Chapter 4 Things Fall Apart Novels & Stories

Amara Bennett has a rule: Never let anyone close enough to break your heart twice. After a humiliating breakup that turned her into the laughingstock of her school, she’s done with romance, done with hope, and definitely done with boys who make promises they can’t keep. Then Julian Reyes transfers into her class. Charming without trying. Annoyingly kind. The type of boy who remembers little things—like how she hates strawberries on cake and how she always pretends she’s okay when she isn’t. At first, Amara can’t stand him. Mostly because Julian somehow sees through every wall she built around herself. But when a misunderstanding makes the entire school believe they’re dating, Julian offers her a deal: fake a relationship until the rumors die down. Simple. Except nothing about Julian feels fake. Not the way he waits outside her classroom just to walk her home. Not the way his hand finds hers during crowded hallways. And definitely not the way he looks at her like she’s the best thing he’s ever found. For the first time in a long time, Amara begins to believe love might not be something meant to hurt her. But just when she finally lets herself fall, she discovers the truth Julian has been hiding since the day they met—a truth that could destroy everything between them. Because Julian didn’t transfer to her school by coincidence. He came for her.

“These sneakers cost more than your family makes in a month and you dare step on them?” I cursed. The very first day I met this kid, it ended in chaos after he stepped on me, but he had this energy I just couldn't match. I found it intimidating and disrespectful and of course, dealt with him. Only for me to arrive at dinner and mom introduced him again as my step brother. The plan was to ruin him as I hated him even more and in achieving that, I accepted a bet to make him fall for me. But what started as a dare grew into something darker and fiercer. The real feelings set in and this was when the millionaire question struck me: In a world built on lies, dares and betrayal, would love make me or break me?

The night before the annual gala, my wife promised me a big surprise. But the very next day, she publicly quintupled the marketing manager's bonus. To me, she just gave a curt nod and a half-hearted "keep up the good work". When I questioned her decision, she brushed it off casually. "You've racked up some impressive wins in court. I'll give you that, but let's be real. Without Kevin hyping you up, you'd never have hit top-tier status. Plus, what's mine is yours. Why nitpick over a bonus?" The room buzzed with anticipation of my explosion. But I held my tongue till the gala ended. The next morning, I marched into her office and slapped my resignation letter down on her desk. "Might as well tack my salary onto Kevin's. Consider it my wedding present to you." She erupted, branding me as narrow-minded and dooming me to the unemployment line. She conveniently overlooked my track record as a powerhouse attorney. For that alone, elite firms were lining up to recruit me.

Being in a loveless marriage is hard, but leaving is harder. Brittney believed aside from marriage, there was nothing left for her. But she takes the courage to leave her cheating husband. What would become of her? Would she crawl back to him or find a way to live? Find out in this story.

Vanessa Archibald is heartbroken and ready for a fresh start. Escaping her cheating ex and small town, she gets admission to Yale and moves in with her dad's charming best friend, Antonio who is also a professor at Yale. Older, sophisticated, and devastatingly handsome, Antonio is everything Vanessa's ex wasn't. But their age difference and Antonio's upcoming wedding make their undeniable attraction forbidden.But what starts as a convenient arrangement explodes into a forbidden passion they can't deny.One drunken night ignites a spark they can't ignore, leading to a passionate encounter that binds them in a thrilling, yet terrifying, secret. All is well up until an anonymous emailer threatens to expose Vanessa’s secret, sending shivers down Vanessa's spine. Will she succumb to the blackmail, or will she risk everything for a taste of the forbidden?

I refused to donate one of my kidneys to my younger sister, Ella. As a result, my parents forced me to marry a wealthy man in Pinetown. People said Johnson kept his distance from everyone else. His first love had never truly left his heart. Everyone waited to watch my miserable ending. Unexpectedly, Johnson actually deeply doted on me. During the three years of our marriage, regardless of the place, he never seemed able to keep his hands off me. Even when I went to the washroom, he followed me and pressed me against the sink. We never took any contraceptive measures. Yet, I never got pregnant. One day, when I thought I was finally expecting, we went to the hospital for a checkup. There, I accidentally overheard his conversation with a doctor. “Johnson, three years ago, you asked me to secretly transplant Amber’s kidney to Ella. Today, you want me to lie to her that she’s naturally sterile. How could you be so cruel to a woman who loves you?” “There’s no other way. Ella’s health is weak. If she can’t bear a child, she’ll suffer in her husband’s family. Only Amber’s kidney is a match for her.” The voice I knew so well sounded so cold that it felt unfamiliar. The love and salvation I had basked in so comfortably turned out to be nothing but a lie. If that was the truth, all that was left for me to do was to leave him.

"Over a kiss?" His eyes flashed. "Over assault. That's what it's called when you touch someone without their consent." His hand gripped my hip, fingers digging in hard enough to bruise. "When you press your body against theirs. When you moan into their mouth like a wanton girl." The crude word should have offended me. Instead, my core clenched. "That's ridiculous." Desire mixed with anger. I pushed against him. He was solid as a wall, immovable. "I kissed you. But you kissed me back." I met his gaze, defiant. "And your hand touched me inappropriately. Grabbed my ass. Ground yourself against me. So quit acting like an innocent victim." It all started with a dare that led to one reckless kiss with a ruthless man. One addiction that could destroy them both. Kiara never expected the man she kissed at that club, the one who saved her, the one she drunkenly begged to fuck her, to walk into her life the next morning as Zander Creed. Billionaire. Zander is a recovering sex addict. Five years of brutal self-control... then Kiara happened, and his addiction is roaring back to life, threatening to devour them both. Fate delivered the cruelest twist. She's his best friend's daughter and daughter's new roommate. And she just got accepted into his prestigious internship program. Now she's living under his roof. Working beside him. Wearing dresses that destroy his defences. She knows exactly what she's doing, pushing every boundary and testing his control. He's desperate for her. And when she starts dating Marcus, a man who offers her everything Zander can't, just to make him jealous... his control detonates. The affair is passionate and forbidden. She wants his heart. He can only give her his demons. Some addictions can't be cured. Some love burns everything down.

Elena Russo has always lived life by the rules: excel at work, stay loyal, and follow a plan. Engaged to Matteo Ricci, the perfect fiancé, her future seems secure—until Damon DeLuca steps back into her life. Damon, cold, confident, and dangerously magnetic, isn’t just any man. He’s her family’s rival and now, her new business partner. From the moment he walks into her world, Elena feels the undeniable pull of something she shouldn’t want. Working alongside Damon is a battle of wits, sarcasm, and tension. Every glance, every challenge, and every subtle flirtation threatens to unravel her carefully controlled life. But the real danger isn’t just business—it’s Matteo. Elena thought she knew everything about her fiancé, but a shocking betrayal forces her to question everything she believed. Suddenly, the line between love and hate blurs, and the man she’s been trying hardest to resist may be the only one who truly sees her. In a world of corporate power, family rivalry, and forbidden desire, Elena must decide: stick to the life she planned or risk everything for the man who makes her heart race. Enemies. Business partners. Dangerous chemistry. One choice that could change everything.

She brushes her tears away as she opens her door slamming it behind her. Taking off her shoes and throwing them in frustration across her living room. She runs up the stairs and into her room. Letting her body fall in her bed as she grips the sheets that still has the lingering smell of his scent. She grips his pillow as she falls asleep crying in her bed. (Chapt. 16- Take my Broken Wings)

Olivia Jamerson spent years stewing in hidden rage for the person behind all her high-school ridicule and embarrassment. That person was none other than Joshua Taylor, son of the football coach and the famed bully of Westminster High. Students feared him, his friends revered him and teachers were sick of him. Two years after graduation and leaving town, Olivia had changed her whole appearance and character so much that no one could recognize her. Drowning in the sea of New Yorkers, Olivia finally felt that she had left her past behind and become a whole new person. At least that was the case until she bumped into the unlikeliest person she expected to meet in the big city—her old bully. Despite being annoyingly hotter than she remembered, the only thing that bothered her was that he was disturbingly nice, but worst of all, he did not remember her. Things turn a whole lot crazier when she finds out that Joshua has amnesia and when he starts flirting with her as if they did not have a complicated past. A big city, sparks and tension, and two people—one with bitter memories of their relationship and one with a blank canvas eager to fill it with potential memories. Will their tragic past catch up to them and will their horns lock once again? Will Olivia hold on to her grudges and lock him out of her life once again, or will she open her heart to the new and improved Joshua?