Our Shared Shelf Novels & Stories

he said before she scoffed. “And what is so special about them?” she asked before Caleb reached out to caress her cheek. “They can shift at will and while the humans are afraid of them, they wanted to be friends with them and maybe fall in love. The humans made a pact that at the end of every month, a festival was thrown to honor their friendship. It has been a tradition that whoever they saw or brought to the festival was something special to them,” Caleb said as he locked his golden eyes on Marina. She sucked on a breath.

[RC Group] The young man got out of his black car. He walked into the company he manages. All the staff saluted the young man as he walked past them. This morning, Redric was still in a mess. He forced himself to go to the office because he felt bad at home. Yesterday's incident really frustrated him. About Shireen's sudden presence, and about Shin's self-righteousness. Apparently he had been living with strangers all this time. even Redric and Shin didn't know each other before. Redric really felt confused about that.

As if the universe had decided because 'All this is no coincidence. That night they both slept peacefully. This was the place where they belong. They need each other. They have gone through a lot, and they will go through a lot, but they are ready as they get each other at the end of the tunnel. Everything, every pain would be worth it at the end because they can have each other again. Yes, everything would be worth it.

Preparing myself for an extensive reading session, I gathered my hair in a ponytail. I perused through several shelves of prophecies until Oscar decided to join me. "Go for W or F," he suggested, leading me to the next set of shelves. Yuna remained calm in Shane's arms, so I wasn't concerned about her. As we arrived at the F shelf, we came across a particular book titled 'Frosters and the Shared DNA Twins.' "Twins?" I furrowed my brow, puzzled by the mention of twins in the title. "Yuna had a twin?" Oscar observed and inquired.

It did not smell like a study. “Bookshelf,” Alex said, needlessly. “I saw.” Troy’s mouth tilted. “You’re already putting Nathan’s box on the bottom shelf in your head.” “I’m putting the seminar spines at eye level.” Alex ran his fingers along the empty wood. “Bottom shelf is still the box. Some habits are structural.” They stood in the doorway of the bedroom and looked at a bed that wasn’t theirs yet. Light cut across the floor in a wide strip. Outside, a tree moved against the glass. Ordinary. Possible.

The air still smelled faintly of old books and the cedar sachets their mother used to tuck into drawers. Nathan closed the door. Cole turned the lock. Isabel stood between the two beds and let the cardigan fall. This time they undressed each other first. She watched as identical bodies were revealed—same broad shoulders, same lean muscle, same dark trail of hair leading down. When they were both naked the resemblance became almost unbearable. Only the scar and the ring remained as proof that the universe had not simply doubled one man.

“I would’ve believed it.” My breath caught. Then, slowly, I looked at them one by one. No one was trying to impress anyone. No one was trying to dig into secrets or fix each other. We were just… here. I hadn’t realized how much I needed that. Not loyalty. Not solemn promises. Just presence. Shared space. Something real. Thalia reached for a second helping of waffle and said, “So, when are we doing this again?”

Joshua nodded and we separated. There were seven different shelves in the room and on three, the marks of my seal were painted, no, not painted, it was carved on it. I still wondered why this place wasn't destroyed. Did he think that we would never be able to get to this library? That we would die before we got there. Then he underestimated us.

I push the books on either side apart. There, set into the dark wood of the shelving unit, is a small, grey panel. A safe. It’s old. Electronic, but an older model. A keypad with faded numbers. My heart starts to race. Thump. Thump. Thump. I shouldn't touch it. If Ciro walks in, he’ll break my fingers. If Aureliano walks in, he’ll do worse. But I can't look away. This shelf is tucked in the corner. Hidden. Forgotten.

* The sixth section was the conclusion. I read: *Shares are substrate connections. They should be used to build substrates for other things. Not spent. Not displayed. Used to make the foundation of something real more permanent. The making school is real. The baby sister is real. Both deserve a permanent substrate. That's what the shares are for.* I put the document down. I looked at Mom. I looked at Dad. The kitchen was quiet. The oatmeal on the stove. The February evening. No. March evening.