Summer is you

Summer is just a season. Some hate it-too hot, too harsh, too much. But most people love it anyway. And I was one of them.

You wouldn't find me locked in an air-conditioned room. You'd find me chasing waves, soaking up the sun, walking barefoot down sun-scorched roads, and riding my surfboard like I was born in saltwater. I lived for the heat, the chaos, the freedom.

That was my definition of summer-until I met him.

I'm Zulieka Rae Ashford. Zee. A U.S. citizen with a Filipina heart. My mom? A famous actress back home. Me? Just a girl who fell in love with a country, with a season... and with someone I could never quite reach.

I had a childhood crush. He hated summer. So while I came home every year hoping to see him, he disappeared with the heat. I waited. Hoped. Got disappointed. Rinse and repeat-until I stopped expecting.

But then, everything changed.

Suddenly, summer wasn't just about waves and sunburns. It was him-a person. A feeling. A wildfire. I fell in love-fiercely, recklessly-with someone who burned like the sun. Hot. Dangerous. Impossible to hold.

And just like summer, his love was never meant to last.

This story isn't perfect. It's messy, intense, maybe even reckless. But so is love. And so is summer.

If you've ever loved someone too hard, too fast, and too much-this is for you.

Let's burn together. Even if it doesn't last.

See you between the pages.