"We're not friends."
"I didn't say we had to be."
~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.
Leah has exactly one year to figure out what she is going to do with her life.
She dropped College after her Sophomore year with her parents absolutely furious with her. But, even so, they cut her a deal: she has a year to decide what she plans to do, or she returns back to school next fall.
So, she high tales it to Portland, Oregon, crashes with an old high school friend, gets a job, and starts fresh. Besides her chronic migraines and her coffee addiction; Leah finds herself fitting in well.
All until she meets Noah Peterson.
Noah drives Leah insane; with his witty remarks, constant smirking, picture taking, good looks, she hates him. Not only does he live on the same floor, but in apartment B17; the one directly across the hall.
How can she prove to her parents shes ready to be on her own with Noah constantly getting in her way?
But when he proposes a plan that's just crazy enough to work, Leah can't help but to fake a friendship in hopes of a dream come true.
Fake it, till you make it... right?
Ella is falling apart trying to live a "perfect" high school life. Then she meets Ren, who can see past her scars. Suddenly perfection isn't her only option.
*****
Ella Volkov is a gifted music student, but she's depressed and starting to crack under the pressure of high school. Her overbearing father won't even let her choose what instrument she plays. Then she finds herself alone at a party with Ren, her best friend's crush. She'd always thought he was rude, but after that night he's all Ella can think about. Now she's trapped. If Ella dates Ren, it will ruin her friendship with Jenny. But if she stays true to Jenny, she's losing the one person who can see past her scars. It's up to Ella to decide if she will forge her own path, or stay in the "perfect" box designed for her...
Content and/or Trigger Warning: depression, anxiety, self-harm, violence, sexual assault.
[[word count: 50,000-100,000 words]]