan belonged to the divine realm. They could hear the prayers from the mortal realm. The Rain Maidens would bring rainfall to the mortal realm through prayers. They could ascend to heavens through cultivation. In the Rain Clan, every rain maiden was born with a dragon who would ascend with her and become her mount. When my sister and I were born, we shared only one spirit beast—a white dragon. The white dragon was the lowest of all dragons, yet I ignored the clan’s objections and insisted on forming a bond with him so that we could ascend. However, on the day I succeeded in calling the rain and married him, he shot an arrow straight through me while I was pregnant and at my weakest from summoning rain. As I lay dying, I saw him rush toward my sister. “Leigh, now I can finally be with you forever.” Only then did I realize the white dragon had chosen me under pretenses to help Leigh ascend. When I opened my eyes again, he and I had both returned to the day of our bond. There, he learned that Leigh was the true heir to the Rain Goddess mantle. He dropped to his knees and loudly confessed that he had always loved Leigh, and that he wished only to be her mount. Everyone knew I had spent half my cultivation to save him when he first hatched. I smiled and pointed at a mottled green snake at the edge of the barrier. The white dragon thought that as long as he bonded with my sister, he would ascend. However, what he never knew was that without me, Leigh could never ascend.

The wedding had reached the part where we were supposed to exchange rings, but my fiance wouldn’t say those two simple words: "I do." It was because his past love had just announced her breakup an hour ago. The post on social media included a picture of a plane ticket, the landing time just one hour away. My brother suddenly stepped forward and announced to everyone that the wedding would be delayed. Without a word, they both left me standing there, turning me into a laughingstock. I calmly dealt with everything, glancing at the new social media post from his past love. In the photo, my brother and fiance were standing around her, offering her the best of everything. I laughed bitterly and dialed my parents' number. "Dad, Mom, I'm willing to come home and marry into the Sanford family."

YVES' fiancee lost all of her memories due to tragic history about her past. Even her, was having a hard time to accept her situation. She never expected that she would also forget the man she loves the most. For the past five years, Yves had been secretly looking at her from a far until he finally decided to meet her in person, with a desire to capture her heart all over again. A longing smile was plastered on his face as soon as he saw her. He unconsciously uttered those four words, with sixteen letters. “Honey, we meet again.”

Sebastian ‘Baste’ Paner was a jock of hotel services and master of client pampering, especially for rich old women. When his best friend who was running a dating agency enlisted his help to fulfill a dying woman's wish, the greedy Baste accepted the offer right away. Who wouldn't be anyway if you're bound to inherit a massive land in the province after her death? However, it wasn't as easy as Baste had initially thought. “When I called and told your orphanage that I want a family, I didn't mean I need a husband. I need a child,” clarified 61-year-old Filomena Geronimo who mistakenly dialed the agency instead of the orphanage. By the way, it's not a love story. It's something more profound than that. It's... something only we know.

To save Hugh, I took the hit—literally. The kidnappers beat me so bad I ended up with a brain hemorrhage. My mind? Stuck at thirteen. Hugh, all guilt and promises, said, "Wenna, I'll protect you forever." And he did. He watched over me. When the house caught fire, he threw himself over me, took the burns, didn't flinch. Then came his oh-so-perfect foster sister. "Mia's not into... slow people. Maybe you should live next door," he said. And my son? The one I nearly died bringing into the world? "Stupid woman! You embarrass me and Dad. You're nothing like Aunt Mia—she's smart and pretty. If it weren't for you, she could've been my mom. You should just die!" To play hero for Mia, my son shoved me into the street. A truck did the rest. When I opened my eyes, I was back on the day Hugh proposed. This time? I wasn't here for his pity. And I sure as hell wasn't marrying him.

Life has a way of awakening us…Often cruelly. Astraia Ilithyia, a humble art gallery hostess, finds herself pulled into a world she never would’ve imagined existed. She meets the mysterious and charismatic, Vasilios Barzilai under terrifying circumstances. Torn between the world she’s always known, and the world Vasilios reigns in…Only one thing is certain; she cannot survive without him.

Ashlyn hasn't spoken a word since the age of eight, and her heart's never felt more protected. But, when the confident and ever so charming Derek stumbles into her quiet little world, her emotions-and forbidden desires-have never been so loud. For twenty years, silence is all Ashlyn Holland has known. Haunted by the memories of her father, and the harrowing song of the ocean that stole him from her, Ashlyn maintains a safe distance from the rest of the world. Treading carefully the sea of fear and anguish that surrounds her, Ashlyn is determined to do all she can to protect her heart from such a tragic loss striking again. In silence, she grieves. In silence, she is safe. In silence, she finds the strength to breathe. But the silence can only last so long... Derek Moreno is charming and devoted, and quick to see through every wall Ashlyn erects. With his arrival in town, defences fold and walls begin to crumble, the songs of her heart reaching new heights. Together, they crest twin tides of fate, the silence she'd once sought engulfed by his gentle touch, and the whispers of a love thought impossible. For the summer, Ashlyn welcomes the noise. The disruption. But, the ghosts of Derek's past will no longer remain silent, and their deafening power has the potential to drag them both into a current strong enough to drown them amidst their heartache.

Jenifer Smith falls in love with the hard-to-get Jason Knight. He also turns out to be a playboy and a gang leader she finds herself in a situation in which she might get hurt. He acts nice and so on but really is his intention? But does Jason even cares or is he just playing with her mind? On the other hand, there is Blake the ex who tries over and over again to correct his wrongs of a cheating boyfriend. Do different really attract or do they draw apart? Apart from that Jenifer has to learn how to loosen up to get the boy she wants, to party, dance, sing, and of course, have fun. But the thing is that Jenny has a dark secret of her own which no one not even Family knows about is the Little Innocent Girl really just a good Girl? Join Jenny on her Adventure of heartbreaks, love, and a lot of Secrets.