Nova can't escape the rich town of Riverside, where a tragedy follows her every step, but she can work to uncover who's been lying to her all these years. ***** When seventeen-year-old Nova Nightingale returns to her late mother's hometown the last thing she expects is to be public enemy number one, but the rumors surrounding her mother's sudden disappearance fifteen years earlier follow Nova everywhere she goes. And to top it all off, the local rich boy, Isaac Royal, is adamant about making her life hell. Surrounded by rumors, lies, and a secret keeping the town on edge, Nova has to figure out why she's hated and why the boy hell-bent on making her suffer seems to be the only person she can trust. Content/Triggering Warning: this story contains themes of suicide and violence [[word count: 80,000-90,000 words]]

I was never meant to leave that room. I had spent my whole life in there, imagining what it was like on the outside. I looked forward to the day when I would finally be allowed to leave. But that day was never supposed to come. Until James decided to keep his promise. He had always been there, on the other side of the glass. Waiting. The experiment wasn't over. He was still waiting for me to change. But I didn't change. Not until that night. It was dark, and there was rain. The sound of the car engine was loud, but the crash was louder. In the crash, I became something different. I changed. But not for James. This new part of me emerged for one reason; to save her. This story is a first draft and will contain typos and grammatical errors. I apologize for these in advance, and hope you can see beyond them to the story beneath. Happy reading!