Window-shopping

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.”*

Suzan, 11, is trick-or-treating with her friends when Simon dares them to visit the haunted witch’s cabin. Although she’s scared, Suzan refuses to go with them and heads home. Later, she learns from her friends that after they knocked on the door, a window shattered, and they ran in fear. Later, Suzan returns home, only to be comforted by her mom after losing her candy. At home, Suzan is comforted by her mom after losing her candy. However, strange whispers and scratching sounds soon disturb her. When her brother Luke checks, he reassures her, but the noises return, and Suzan spots glowing eyes in her closet. The figure grabs her by the hair, draining her life force before dragging her out the window, leaving her family helpless.

The train arrived with a screech of metal on metal, and subconsciously I boarded and found a seat and gazed out the window as if somehow, the tunnel walls rushing by was the only thing that could grant my wish. "I wish you could see me," I whispered the deep words, picturing his face as I spoke. "Like really see me. I wish you could love me just the way I love you." Closing my eyes, I began to feel the weight of the unshed tears behind my eyelids. But just before I brushed them off I murmured again. "Just once, I want to know what it would be like if you truly loved me back." With a final sigh, I wiped the tears fighting to breakfree. Little did I know, some wishes come at a terrible price. When Asher Smith's boyfriend, supermodel Xander Fauler, wakes from a car accident with amnesia, their cold relationship transforms into something passionaate and real. For six blissful months, Asher experiences the love he always craved—until Xander's memories return, along with his icy demeanor. What was once six month's of undeniable love and pleasure just as he had always wanted, slowly turned into a nightmare that he had dreaded so much for the longest time. Amidst the uncertainty of his spot in his love life, Asher began to notice some odd changes in Xander, making him question if their relationship was ever real. As he tries to get a grip of his love life he uncovers a dangerous obsession lurking in Xander's inner circle and a traumatic secret from his past, putting him no way further from his recent doubt, now Asher must decide: walk away from heartbreak or fight for a love trapped beneath scars?

"Don't dream of belonging to anyone else. Your breath, your heartbeat, your body - they are mine, and I will take you by force, no matter what. I am Asher Martin, and I will make you my Luna." Tears streamed down Sage Holton's face as her life and circumstances changed in an instant, turning to ashes as Asher came to claim her by force and make her his forever. --- There was a beautiful scent clinging to me, like marmalade, roses, and honeyed strawberries. I didn’t know why, but suddenly my wolf spoke, saying, "Mate." I responded in shock, "Mate!" Of course, I nearly went mad. I am an Alpha Gamma with hybrid blood, and that little girl is of pure lineage. Even though I don't accept the laws of the Moon Goddess, I know that one of her laws is that mates must be of the same pure lineage, though it is possible to marry and love someone from another lineage. I kept pacing around, and then I remembered—I had thrown her out, naked! I looked out the window at the sky; it was raining heavily, it was late, and I had cast her out. I shouldn't have gone near her, but what happened, happened.

Raquel Aguas is the definition of spoiled. Wala siyang inatupag kundi party, shopping, gala, at pagwaldas ng pera ng magulang niya. Wala siyang pakialam sa negosyo, sa future, o kahit sa expectations ng pamilya niya—basta't masaya siya. Pero nang mapuno na ang magulang niya sa kawalang-direksyon niya, tinakot siyang hindi niya makukuha ang mana niya kung hindi siya matutong magpakatao. Dahil sa takot na mawala ang marangyang buhay na nakalaan sa kanya, wala siyang nagawa kundi tanggapin ang kondisyon—ang pumasok sa House of Aguas at tumulong sa kuya niya sa pamamalakad ng kompanya. Sa kasamaang palad, dala lang ni Raquel ang kalat at stress sa opisina. Hindi siya seryoso, laging palpak, at tila ba wala talagang pake. Kaya nagdesisyon ang kuya niyang bigyan siya ng isang project—isang mission na kapag matagumpay niyang nagawa, malaya na siyang bumalik sa dating buhay niya. Kailangan niyang papirmahin ang mayor ng Santa Monica para sa isang malaking proyekto ng House of Aguas Corporation. Sa una'y inakala niyang madali lang iyon. Pero nang makilala niya si Mayor Caelum Argente ay doon siya nagkamali. Guwapo man ito, ngunit masyadong matigas ang prinsipyo. Paulit-ulit siyang binigo at tinanggihan, tila ba sinasadya siyang pahirapan. Habang lumilipas ang mga araw, lalong nawawala ang pasensya niya. Pero dahil desperada siyang matapos ang trabaho at makuha ang kalayaang gusto niya, pilit siyang naghahanap ng paraan para mapasunod ang mayor. Ang hindi niya inaasahan ay ang kondisyong kapalit ng pirma nito—isang kondisyon na hindi pera o pabor ang hinihingi, kundi ang maging sex slave siya nito!

"I can help you destroy them both, if you let me." Scarlett's perfect -well, almost perfect- life shatters when she catches her husband with another woman—on the same day she discovers she's finally pregnant after three years of trying. But when his mistress pushes her through a window fifteen stories high, it's her husband's bitter business rival who catches her fall. Dominic Blackwood offers a cold proposition: marry him and gain the resources to destroy the man who betrayed her. It's a business arrangement—revenge wrapped in a wedding ring. No love. No pretense. Just mutual benefit. But as Scarlett navigates her new marriage of convenience with the enigmatic billionaire who saved her life, she discovers that the line between vengeance and desire blurs dangerously with each passing day. When her heart begins to betray her plans for revenge, will Scarlett discover that falling for her devil's bargain is the most dangerous fall of all?

I should have been walking down the aisle. Instead, I was running through the woods in my wedding dress. The white fabric caught on every branch, tearing apart like my life. My name is Camela Siegel. My father is the Mayor, and he sold me to save himself. Vincent Castellano was supposed to be my husband. They call him the Mad Prince, but I learned he’s so much worse than that. His hands trembled when he touched me—sometimes gentle, like I might break, and sometimes rough, like he wanted to overpower me. “You’re mine now,” he’d whisper in the dark corners of that house. “No one else gets to touch you. No one else gets to hurt you but me.” I tried the door handle every day for three months. It only turned from the outside. When help finally came, I thought it was over. I thought I could go home and pretend none of it ever happened. I was wrong. Vincent found my journal—the one where I wrote about him, about what he did to me, and about who he truly is. Now he’s not just keeping me locked up. He’s hunting me. They call him “The Fox” for a reason. He’s patient and waits. When he catches what he’s after, he never lets it go. I can feel him watching me even now—through my bedroom window, from across the street, in the shadows where I can’t see him but I know he’s there. My father thinks making that deal saved his life. He doesn’t realize it destroyed mine. Vincent said he’d keep me until the last day of my life. I’m starting to think that day is coming soon.

Sage Casey Ember-Brooks, who goes by Casey, is a fast-food worker and aspiring fantasy novelist whose ordinary life crumbles when mysterious strangers ask cryptic questions about her dragon series. Her recurring dreams of golden coins suddenly make terrifying sense when Marcus Chen—a businessman with eyes that flash gold—reveals that dragons are real, living hidden among humans for centuries. Casey's unnaturally accurate fantasy writing stems from awakening genetic memories. She's a rare "Convergence" bloodline capable of harmonising opposing elemental forces. The revelation comes at a critical time: a new cryptocurrency called DragonCoin, featuring symbols identical to her dreams, creates magical interference that weakens concealment spells protecting dragon society. At the Crossroads shopping complex where she works, disruptions cause dragons to flicker between human and true forms in full view of witnesses. Caught between Marcus (a traditionalist who wants to hide her with the Dragon Council) and the enigmatic Xaihuang (who advocates ending the masquerade entirely), Casey discovers an underground chamber housing ancient dragon artifacts. When she touches a magical coin, visions reveal three futures: chaotic revelation leading to war, continued concealment resulting in magical extinction, or a mysterious third path of integration. Casey realises DragonCoin wasn't created to expose dragons, but by another awakening hybrid like herself—someone in Seattle whose unconscious dragon heritage channels ancient power through modern technology. As magical concealment fails worldwide and dragons begin manifesting publicly, Casey must race across the country to find this unknown programmer before the interference between magic and technology tears reality apart. The story explores themes of identity, integration versus assimilation, and the collision between ancient power and digital-age innovation. With her awakening abilities growing stronger and the masquerade crumbling around her, Casey faces a choice that will determine her fate and the future relationship between the hidden magical world and human civilisation.

The sun hit my face through the window as I woke up, and reality crashed in—I lost my virginity to a stranger. My mind spun back to last night, to what I overheard outside the VIP lounge. My boyfriend’s voice, Liam’s laugh, Maya’s mocking tone—burned into me. “I can’t believe she actually thinks you’d date her. Such an ugly duckling thinking she could be a princess,” Maya sneered. And Liam… the man I gave five years of my life to… laughed with her. “When I’m tired of playing, I’ll let you know. I love this game, even if it’s taken so long.” Two years chasing him, five years dating him—just a stupid game. My love was never love to him. One drink. One dizzy stumble back to my hotel room. One man who felt both familiar and like a stranger. And one night that changed everything. Now, I don’t know his face. But I can’t forget the way it felt.

Valarie Blackrose, the heiress of Blackrose Empire, had it all' she was beautiful, rich, courageous and had loving parents who pampered her endlessly. But because of her disability, she became cold by nature and chased away any man who dared come close to her Her parents, desperate to see her happy, secretly offered a business marriage contract to any man from a respected family who could win her heart. ~~~ Scott Foster I had a plan, After cutting ties with my asshole of a father I was going to start a company of my own and prove to him that I wasn’t worthless. But what if things aren’t going as planned, worse of all I find myself in deep debt, I’m desperate and Valarie Blackrose might be my only way out Never in my life did I think I’d stoop so low as to deceive someone like Valarie, but desperation changes everything All morality flies out the window when a desperate father offers me a contract that could be the solution to all my problems, But there’s just one catch though, I have to marry his disabled daughter, keep her happy, and make sure she never finds out about the contract Make her fall in love with me, marry her then divorce her with an excuse It was supposed to be as simple as that" But never had I expected I would end up falling in love with her, I got too greedy not for her wealth but for her love, now dark forces threaten to expose the very truth that could lead me to lose her Will I be able to fight them all and get our happy ending or will our love end in tears and hatred