An energetic trumpet player and a studious oboe player must team up and replace the conductor of their old youth orchestra, to save the orchestra that gave them their love for music.
***
Tatyana has played in her youth orchestra for a decade. It's the first place where classical music was fun, where she realised she wanted to do this her whole life, and now she's half a year away from a trumpet degree and looking forward to their 25th anniversary concert. Her life is busy, but she's always made time for this ragtag group of musicians.
When their conductor is unexpectedly fired, Tatyana panics. Without a conductor, there is no orchestra, and people aren't lining up to take over the baton. A month without a conductor is fine, that's just a break. But two months? Three? However long it takes to find a new conductor, not everyone is going to wait around when there are other orchestras, other hobbies.
Tatyana decides that if there is no conductor, she'll need to learn the craft herself. She enlists the help of Cedric, the orchestra's oboe player and fellow music student. It'll just be for a few weeks, while they bundle their forces to find a new conductor.
But a few weeks turn into months and conducting is very different from playing an instrument. Tatyana desperately wants this to work, but maybe she wants too much. As she and Cedric grow closer through their shared goal, the pressure turns up and emotions run high. The orchestra needs dedication, and there is no time or place for romance in that, let alone a sexuality crisis.
Tatyana might need to choose, and whatever she chooses, it will break her heart.
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]]