Always you

CHAPTER 1: BACK TO RIDGEVIEW

(Tamsyn’s POV)

The gates of Ridgeview High look the same.

Silver bars, ivy climbing up the stone pillars, and that same banner that says Welcome to a New Year of Opportunity.

Funny how something can look the same and still feel completely different.

My mom’s car rolls to a stop in front of the building. The chatter outside is loud — laughter, sneakers squeaking, people calling out to friends they haven’t seen all summer. For a second, I just sit there, staring out the window, clutching my bag like it’s the only solid thing keeping me from floating away.

“You don’t have to be nervous,” Mom says beside me. Her tone is calm, reassuring, like she’s negotiating a business deal instead of dropping off her daughter. Her lipstick is flawless, her blazer crisp — the CEO look she wears like armour. “It’s just school, sweetheart.”

“Yeah,” I say softly. “Just school.”

Except it’s not.

It’s the place where everything changed.

Where I fell apart.

Where he broke me.

Mom reaches out and brushes a curl from my face, her touch gentle but quick, like she’s afraid if she lingers, she’ll see too much. “I’ll pick you up after my meeting, okay?”

“Okay.”

When she drives off, the silence hits me harder than I expect. The smell of wet grass and new books fills the air — that strange mix of beginnings and memories. My heart’s pounding, but I don’t know if it’s fear or something worse.

“Tamsyn Dane! No freaking way!”

I barely have time to turn before Ashley Wells barrels into me, arms wrapping around me so tight I can barely breathe.

“Ash!” I manage to say, half laughing, half crying.

“Oh my God, I missed you so much,” she gushes, pulling back to stare at me. “Do you even know how weird it’s been without you? You just… disappeared!” Then her voice softens. “After everything… I was so worried.”

Guilt squeezes my chest. “I just needed time,” I say quietly. “I wasn’t ready to come back.”

Ashley’s expression melts into understanding. “Hey, it’s okay. You’re here now. That’s what matters.”

She loops her arm through mine like we’re sixteen again, heading toward the courtyard together. Her presence is warm — familiar — and I realise how much I’ve missed having her around.

“So,” she says, lowering her voice. “You’ve missed a lot. Lexi Hartman’s still running the school like it’s her personal kingdom. And…” she pauses, eyeing me carefully, “…Daxon Asher is still Daxon Asher.”

My stomach flips at the sound of his name.

It’s ridiculous — just a name. But it feels like someone knocked the air out of me.

Ashley watches me, concern flickering in her eyes. “You okay?”

“Yeah,” I lie. “I’m fine.”

But I’m not. Because I can already feel it — the ghosts of the past crowding closer.

We walk through the courtyard, and the whispers start.

She’s back.

That’s Tamsyn Dane.

Didn’t she—

I keep my eyes forward, pretending I don’t hear.

Then I hear it — that laugh.

Low, easy, familiar.

I know it before I even look.

He’s standing by the fountain with his friends — Kai, Ryder, and Nolan — like something out of a memory I swore I’d buried. Daxon Asher. Taller, broader, more sure of himself. His dark hair catches the sunlight, and when he laughs, it’s the same sound that used to make my heart trip over itself.

I tell myself not to look. But I do.

And then his eyes find mine.

The world stops — just for a heartbeat.

The noise, the laughter, the crowd — it all fades. It’s like the universe holds its breath, waiting.

Then Ashley tugs my arm, breaking the spell. “Come on,” she says softly. “Let’s survive day one before we deal with ghosts.”

I force a small smile and nod.

But even as we walk away, I can still feel his gaze on me — heavy, unreadable.

Because the truth is, no matter how far I ran, I never really left him behind.

And I have a feeling this year… neither of us will be able to.