Louis Tomlinson and Harry Styles had been best friends for years, but life had pulled them apart. They had managed to keep in touch, though, thanks to daily FaceTime calls that helped them feel close despite the distance. However, after a year of being apart, they both began to feel a deep longing to see each other again.
Finally, they decided to make plans for Louis to visit Harry's house and stay over like they used to. As soon as they saw each other, they hugged tightly and it felt like no time had passed at all. They spent the first day catching up on everything that had happened in their lives over the past year, but as the night wore on, something began to shift between them.
They both started to realize that their feelings for each other had grown beyond just friendship. They found themselves stealing glances at each other and blushing whenever their hands brushed against each other accidentally. It was like they were teenagers again, falling in love for the first time.
But as the days went on, neither of them dared to confess their true feelings. They were scared that it might ruin their friendship and they didn't want to risk losing each other. So they continued to act like everything was normal, even though the tension between them was palpable. Will they ever confess their feelings or will they just stay friends despite having feelings for each other?
As Claire aims to leave her oppressive stepfamily behind, she befriends Zion. Will he be her ticket to freedom or a distraction in achieving her dreams?
*****
Claire Olsen has had a crush on Zion Petrakis since the first time she laid eyes on him, but he never noticed, instead only having eyes on the school's it girl, Maddie Jennings. Knowing she couldn't compete with Maddie, Claire hid her feelings for Zion, satisfied with admiring him from afar. However, when a series of events led Claire closer to Zion, her feelings for him grew from infatuation to love. And despite fighting hard to keep her feelings contained by distancing herself from Zion, he was determined to show her that he's earned a spot in her life.
[[word count: 100,000-150,000 words]]