Lena has hated Jace Hartley with a burning passion since kindergarten. But when everything she thought she knew about Hartley suddenly changes, will she still cling to the familiar feud between them, or will she slip and fall into something far more terrifying? *** Sarcastic rich girl Lena Montez is sure about one thing. Jace Hartley is the worst person. Ever. They've been playing a game of pranks and one-ups for over a decade, fueled by their never-ending feud and mutual burning hatred for the other. But when a car accident keeps Lena at home for months, she returns to school to find that something is different. Instead of spilling his drink over her, Jace is offering to carry her books. Instead of making rude comments about her, he is sending her pretty smiles and gentle laughs. Suddenly, Lena finds herself walking a tightrope between hate and something else. [[word count: 100,000-150,000]]

Nolan, an unapproachable guy who ignores the existence of all his schoolmates, sleeps in all of his classes. Normally, this wouldn't be Chelsea Arnold's problem-she does her best to pay attention in class and attends gym like a good, normal student. Unfortunately, she just so happens to be his assigned desk partner in many classes. She's frequently forced to wake him in English class and ends up earning the unofficial title of Nolan's Wake-up Alarm-a title that nobody in the entire school covets. The last thing she wants is to interact with him more than she absolutely has to. One day, their gym teacher sends her to bring him back to class, which he always skips for some reason. When she accidentally shines her flashlight in his sleeping face, it triggers a chain of events that gradually intertwines their lives together. It's hard to be a normal student when you start befriending the school oddball. It doesn't help that he has more secrets than the Big Ben has stairs. ----- Complete. (first person, past tense, slowburn) ----- 1st place in Humor Category of Psychological Novel Reads Contest 2020 (29 Sep 2020) ----- Started: April 28, 2020 Completed: July 23, 2021 Word Count: 160K+ ----- The sequel, The Tortoise and His Sunrise, is up on my profile now!