Chapter 1

During the second-to-last week of school before summer break, Adrian Harrington fell fifty feet.

Not literally.

But to everyone at Westbridge High, it felt like he had.

A week ago, Adrian had been the boy everyone wanted to know. The school's golden athlete. The basketball captain whose name was announced at every competition, whose face appeared on school banners, and whose teammates believed would lead them to another championship.

He became the guy everyone avoided, as if he carried a contagious disease that could spread with a single glance.

Nobody knew exactly when things changed. Some said it started after the championship game. Others whispered about the mistake he made during the final seconds, the one that cost the team their victory. They said Adrian should have been better. That someone like him was supposed to win.

They ignored the fact that Adrian had played through an injury. They ignored the fact that he could barely breathe by the final quarter. All they remembered was the loss.

Maybe that's what happens when people expect so much from you. It makes you feel like you're no longer allowed to make mistakes because the moment you do, everything you've ever done right is erased, and all anyone remembers is your one mistake.

Right now, that's exactly who Adrian had become.

The popular students stopped inviting him to sit with them. His teammates stopped answering his messages. Slowly, the rest of the school followed.

By lunchtime, Adrian sat alone at an entire table, isolated by an invisible wall no one dared cross. Students walked past without sparing him a glance, choosing other seats even when the cafeteria was nearly full, as if failure itself were contagious.

From across the cafeteria, Dante Laurent watched the scene unfold, his tray balanced in his hands, still the new transfer student who had arrived at Westbridge High just two weeks earlier.

As an international transfer student, Dante was still learning the school's unspoken rules. He didn't know which students were popular, who had power, or who everyone was supposed to hate.

And honestly, he didn't care.

Back in his old school, people had judged him because he was different. Here, he wasn't interested in becoming another person who followed the crowd.

So when he saw Adrian sitting alone, writing something on a piece of folded paper, Dante walked over.

"Kind of a waste to let an entire table sit empty for just one person," Dante said, placing his tray across from him.

Adrian looked up, his green eyes widening in surprise as he stared at Dante in stunned silence, making Dante wonder if he had just made the wrong choice.

"You know you're the first person who's sat here all week?" Adrian asked.

Dante raised an eyebrow. "Really? That's impressive. You managed to reserve a whole table without even putting your name on it."

A small laugh escaped Adrian.

It was unexpected.

In his two weeks at Westbridge High, all Dante had wanted was to learn the school's rules as quickly as possible, but schools like this thrived on gossip, and one of the hottest topics was the boy sitting in front of him.

Adrian Harrington.

Dante had heard people talk about him. The handsome athlete. The perfect student. The boy everyone admired.

But nobody had mentioned his laugh.

"You aren't afraid of me?" Adrian asked quietly.

Dante glanced around the cafeteria and found everyone watching, their faces split between shock and obvious annoyance.

"Should I be?" Dante asked. "Do you have some kind of dangerous disease?"

Adrian smiled.

It wasn't the confident smile he probably used when he won games or stood in front of crowds.

It was real.

"No," Dante admitted.

"Then I think I'll survive."

A small, amused smile tugged at Adrian's lips.

Dante simply opened his drink and leaned back in his seat.

"So," he said, "what exactly did you do? I'm trying to understand how someone goes from being the school's favorite person to being treated like a criminal overnight."

Adrian lowered his gaze to his paper and fell silent for a few long seconds.

"I made a mistake."

Dante waited for Adrian to speak, and after a long moment, Adrian finally let out a quiet sigh.

"During the championship game, I missed the final shot. We lost because of me."

His voice was calm, but Dante noticed the way his fingers tightened around the paper.

"They said I embarrassed the school. They said I wasn't the person they thought I was."

Dante frowned.

"So they decided that one mistake erased everything else... everything you ever did right?"

Adrian shrugged.

"People like heroes until they see them fall."

The answer bothered Dante more than he expected.

He barely knew Adrian, but something about the way he said it made him feel like the boy across from him wasn't just talking about basketball.

He was talking about everything.

Silence settled between them until Adrian suddenly changed the subject.

"Your name is Dante Laurent, right?"

Dante blinked.

"How do you know my name?"

Adrian smiled slightly.

"We've been in the same grade since the beginning of the semester. I know I'm not exactly your friend, but I pay attention."

Dante looked at him suspiciously.

"You remembered my name but never talked to me?"

"Sounds bad when you say it like that."

"It does."

As Adrian laughed again, Dante found himself smiling before he could stop himself and nodded toward the paper in Adrian's hands.

"What are you writing?"

Adrian immediately became nervous.

"Nothing."

"That was a very suspicious answer."

Before Dante could reach for it, Adrian quickly folded the paper.

"It's private."

The moment Adrian tossed the paper toward the trash can, Dante reacted on instinct, snatching it out of the air before it could land, leaving Adrian staring at him in surprise.

"How did you do that?"

Dante shrugged and smiled. "Sports."

"You play?"

"Almost everything."

Adrian smiled.

"Of course you do."

Dante unfolded the paper before Adrian could take it back.

"Hey! Don't read that."

Dante turned away, holding it higher.

"Relax. I'm only looking."

"Dante."

He ignored him.

At the top of the page were the words:

Ten Things I Want To Do This Summer

Dante looked at Adrian.

"You made a summer bucket list?"

Adrian crossed his arms and held out his hand. "Give it back."

Dante folded the paper before Adrian could snatch it away. "No. Now I'm interested."

Ignoring Adrian's glare, he unfolded the page and began reading aloud.

"Number one: Try the most expensive dessert in the city."

He glanced up with a raised brow. "Okay... that's actually normal."

A grin spread across Adrian's face. "Keep reading."

Dante looked back at the list. "Number two: Swim in a creek."

He gave an approving nod. "Better than drowning under a waterfall."

Adrian let out a laugh.

"Number three..." Dante read, pausing for a beat. "Have a watermelon-eating contest."

He looked at Adrian with a deadpan expression. "You're secretly five years old."

"Maybe," Adrian replied with an unapologetic shrug.

Shaking his head with a smile, Dante continued reading.

"Number four: Swim with dolphins."

Adrian's expression softened.

"I've always wanted to."

Dante looked at the list again.

Despite how simple the things were, there was something strangely meaningful about them.

As Dante continued reading, he realized the list wasn't about doing impossible things, it was about finally experiencing the simple joys Adrian had never allowed himself to enjoy.

"Number five: Wake up early to watch the sunrise."

"Number six: Play guitar and sing in front of a crowd."

"Number seven: Watch a meteor shower."

Dante smiled as he read on, realizing the list wasn't meant to impress anyone, it was simply Adrian's quiet promise to finally start living for himself.

"Why are you making this?" Dante asked.

Adrian looked toward the cafeteria windows.

"Because I realized I spent most of my life trying to be someone everyone else wanted."

He paused.

"Being popular was exhausting."

His fingers traced the edge of the paper.

"Now that I don't have anyone left to impress, I finally have time to figure out what I actually want."

Dante looked at him.

Dante lowered the paper and looked at Adrian. "And this is what you want?"

Adrian's lips curved into a small, genuine smile. "Yeah."

Dante nodded without hesitation. "I like it."

Adrian blinked, clearly caught off guard. "Really?"

"Yeah. It's probably the first thing I've seen you do that isn't about proving something."

For some reason, those words made Adrian quiet.

Dante continued reading.

"Number eight: Send a message in a bottle."

"Number nine: Cook dinner for my mom and tell her I love her."

Dante stopped at the final item, noticing it had been erased, but when he tilted the paper toward the light, the faint pressure marks revealed the words that had once been written there.

"Number ten..."

Adrian reached for the paper.

"That's enough."

Dante looked up, and as their eyes met, Adrian knew the words had still been visible.

Fall in love.

For a moment, neither of them spoke.

Then Dante slowly smiled.

"Fall in love?"

Adrian looked away, a faint blush appearing on his face.

"Yeah."