We're Not Meant To Be Novels & Stories

“I’m saying you’ve got to survive. And in high school, that means being the lion, not the gazelle. It’s not about being mean; it’s about being untouchable. If that means being a bully, then so be it." I nodded slowly, the pieces clicking into place. If being untouchable meant I’d never have to feel like this again—humiliated, weak, small—then I’d do whatever it took. Thomas clapped me on the shoulder, a faint smile tugging at his lips. “You’ve got potential, Logan. Just don’t waste it.” That night, I lay in bed, staring at the ceiling, replaying his advice over and over. Tomorrow would be different. Tomorrow, I’d start building a version of myself no one could knock down.

I have to be ready even if not once. Hah..., We're in big trouble. *****

And we're not moving either. We're stuck. Alone.

What’s this thing you’re trying not to do? Don’t say it’s nothing. There’s someone else you’re trying not to be, right there behind your eyes. I see it. Look at me. Please.

You've to leave here right now because you aren't meant to be here. ***** T b c

“Not even me.” ---------

It means staying present when they’re not. And tonight, we did.

Just a boy trying to be something more than what the world had made of him. And a girl trying to feel safe in a world that never was. “Maybe,” he said. They didn’t touch. They didn’t kiss. They just stood together, breathing in the same sky, looking out at the same world, hoping—maybe—for the first time—that they didn’t have to face it alone.

Not now, not ever. . . . ……