The Lies We Leave Behind Novels & Stories

He muttered. I groaned out loud. “It wasn’t because of you. I chose to leave the party on my own.” “Why?” I paused. Do I tell him the truth? No. It’ll look like I was being jealous. “I was tired.” I lied. “You were tired?” He repeated, clearly not buying it. I nodded. “Fine, let’s say you were tired, Why didn’t you tell me first?” Because you were too busy with another woman in public. “I got overwhelmed and just wanted to leave.” Another lie.

"And still she left." Marcus closed his eyes for a second. There wasn’t anything he could say. Because we both knew the truth. Love hadn’t been what broke us. We did… every time we chose silence and lies instead of the truth. He wouldn't leave me alone, so I got dressed and he drove us to Kane Ventures. The whole ride was quiet. Neither of us had anything useful to say anymore. The second I walked into Kane Ventures. The receptionist looked up first, then the security guard.

And I began to speak, my voice amplified, echoing through the hangar, cutting through the storm's fury. I didn't tell them a lie. I didn't promise the storm would pass. I told them a story about a man who loved jasmine. About a woman who danced in the sunlight. I told them about a home movie, flickering on a wall. I told them about the magic that isn't in the machine, but in the memory. I told them our story. Mine and Jeff's. The real one. The pain, the loss, the desperate, stubborn love that refused to die.

Ashley teased, pointing at Garnet. Garnet simply smiled, while John cleared his throat awkwardly. "Okay… maybe this year," he said hesitantly. Garnet turned to look at him, eyes wide with surprise. He had no choice. He had to lie. "That’s settled then! I’ll call Esmeralda later—I have good news for her!" Diana said excitedly. Then, the unexpected happened. "I don’t want to get pregnant." The room fell into silence. All three of them turned to look at Garnet.

“And then I’m coming back.” He left without another word. I sat on the edge of the bed, staring at Lisa’s text. And then I typed back the biggest lie I’d told yet. 'Everything’s fine Lisa, nothing’s going on. Promise.'

"To be ready. When the real story finally unravels. Because this house? This war? This love? None of it is what you think." The door opened behind me. My time was up. I walked out without another word. But the lie I tried to leave behind followed me like smoke on my skin.

I got to the Warwolf pack's border checkpoint in the middle of the night. As soon as I handed over my travel pass, I spotted Dad smiling and waving me over. I got into his car, noticing a big bag on the seat, stuffed with all my favorite candies and pastries. Mom was sitting beside me, unwrapping a piece of candy before popping it into my mouth with a happy smile. When I noticed the faint lines at the corners of Mom's eyes, everything I'd been holding back just came pouring out. "I never want to leave again. I just want to stay with you and Dad forever."

“That’s Lyra. They say it’s named after a lyre that could charm even the gods.” “It’s beautiful,” I whisper. “You always look at things like that,” he says suddenly, voice low. “Like you want to believe in the stories. Even the sad ones.” I turn to look at him. He’s already watching me. “It’s easier than believing in silence,” I reply, just as quietly. His hand is still in mine. And I don’t let go. But just as I begin to breathe in that fragile sense of calm, it hits me—this is wrong.

and then I felt it. “It’s not consequence,” I said. “not balance. “not even the system.” The silence held because now that left only one thing. the thing we never accounted for. “It’s what we left behind,” I said. The words soft because now this was truth. the one we didn’t see. “When we chose the world over each other… “we didn’t erase that choice. “we preserved it.” The space cracked because now that meant this wasn’t loss. this was something that remained.

"There is no truth to tell. I am already telling you the truth." "You are not," she said in a low tone before adding in a loud voice all of a sudden. "If you are thinking of leaving me, then I can assure you that won't work. Remember that if you try to leave me and go to Lila, then half of everything you own would come to me and you would land in jail for a crime you committed three years ago." Gavin tried to act as if he was shocked by her accusations, even though he was already plotting how to go back to Lila. Gaining Lila's trust was the only way he could easily cross over what he was facing at the moment.