Bonded In Love

How many seventeen-year-olds can honestly say they have their life figured out? I thought I did. I found my people—Mira, a kindred spirit in creativity, someone I met through shared passions and an after-school club we started together. I never expected to find someone who matched my humor, my interests, and nearly my entire personality. Then there’s Zev, my childhood friend and neighbor. She’s not into art, but she sticks around, sharing her world alongside Mira and me in a way that just... fits. We coexist effortlessly. And then there’s Ren. At first, he was my crush—until an awkward confession made it painfully clear I wasn’t his type. Somehow, that misstep turned into one of my strongest friendships. But everything I had planned—my school, my hometown, even the college I was working toward—vanished, like waking up from the best dream you didn’t want to end. As if that wasn’t enough, my mom decided to drop a life-altering bombshell on me. Well two bombshells. The first and most life altering. Turns out, I’m not entirely normal... or human. I had my life mapped out: no unexpected twists, no sudden moves, no love interests, just a steady, comfortable path. And yet, here I am, caught in the biggest surprise of all.