Ava Graham, an autistic teenager with a passion for dragons, fantasy, and "The Elderscrolls V: Skyrim."
Lilly Miller, Ava's best friend since childhood, who has a love for the outdoors and a habit of getting high to take the edge off things. (Not that her overbearing- let's use that word- mother cares, or knows)
Since middle school, Lilly has had a not-so-small crush on Ava, a crush that Ava herself is oblivious to.
Though one thing leads to another, a Christmas party is had, and Ava experiences one of the strangest parts of life, something that's never really crossed her mind: love and what it's like to fall in it.
But she doesn't rush anything, she's never been the type to rush. Through the good days and the bad, through sunshine and rainy days, she takes everything one day at a time.
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-I do not own any form of media, such as games or songs, that are referenced in this story. Those belong to their respective owners.
-This book was written by a queer, autistic author :)
Originally written in the Spring of 2022, then released the following Summer, I wrote this story at one of my lowest points in life, but have since reached a much happier place. I wrote this revised version with the utmost love for the lost, lonesome teenager who originally drafted it, and for the adult who is coming back to it, having undergone so much growth in so many ways, and who is continuing to grow every day.
Word Count: 49,938
Trigger Warnings:
•Homophobic language
•Minor ableism
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]]