Eric Yamata is used to the stares-the whispers, the assumptions, the way people step aside when he walks down the hall. At 17, he's mastered the art of keeping his head down and his heart guarded. With a towering frame and a reputation for being "scary," no one dares to get close. No one, until Mari Kobaya.
Mari, with her endless energy and infectious smile, is the complete opposite of Eric. She's the girl who talks to everyone, makes friends effortlessly, and doesn't take crap from anyone. But when she starts noticing the boy who seems invisible to everyone else, Eric's carefully built walls start to crack.
As Mari digs deeper, she finds a kind, thoughtful side of Eric that no one else sees. And for the first time in years, Eric wonders if someone might actually see him-not the scary guy, not the loner, but just... him.
But getting close to Mari isn't as easy as it seems. Between her protective friends, nosy siblings, and Eric's own insecurities, letting her in could mean risking everything.
He's spent years hiding. Is he ready to let someone in?
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]]