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Porcelain Skin

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Summary

"When I tell you that he hates me, you'll probably assume it's because he's a jerk...but you'd be wrong. He's not a jerk. I am." Several years ago tragedy struck Emma's home, leaving her broken... like a cup with cracks spiraling and slithering around the edges. Slowly, bitterness crept in like tar, hardening between each fracture to resemble a deceitful wholeness. She became a monster, and targeted her venom on the sweetest person she could find: Trinity Nixon. Too bad the boy Emma longed for was Trinity's brother. Now, as Emma fights to win the heart of the boy who despises her, she's forced to hide her demons. She paints her fragile cup in pinks, yellows, and oranges - all the colors of the sun. She paints on a smile, and an unusual sense of humor, so that the world will view her as bright and cheerful, when in reality she's breaking. But she's completely unprepared for the acidic truth that melts away the tar, demolishing her shell, and awakening the Emma White buried deep inside.

Genre:
Romance / Drama
Author:
ohkario
Status:
Complete
Chapters:
42
Rating:
4.9 131 reviews
Age Rating:
13+

The Old Me

Prologue

I was no angel.

I wasn’t that innocent girl who stood in the back wondering why he wouldn’t choose me. Why he couldn’t see that we were truly meant for each other.

Nope. I deserved every ounce of Trevor Nixon’s loathing.

Because I ruined his sister’s life.

I was like a vine: fascinating, elegant, enticing. I’d succeeded in masterfully climbing the broken walls of my life and covering the empty decay with a disguise of brilliant art. But, like a vine, I was also hungry, dangerous, and deadly. I could squeeze the joy out of any poor victim who stood in my way.

Trinity Nixon had been that victim.

Why? Because I needed her to hate me.

My father gave up on me. He didn’t care. Maybe if the rest of the world gave up on me too, then I wouldn’t take his abandonment so personally.

The man I’d grown up with was no longer a man. His spirit was gone. The life that once coursed through his veins had come to an end. The heart that once pumped and strived to live so that I could be happy had lost its will to continue. It fought for him until the end, but even a strong heart can’t function without fuel. And now, all that fuel lies soaked into my memories of where his life ended.

My heart crumpled with the realization that I’d lost him. Even before his soul left his body, he had already given up. Given up on himself. Given up on me. I wasn’t even worth the fight, or the effort of acknowledging my pleas for forgiveness. He didn’t care that my heart would be eternally broken. He didn’t care that he had destroyed my ability to live freely. I would forever be trapped in my own guilt. My life would be a perennial fight for acceptance, and yet, even the most convincing person wouldn’t succeed in making me feel accepted.

My father had turned me into an outcast.

I would be absorbed into the shadows. Happiness would fade into a memory before evaporating into a myth. Hope would wither like a starving flower. I would slowly die, and with each passing day, I’d come closer to saying goodbye to the girl I used to be.

That’s when I ruined her life.

I tore Trinity down until her sweet smile slid off her face. I pushed her buttons until tears rimmed her eyes. I insulted, teased, and tormented her until eventually, she slid into the background, and then one day she was just gone.

I remember the day well. Somehow the school seemed quieter and duller than usual. I could hear whispers spreading throughout the halls like a virus. I didn’t realize what had changed until I got to my third-period class; the class that I happened to share with Trinity and her brother.

At that point, she’d become so withdrawn that I never would have noticed she was missing except for the look in his eyes. I guess he’d been somewhat unaware of my cruelty towards his sister until that moment. The moment I pushed her too far.

She was gone, her whereabouts a mystery to me, and I’d suddenly gone from invisible to well-known... and well-hated.

My plan failed, and I was forced to swim upstream in a sea of my own guilt. I couldn’t undo the damage I’d done, but I could make an effort at healing myself—erase the bitterness to allow the pretty, shiny parts of who I am show through.

Since then, Trevor’s graduated and I haven’t seen him in a year. So, when I realize that I’ll be attending the same college as him, I feel that I’ve been given a second chance. A chance to earn his forgiveness.

Now, as I step out of my car and onto my new campus grounds, I pull a breath into my petrified lungs. And, as I’ve taught myself so well, I paint on a smile; a smile that I hope will be warm enough to thaw the icy heart of the boy who has been living on repeat in my thoughts for the past year.

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Further Recommendations

nadianicolle: J’ai adoré ! Comme tous les autres. Fidèle à votre style, vos personnages, l’histoire est captivante. Une belle famille, vous avez écrit une belle Saga.

Jennifer Leigh Anne Ciliska: Wow!! Loved it!! Thank you for sharing your story with me

Roxanne: Love the story so far, though it definitely needs to be proof read by someone other than the author. There are a lot of words that don't fit the sentence but thankfully most of the time it's not to hard to understand what it was meant to be. Other than that it's has a great plot and I like the ch...

David_Timmsdale_Erotica: Be interested to see where it goes, does she give in, can she go back afterwards?I spent a little too much time looking up words that were USA brand names for items, probably common enough usage in the USA, unheard of elsewhere.That's something I'll remember in my own writing: when using a brand ...

Phyllis: Please do an update on this story. I enjoyed your work.thank you

Ben: Ce roman est tout juste waouh, formidable.

Estefanía: Me pareció un poco dramática la reacción de ella. Pero en general me ha gustado

Teresa Knapp: Getting better!Still feel like you could have gone into more detail in some areas and I see where you left it open at the end for another one!

Saraiud: Me ha gustado toda la trama de verdad que tienes un don con la escritura lo recomiendo a todas mis amigas kookminas

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allison o'connor: Didn't sleep and now I've got a headache. But I'm loving them! On to book four.

Mandey Moore: Very good read I would definitely recommend toMy friends and family

Nashla_343: Me encanta ❤️🤣 y me dio mucha risa

marilyn: I love how Tate has a mate as well. I love foxes. They are so cute. I bet the dragon will be mated to Bridgett

marilyn: It's awesome to hear about all these shifters finding their fated mates. I can't wait to hear more about them. I also want to hear about the cubs. And for Daryl to find his mate.

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