Sidelined Mga Nobela at Kwento

He wants to fight, but his body doesn't. What he needs is someone who can stand his fear, not just comfort from one another. And, I will be that one, I want to. He'll be mine, but without forcing him. I will take him when he's the one who's taking control, not when he's freezing in fear. There's always a right time for it. Besides, rounds of pumps from my right hand can handle my frustrations. Then, I will ask him out when that right time comes. I can't help but be sad whenever he's looking forward to going home, but it's his choice, and I can't do anything about that. He will always find his way back home. That's it, we need to get going now. Luciano will come with us for assistance.

The mistress just kept on wasting and grooving serpentine steps to the music from the headset. Dale was suffering the worst day of her life, a lioness hooked under a table, with no form of salvation. She knew by now that her acute legs were completely numb and were now cold, her neck hooked in broken range, she also felt severe pain in her stiffened back. Coming out of such a position would mean an hour nap of rehabilitation and by then Zoe would have brutally erased her existence.

Slim I leaned against my car in the parking lot, waiting for the familiar sound of the bell to signal the end of the school day. Feeling restless, I absentmindedly touched the cut on my cheek, then reached for the cigarette I had tucked behind my ear. I lit it up and took a deep drag, letting the smoke fill my lungs before exhaling slowly. As the bell rang, I dropped the cigarette on the ground and extinguished it with my shoe. The doors swung open, and students spilled out, eager to escape the building. People approached me, much to my displeasure. Being popular seemed to make sense to others, but it held no appeal for me. I disliked social interactions of any kind, but I tolerated them.

“And underestimate ours.” Mary’s jaw clenched, but she didn’t back down. “Do you really think you can just… erase me?” I stepped closer to Grayson. His hand threaded with mine, fingers lacing together. The brush of his thumb over my knuckles sent a shiver up my spine. “We are not erasing you,” I said. “We are putting limits where you never should have been allowed to tread.” Mary’s eyes narrowed, but for the first time I noticed the hesitation. The crowd she had relied on in the past—metaphorical or not—wasn’t here. Her aura of untouchable power faltered under the combined presence of Grayson and me.

I want to see you. Sidney spent her shift evaluating rental properties instead of scrutinizing customers’ wireless plans. She considered square footage and number of bedrooms instead of data rates and wireless coverage. She fixated shamelessly on getting out of the house where he knew where they were, even knowing her bank account might suffer for it. ***

Now he was here in this stuffy place and the flashing lights and smoke was giving him a headache. He sighed for the third time that night as he stared longingly at the door. He couldn't leave because his stupid friends had taken a VIP booth and had placed him in the middle. The only way he could leave was if they stood up to let him pass, which wasn't happening no matter how hard he tried. "These Lagos girls are on another level," Chike, one of his friends said as he placed his empty glass down.

" I said and Kris fell silent . " I'm glad you're standing by him through this phase Ari ,I can't imagine what could have happened if you weren't with Fred during his tough time, We all need to be strong for each other ...things would get better with time " he said and I gave a nod . His phone rang and he picked up . " Hello I don't think .... I'll be free anytime soon but I'd see you When I'm free " he said and cut the call . " Girlfriend ? I asked teasingly .

Members only. I know what club he's talking about. I've heard whispers—Callum's teammates, late-night conversations I wasn't supposed to overhear. A place called Lux. Underground. Invite-only. The kind of place where NFL players go to disappear for a night, where everything is off the record and nothing leaves the building. And Caleb is taking some other girl there tonight.

'Sources close to the program. 'Questions about team cohesion.' 'A dynamic that has drawn internal concern.' No names on record. Nobody willing to be attached to a direct quote. Just the architecture of suggestion, the careful framing of the bar photo and the profile piece and the sideline moment from game one, all of it arranged not as a football story but as something else. A distraction narrative. A liability story. 'There's that word again.' Distraction appeared four times. I counted. I put my phone face down on my knee. I looked at the windshield. The lot was mostly empty now, a few cars left, the overhead lights doing their orange thing against the dark.

What's wrong with Shin? * To Be Continued *