Prologue/1. The Climb
Lena’s POV
The classroom was just another cage. The noise blurred together — laughter, chairs scraping, the sharp voice of the queen bee slicing through it all. I didn’t need to look up to know she was making fun of me yet again. The polished smile, the loud laugh, the boys trying too hard. They were all the same. High school was another place to show off that I was nothing and she was everything, she was wanted and I wasn’t.
I kept my cap low, the on my dad gave to me, notebook open, pen idle. My mind wasn’t here anyway.
It was back home, where everything was split down the middle. Vivian got the best — the new clothes, the first plate at dinner, the praise that never ran dry. I got the second-best, the leftovers, the silence.
We were twins, but you wouldn’t know it. Vivian was the eldest by minutes, and somehow that meant she was the one my mother wanted. The one she dressed up, paraded, polished until she gleamed. The queen bee at school, just like at home.
Me? I just wanted to disappear.
And then there was my father. He had promised he’d come back. Promised he’d be there. But promises don’t sit at the dinner table. Promises don’t stop you from wishing you lived anywhere else.
I pressed the pen harder against the page, wishing I could write myself out of this life. Wishing I could vanish into the horizon where maybe he was.
That’s when I felt it — someone sitting down beside me. The scrape of a chair, the shift of air.
“Hey,” a voice said, low but confident. “You’re not like them.”
I blinked, startled, tugging my cap lower. My heart thudded. He wasn’t supposed to notice me. No one ever did.
“Like who?” I asked, my voice barely above a whisper. I didnt want to make eye contact, knowing it would proberly be another reason Vivian would mock me for.
He tilted his head, studying me. “Like everyone else here who wants me to notice them. You don’t. That’s why I did.”
Heat rushed to my cheeks, though I kept my eyes on the desk. “Maybe I just don’t care.”
He grinned, and I hated that I could feel it without looking.
Kai’s POV
The classroom was loud — laughter, chairs scraping, the queen bee’s voice slicing through the noise like it owned the air. Everyone wanted to be seen. Everyone wanted to be noticed.
I leaned against the doorway, scanning the room with the kind of confidence that came easy. It was all so predictable — the loud mouths, the polished smiles, the boys trying too hard to be funny. I didn’t know their names yet, but I knew their types. You could smell the cliques before you saw them.
Then I saw her.
The girl by the window.
Cap pulled low. Shoulders hunched. Notebook open but untouched. She didn’t look up when the teacher said my name. Didn’twhisper with the others about the “new boy.” She was just... there. Quiet. Invisible.
And that was what caught me.
Everyone else wanted my attention. She didn’t. That made her different. That made her interesting.
I pushed off the doorframe and dropped into the seat beside her, ignoring the ripple of surprise across the room. The queen bee — glossy hair, perfect posture — shot me a look like I’d just stepped on her crown. I didn’tcare.
“Hey,” I said, leaning closer. “You’re not like them.”
She blinked, startled, tugging her cap lower. “Like who?”
I tilted my head, studying her. “Like everyone else who wants me to notice them. You don’t. That’s why Idid.”
Her cheeks flushed, though she kept her eyes on the desk. “Maybe I just don’t care.”
I grinned. That answer wasn’t defensive. It was honest. And it made me want to know more.
Challenge accepted.
Chapter 1. The Climb
Dinner was the same as always. Vivian sat at the head of the table, her plate stacked with the best cuts, her glass filled first. My plate came second, smaller, quieter, like me.
“Vivian, you look stunning in that dress,” my mother said, smiling as if the world revolved around her, eldest by minutes.
Vivian smirked, flicking her hair. “Of course I do.”
I stabbed at my food, wishing I could vanish into the fork.
“Lena,” my mother added, almost as an after thought, “try not to slouch. It makes you look... tired.”
Vivian laughed, sharp and cruel. “She always looks tired. Maybe she should try being me for once.” she tired to make it sound like a joke in front of mom so she wouldnt be scolded, not I think she would have been.
The words burned. I dropped my fork, the clatter loud enough to silence them for a heart beat. “Maybe I don’t want to be you.” my voice was cold but honest, I wished we never shared DNA, but that wasnt something I could change.
Vivian’s eyes narrowed, her smirk twisting. “Of course you don’t. You couldn’t.”
I pushed back from the table, chair legs screeching against the floor. “I’m done.”
“Lena—” my mother started, but I was already moving.
I stormed outside. The air was heavy, thick with the promise of rain. My spot was waiting: the old tree at the edge of the yard, where I’d hammered together a shaky platform.
I climbed quickly, hands gripping bark, feet finding familiar grooves. It creaked under me, but it held. It always did. I’d built it myself from scraps — uneven planks, nails hammered in crooked, rope tied too tight. It wasn’t sturdy, but it was mine.
My place.
My escape.
Up here, I could breathe. Up here, I wasn’t second-best.
The first drops fell as I sat down, tapping against the leaves, dripping onto my shoulders. I pulled my hoodie over my head, hugging my knees. I tilted my face up, letting the rain wash away the sting of Vivian’s words.
“I can’t wait for the weekend,” I whispered to myself. The only time Mom had agreed to let me go anywhere during the summer holidays. My escape. My freedom. My one chance to breathe without Vivian’s shadow pressing down on me.
Thunder rumbled in the distance.
That’s when I heard it — footsteps below, crunching against wet grass.
I looked down.
A boy stood there, drenched but smiling like the storm was nothing. His hair stuck to his forehead, his shirt clung to his shoulders. He looked up at me, eyes steady.
“Hey,” he said, voice carrying easily through the rain.
My heart thudded. The classroom words echoed back.
Heat rushed to my cheeks, though I kept my eyes on the planks beneath me. I wasn't sure what to do, his light blue eyes staring at me with a grin, he knew he made me speachless.
Then, without hesitation, he jumped over the low wall and grabbed the lowest branchand started climbing.
The platform groaned as he pulled himself up, rain dripping from his hair, his grin never fading.
“Nice spot,” he said, settling beside me like he belonged there. “Guess we’re neighbors.”
The platform groaned beneath us, the rain soaking into the wood. I hugged my knees tighter, trying to ignore the way his grin made the storm feel smaller.
Then the wind picked up. A sharp gust rattled the branches, and the platform shuddered.
It creaked.
Then snapped.
One of the ropes gave way with a sudden crack, the sound slicing through the rain. My stomach lurched as the floor tilted beneath us.
Before I could scream, Kai’s arm shot out. He grabbed the nearest branch with one hand and scooped me against his chest with the other, steadying us both. The platform sagged but didn’t fall, swaying dangerously.
My breath caught. My heart hammered.
“You broke my spot...” I muttered, voice small, more complaint than accusation.
Kai chuckled, though his grip didn’t loosen. “Guess that means you need a safer one.” His eyes flicked to mine, steady even in the storm. “Come to my place. It’s warmer. Dryer. And I promise I’ll fix this when the weather’s right.”
I stared at him, rain dripping from my lashes. My sanctuary had always been mine alone. But now, with the platform groaning beneath us and his arm holding me steady, I wasn’t sure if I wanted to climb down alone anymore.
