In Contenton, everybody smiles, but only because it's the law. The Happiness Laws ban all simpering, whimpering, scowling, glaring, and particularly crying in public. And they all lived happily ever after.
Except for Rebecca Swansen, a seventeen-year-old girl who fears she might be a criminal. She suffers through school with a tense smile on her face. She wants nothing more than to be happy, but can't seem to blend in with the popular crowd of giggling girls. Instead she sits in a tree with her best friend, Peter Barrett, and whispers dangerous ideas and forbidden thoughts.
Peter isn't interested in hiding. He wants to run. If he can only convince his best friend to follow him into the unknown, he believes he can find a different kind of happiness. But, of course, being happy isn't as simple as leaving a place that makes you unhappy. Together Rebecca and Peter search out freedom, independence, and contentment in a runaway adventure that tests the strength of Contenton's smile.
Dan Howell is living at home while he's saving money for college, which isn't easy since his parents don't understand him. Unlike them, he loves dogs, is a vegetarian, has no interest in the family business, and he despises the supernatural. He struggles to accept things that are illogical, even though he is a kitsune. Kitsune are foxes whose powers involve the ability to cast illusions, but Dan just wants to be normal.
Phil Lester has just moved to London, where he works as a dog walker. When his path crosses with Dan, Phil is eager to get to know him. Unfortunately, Phil soon finds that being friends with Dan is far more complicated than he could have imagined.
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originally posted on AO3