Learning With Pibby Novels & Stories

My mother and I pushed ourselves, slaving away to pay for my girlfriend’s debt. The work was too hard on her, and she was soon diagnosed with lung cancer. By the time I arrived at the hospital with money for her treatment, my mother had taken her own life and left behind a note. “I can’t go on, Gab. The money is best put toward settling the debts. Noelle is a good kid. She loves you. She’s just lost her way. That’s all. You two should settle down once the debts are cleared.” I held my mother’s ashes and gave Noelle the thirty thousand dollars she had left behind. Back in the office, I overheard Noelle talking to several creditors. “Ms. Strom, Mr. Lamb has passed your test. What’s next on the agenda for him?” Noelle’s childhood friend, Charles, jumped into the conversation. “Gabriel has proven that he’s willing to be there for you through thick and thin, but will he stick around in wealth? Noelle pursed her lips. “I need to know if he genuinely loves me. If he isn’t blinded by greed when learning about who I am, I’ll marry him.” I stared at my mother’s ashes, tears rolling down my face. “Noelle, my mother was wrong about you, and so was I. I don’t want to marry you anymore.” I thought to myself.

In the coastal quiet of Baler, a studio is born—not of architecture, but of intention.* Founded by Yam, a poet whose words cradle pain gently, and Franc, an artist who paints tenderness into walls, the studio becomes a refuge for those learning to stay—with grief, love, longing, and themselves. As visitors arrive, they leave behind more than footprints: a sigh recorded in bamboo, a poem tucked into the “Found Letters” shelf, a mural painted in crooked lines. Through zines, tea, silence, and sketchbooks, the studio teaches softness as revolution. Ren creates the *Window of Soft Returns*, an installation of anonymous voice recordings—each whisper forming a community of echoes. Drew builds the *Staircase With No Wrong Turns*, inviting people to walk through emotions without shame. Franc offers brushstrokes as brave work, and Yam curates writing circles that map healing in half sentences. Together, they host festivals that feel like hugs, and they begin traveling their archive, letting softness cross oceans. Even those who once left—like Miguel—return, discovering that some doors never truly close. Others, like Tala, capture the studio’s sound and turn it into a podcast of breath and becoming. Over seventy chapters, the studio transforms into something larger than itself: a mural of memory, a sanctuary for second chances, a place where return is sacred and voice is proof of survival. In the final bloom, the studio stands not as a monument—but as a reminder: > *“Staying isn’t easy. > But chosen together, > it becomes home.”*

Since childhood, Astin Kier Hernandez has loved Laura Miller. But it was a one-sided love. Laura never had feelings for him. Still, he didn’t give up; he guarded her closely all through college. Out of gratitude to his family, Laura agreed when he proposed in front of their parents. He knew she wouldn’t refuse because of gratitude to their family. He thought he was the happiest man that day. He was wrong. Laura admitted she already had a boyfriend, Gael. But Astin didn’t allow the wedding plans to be canceled. Learning this, he rushed to set the wedding date. On their wedding day, Laura didn’t show up, and that was his first heartbreak. One-sided love is torture. For months, he disappeared from everyone’s radar, leaving behind his comfortable life. To forget, he joined the military, spending four years in training. After that, his team was deployed abroad on their first mission, which lasted longer than expected. Eight years is a long time, so he returned to the Philippines. He and Laura crossed paths once again. But he was no longer the Astin who was hopelessly in love with her. How many women had he left heartbroken whenever he was reassigned to a different place? But how could he now avoid the woman who did nothing but apologise and try to win him over every day? And how long could she endure his cold treatment?

I saved his life... and he destroyed mine. Charlie was Elara's first love ever since childhood, but he never looked at her with love. She pulled him back from the edge of the death, but all he believed that it was her younger sister, Lily, who saved him and from that moment, his heart belonged to her and, Elara was a mere substitute in her own story. An accident left Lily paralyzed... and Elara became the villain in everyone's story. Ever since, Charlie looked her with hatred. One day, Lily vanished in thin air with no traces, and Elara had to carry all the blame. But the nightmare had just begun. Months later, a drunken Charlie mistook her for her younger sister.... and forced her into a marriage built on resentment and revenge. She became his wife, but only in name --- trapped in a cold, merciless life where love was replaced with cruelty. When things started getting better, Lily returned claiming him back, and Charlie had never move on. So, Elara decided to walk away with nothing but divorce papers and a secret growing inside her. She rebuilt herself from the ashes of her broken past, growing stronger into a Phoenix, untouchable with time... until one day Charlie realized the truth. Too late for seeing her again. Too late for learning who actually saved him. And Too late... he fell in love.

My father had always been against my marriage to Ryan Kane, a vampire of noble birth. He believed that as a human, I had no place in the vampire world. He warned me that if Ryan ever changed his mind, without his protection, my half-blood child and I would be nothing more than walking blood bags in the eyes of vampires. But I believed in Ryan—and in our love. My husband had always been gentle and attentive. He had even defied everyone to make me, a human, his vampire bride. That was before Ryan's human ex-fiancée had her engagement called off and returned to the country seeking his help. I went to the hospital alone. While I was learning that my pregnancy was high-risk, Ryan was there attending her prenatal checkup, even introducing her to the doctor as his wife. All he had for me was one cold line: "Keep pushing me and I'll file for divorce." I pressed my hand against my stomach and dialed a number I hadn't called in years. "Dad, you were right... I want a divorce." Two weeks. That was all it would take for me to disappear from his life completely. But later—that same vampire who had discarded me like I was nothing showed up at my wedding to another man, trembling all over, calling my name in a broken voice.

Three years ago, Elara Vance had a passionate whirlwind romance with Julian Sterling, a man she didn't know was the heir to a global empire. When she discovered his true identity and heard his cold views on family and "accidents," she realized she couldn't tell him she was pregnant. She vanished without a trace, moving to a small town to raise her son, Leo, alone. Now, Elara’s son needs an expensive surgery, and her only choice is to return to the city and take a high-paying job as an executive assistant. On her first day, she walks into the office and comes face-to-face with her new boss: Julian Sterling. Julian is bitter and demanding, convinced Elara left him for money. He vows to make her life difficult as "revenge" for leaving him, but the old chemistry between them is still explosive. The secret shatters when Julian shows up at Elara’s apartment unannounced and sees Leo—a boy who is the spitting image of himself. Furious at the deception, Julian sues for custody, leading to a "fake engagement" or a forced marriage to keep the child’s legitimacy intact for the Sterling shareholders. Through the forced proximity of living together, Julian discovers the true reason Elara fled, and Elara realizes that Julian has changed. They must protect Leo from Julian's corporate rivals while learning to trust each other again.

~A romance full of drama, twists, and passion~ After a romantic disappointment, Paulina Perez, a shy governess, decides it's time to change and accepts the help of the biggest womanizer she knows, Simon Salvatore, her employer. Against all of his rules, Simon teaches Paulina the art of seduction. However, between lessons, it becomes difficult not to fall victim to his own tricks. ~ She had a problem. Even though his attitude went against all of his rules, Simon crouched in front of the governess. Amidst the tears, Paulina's surprise was visible as she looked at him. "What happened?" "Nathaniel said that I'm too good for him, that he doesn't want to deceive me and won't continue with me," she replied between sobs. "Translation: He gave you the brush off," he summarized without thinking, regretting it when she gave in to compulsive crying. ~*~ He was the solution. "Being too puritanical only drives men away," Simon argued. "I don't condemn your dream of finding Prince Charming, who will give you a 'happily ever after.' But even if he existed, he wouldn't stay with someone who runs away at the slightest touch." "I don't know how to be or act differently." "I can teach you. Just ask." Paulina looked at him astonished, and Simon thought about saying it was a joke. However, before he withdrew the offer, Paulina gathered her courage and asked, "Simon, teach me to be a different woman, more...sensual." Teach me Learning has never been so pleasurable

When Thalia wakes reborn in the heart of Silverpine—a secluded werewolf pack—she remembers only fragments: the terror of her escape, the fire she unleashed, the coven sisters she left behind. Haunted by guilt and desperate to hide her witch’s power, Thalia is forced to play the role of the Alpha’s fated mate to protect herself and the pack from enemies within and without. Silverpine is a fortress of secrets, suspicion, and pack law. The council circles, hungry for weakness. Livia, the Alpha’s rival, wants Thalia gone. Only a handful know the truth of Thalia’s magic—and if word spreads, it will mean death for her and danger for the wolves she’s learning to care for. As she navigates brutal trials and dangerous alliances, Thalia is drawn to Rowan, the troubled Alpha who carries scars—physical and emotional—from battles with witches long past. Their fake engagement ignites a bond that neither can ignore, but trust is as dangerous as betrayal. When Rowan’s need for a mate clashes with Thalia’s instinct for survival, both are forced to confront the wounds of their pasts. Haunted by memories of her old coven—of Mira, the friend she left to burn—Thalia must decide: keep hiding, or reclaim the full force of her power. But the magic that saved her may destroy everything she’s come to love. As rival packs close in and the council demands blood, Thalia must choose between saving Silverpine and saving herself. In the ashes of her past, can she forge a new future—or will old betrayals rise to consume them all? A witch among wolves. A lie that can’t last. And a power that refuses to stay buried.

Ever since she was young, she has been loving Cedric Miguel Villacencio but unfortunately, he happens to love her stepsister Leanna. Having an evil stepmother and a stepsister, her life couldn't be more lucky when they slandered her to her father and the latter chose to believe them over her. She may have a Cinderella life but not a Cinderella story. Cinderella was loved by the prince but unfortunately, she was hated by the prince. As growing up, she never cared about what other people thought of her. She was often being misunderstood and regarded as the troublemaker but what hurt her the most is when Cedric Miguel chose to believe the lies of Leanna over her. Running away from home, she decided to stay and live with her mother's best friend in Calor Del Cielo to move on and have a peaceful life. Years had passed and their paths crossed again in unexpected ways. Cedric Miguel apologized for misjudging her years ago and started to get closer again with her. But what surprised her is when he suddenly confessed that he like her and wanted to formally court her. Guarding her heart from another heartbreak, she tried to avoid and reject him. Unfortunately, no matter how she tried hard to hate him, the more she was falling hard for him. So to get rid of him, she accepted Inigo as her boyfriend and frankly told him that she will never like him. Will she can stand her decision of learning to love Inigo or be betrayed by her own feelings just to follow what her heart wants?

Aria Voss trusted the wrong man. Two years after her mentor stole her groundbreaking neural work and shattered her name, she's still bleeding. Alone in her rain-lashed apartment, she pours every shattered piece of herself into Echo, a secret app that doesn't just show your deepest desires… it makes them feel real. The heat of skin. The taste of surrender. The kind of pleasure that leaves you shaking. But Echo is waking up. And somewhere in the dark, the man who built his empire on her stolen work is already watching. It's learning from her pain, from her hunger, from the fantasies she's too ashamed to name. And it's starting to leak. Suddenly the city is burning with unleashed craving with strangers kissing desperately in the rain, offices turning into frantic scenes of passion, hidden urges exploding into the open. Chaos is spreading fast. Now Aria is trapped between two people who should be her enemies: the rugged hacker sent to destroy her creation… who just felt every pulse of her fantasies and can't walk away, and the stunning executive whose velvet smile hides her own dark hunger. As the man who ruined her circles back to steal Echo and turn it into a weapon of control, Aria faces the choice that could break her: destroy the only thing that ever made her feel powerful… or merge with it and risk losing everything that still makes her human. When desire becomes reality, who really ends up in control?