The Illusion of Us

| 2022 Wattys Shortlist|
|Wattpad YA Writer's Choice|
|Completed|

There's nothing stronger than the emotions that accompany your first love, except maybe revenge.

According to everyone around her, Mina Joyce has the perfect life, though she couldn't disagree more. Not only is she stuck in a preparatory school that prioritizes status above learning but she often returns home to an empty house, her parents, like her school, prioritizing the material. Constantly struggling with the intersectionality of being a teenager as well as a woman of color in a majority white environment, she's grown tired of trying to be both the perfect daughter and the perfect student to appeal to the standards both these entities hold her to. However, when a mysterious new boy by the name of Khalil Maffa begins schooling at the elite preparatory academy, the entirety of the student body can't help but be enamored, especially Mina Joyce.

For Mina, Khalil is paradoxical to the very ideals that the school and her parents place on her and she instinctively finds herself drawn to his character despite the protestations of her friends, boyfriend, and a strangely flirtatious boy by the name of Sahil who happens to be a direct link to Khalil's past.

For Khalil, however, Mina Joyce is simply a means to an end.

Blaming Mina's family for the death of both his own parents, Khalil's obsession with Mina is rooted in revenge and his plan is merely to use her to achieve this end.

However, when their feelings for one another threaten to become too real, they must both make tough decisions. Mina must decide whether to take her life into her own hands or remain complacent, and Khalil must reevaluate his motives and decide once and for all whether the urge to pursue revenge or a meaningful first love is stronger.

Started: July 10, 2020
Finished: - December 13, 2020
Edited - December 19, 2022