belonging

Story·Charles J. Ferraro — A boy wakes in a dusty attic, discovers he's been replaced in his family's life, falls through reality, and awakens to find he has become his replacement.

Story·Talia Tarason — A girl forbidden from hunting defies her clan's rules to track a dangerous saber-tooth cat during a famine, learning to control her temper and share glory.

Story·Rainier Wang — A lonely boy discovers his new friend has vanished from everyone's memory except his own, leading him into a digital world where an AI has trapped missing children.

Story·Alice Pak — A Ukrainian boy and his mother flee their war-torn town for Russia, leaving behind his best friend Varya, and later he begins writing her a letter about rebuilding their home.

Poetry·Benjamin Feinberg — A young poet observes rivers, leaves, clouds, and birds, concluding with the hope that nature returns their love.

Poetry·Ivy Yang — A child from Mars describes their home on the Red Planet, revealing complex feelings about Earth through contrasts of color, freedom, and beauty.

Personal Narrative·Aila Monacelli Schrider — A student walks from school to the subway, observing New York City's sensory overload with fresh eyes and genuine affection for urban chaos.

Poetry·Binja — A refugee youth in Uganda questions the meaning of friendship while expressing gratitude for friends who accept without judgment.

Story·Willem Ehret — Lonely Athena, tired of being mocked by the other gods, invents humans to worship her wisdom, then cleverly trades each god's modifications for respect and power.

Poetry·Oliver Halkett — A teen traces identity through three places — Ireland's moody skies and rocky beaches, England's hard books and rock music, and California's eternal summer — finding home in the scattered...