Romance. Do not read if you are sensitive to violence, foul language, or mature concepts. May be triggering, involves suicidal and self-harm.
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This is a story told from the perspectives of two people, the first is Sylvia, a 16-year-old with some serious issues. Abusive father, a mother who doesn't approve at all of Sylvia's tastes, bullies, abusive ex-boyfriends, and little siblings to protect, she's got the whole deal. All she's got left are her best friends: Amber, and music. Specifically, rock music. At Kantmorse High, she's the one in school nobody notices, besides of course to pick on and tease, the quiet one in the corner with her earbuds in. With romance and suicide sworn off, she's resigned to her cold, isolated life. Then, everything changes.
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Jumping between also the perspective of teenaged Blaithe Roila, a bad-boy who's so famous nearly everyone knows his name, a popular who has been kicked out of every high school in the district for his shenanigans, all except one. Kantmorse Public High School. Obsessed with crime, cigarettes, rap music, and anything outside the lines, he's not really keen to changing. He is known to almost everyone as the ultimate badass/player/bad-boy, and he's not willing nor wanting to change that image anytime soon. However, beneath his tough-guy, carefree, devil-may-care attitude, he hides family secrets of his own...
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...secrets only Sylvia sees. He seems to be the only one to notice her, and she feels strangely attracted towards the new boy in town, and thinks she may just be able to break his emotional shell. But will he let her? And is it worth the risk for her?
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?
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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]]