" I would die if you leave, " I cried as I begged him to stay
" Then die."
With that, he turned away, leaving me there as I sat at the edge of the rooftop.
He had given up on everything, on me.
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All Aurora wanted was to be loved - his love. Growing up, love and care had been a foreign word to her, where emotions are suppressed in her household as sadness is deemed to be a sign of weakness. She yearned to be understood, to be wanted in this world. With the mask she had forged for herself since young, she was surrounded by friends, mostly boys even. However, a demon was slowly growing inside her - depression. A dark secret, so dark that it killed her. It controlled her, her life and especially her emotions. Not knowing how being cared for feels like, sympathy and obligation were the only reasons that explained the actions of others. The demon ruined everything, the only thing she ever wanted - to be with Mason.
Mason was a reserved boy, hardly socialising if there was not a need to. He too was lonely and lost, getting sucked into the reality of expectations and self worth. Love to him? That seemed to only be a mythical creature that was rumoured to exist. Not knowing what is love, how could he ever care for and love someone?
Love to others may seem like just a game, one that doesn't have a great impact on their lives. Ludus to Aurora, was however a life and death game. Would Aurora be able to stay alive till the very end? Or would her mental illness overtake her amongst the fact that Mason would never like her?
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]]