falling for 13

Laoise has just returned to a place she once called home, but nothing feels the same anymore.

At fifteen, she's learned how to survive in silence-moving from house to house, watching adults fall apart, and learning early that stability is never guaranteed. Behind her guarded smile is a girl constantly trying to stay afloat in a life that keeps shifting beneath her feet.

When she reconnects with Johnny, someone from her past she never quite forgot, something old and unfamiliar begins to resurface. Feelings she buried long ago start to return-confusing, comforting, and dangerous all at once. He sees her in a way no one else does, and for the first time in a long time, she starts to feel like she might not be completely invisible.

But home isn't safe. Behind closed doors, things are becoming more complicated, and Laoise finds herself struggling between protecting the people she loves and protecting herself. As the pressure builds, she begins to escape in ways she never expected, even as she tries to convince herself she's still in control.

Caught between a past she can't forget, a present she can't fully trust, and feelings she's terrified to name, Laoise is forced to figure out who she is-and whether she can let anyone get close without everything falling apart again.

A story about memory, survival, first love, and the quiet ways people break when no one is looking.