What Men Mustn't Say [BxB]

EXCERPT

| W H A T   M E N   M U S T N ' T   S A Y |

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❝What if the man who taught you how to survive was the very man you were never allowed to love?❞

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❝And what if the words you were forbidden to say became the ones you spent your entire life wishing you'd never spoken?❞

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Long before Anne Shirley ever stepped foot in Avonlea, before Green Gables had a red-haired girl calling it home, there was a boy who spent his afternoons in the schoolhouse long after the other students had gone. His name was Teddy Phillips. Sixteen years old, poor, painfully awkward, and desperate to become someone his father could not break.

Professor Edmund Whitcomb is determined to make him into a proper gentleman. Stand straight. Speak clearly. Do not cry. Do not flinch. Do not give the world a reason to see you as different.

Phillips thinks his teacher is cruel, until he begins to understand why. 

Because behind Whitcomb's stern voice is a man who knows exactly what happens to boys who do not fit neatly into the world around them. A man who has survived his own terrible past and believes the only way to protect Phillips is to teach him how to hide every vulnerable part of himself.

And somewhere between the lessons, the winter evenings, and all the things neither of them dares to say, Phillips makes the one mistake Whitcomb has spent months trying to prevent.

He falls in love with his teacher.

And the cruelest part is that Phillips begins to suspect he is loved in return.

But some truths are dangerous.

Some loves cannot survive being spoken aloud.

Years before Anne of Green Gables, this is the story of Mr. Phillips' first love, the teacher who tried to save him, and the lesson that would follow him for the rest of his life.

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Content Warnings & Author Statement

Please Note: This novel is a tragic historical prequel intended for mature readers. It explores the harsh realities of the late 19th century and contains themes that some readers may find distressing.

Content Warnings

- Child and domestic abuse (depicted off-screen, resulting injuries shown)

- Severe bullying and peer humiliation

- Suicide (historical, occurring off-screen)

- Homophobia and intense societal shaming

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A Note Regarding the Relationship Dynamics:

This story depicts an age-gap dynamic between sixteen-year-old Teddy Phillips and thirty-one-year-old Professor Edmund Whitcomb. As the author, I want to explicitly state that this relationship is not being promoted, glorified, or romanticized as a healthy ideal.

This book is a historical tragedy about the heavy cost of survival in a deeply repressive era. The dynamic between Teddy and Edmund is executed with strict adherence to platform safety guidelines (including Wattpad's content policies).

Strictly Non-Explicit: The intimacy in this novel is built entirely on a yearning, emotional longing, and slow-burn tension. There is absolutely no explicit, graphic, or sexual content in this book.

Framed as a Tragedy: The narrative does not condone this dynamic; rather, it highlights the profound emotional turmoil, confusion, and ultimate heartbreak that stems from it. It is the catalyst for a lifetime of grief that transforms Teddy into the bitter, rigid schoolmaster seen years later.

Reader discretion is advised. Thank you for approaching this story with the nuance and empathy it requires.

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Public Domain Disclaimer & Creative Intent

This novel is an independent, unofficial work of historical fiction based entirely on the 1908 text of Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery, which has legally entered the public domain. This book is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or licensed by the estate of L.M. Montgomery or any official licensing authorities.

I chose to write this prequel because the characters in the original text are so deeply woven into our collective literary history, yet figures like the cold, unlikable schoolmaster Mr. Phillips are left completely flat. This book was written out of a sudden, lightning-strike inspiration to unearth the hidden human being beneath that granite armor. By exploring his youth, I wanted to investigate how cycles of trauma propagate, and how the historical suppression of identity leaves deep scars. This is my creative reimagining of his past, not to alter the classic story we love, but to give its coldest villain a heartbreakingly human heart.

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WHAT MEN MUSTN'T SAY Copyright © 2026 by Wren Burns

All standard rights are reserved regarding the unauthorized reproduction or transmission of this publication, as detailed in the full copyright terms.

No use of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of this publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in reviews and certain other non-commercial uses permitted by copyright law.

In simpler terms, if you take my work, I'll take you to court.

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