Masks Always Fall

A war between the mind and heart.

Emma did her best to fade into the background, avoiding attention at all costs. As a foster kid still scarred by her homophobic parents' abuse, confrontation terrified her. She played the part of the perfect student, people-pleasing to keep her sexuality hidden - one wrong word could cost her the only family she's known

When Emma started at her senior year, Her one solace became her English class, where she could lose herself in beautifully crafted words. Little did she know her safe place would introduce dangers she never expected.

Julianne Clarke ruled her classroom with an iron fist, striking fear into even the boldest of students. But beneath her frosty exterior, Emma sensed deeper currents flowing. As the semester progressed and their discussions grew more intimate, Emma found herself opening up in ways she never thought possible.

Soon she looked forward to class more than any other, clinging to the moments when Ms. Clarke's gaze would linger upon her own. But falling for the one person she couldn't have terrified Emma more than any torment her past held.

As Emma struggled with unexpected attraction to her strict instructor, one wrong move threatened to shatter the barriers keeping her real self contained. Staying in the closet was safer, yet denying her true nature grew harder each day under Ms. Clarke's penetrating gaze.

Trigger warnings:
Drug and alcohol use
Anxiety
Homophobia
Abandonment
Self harm
Suicide

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#1 in Student: August 2ed