ANDI

Love, and I mean real love, is the exception. I know most of us never find it. For me, life is about surviving, keeping my head above the water while I tell lie after lie so people don't realize how bad it really is.

Something changes when his eyes lock on mine. Something in me stirs. He's steady where I wobble. He's quiet where my mind screams. He's a flirt and, for the first time, I'm finding myself wanting to be one right back.

But I know better than to get close. I'll only weigh him down.

MERIT

She's warmth like I've never felt. I don't date and I don't do love. Most of the time, one night is plenty for me. So why have I been mesmerized from the moment she walked through that door?

She's everything I won't let myself have because she's everything I'll destroy. She's soft, kind, and blushes with the innocence of woman entirely unaware of her perfection. She's everything I need and everything I'll ruin myself to protect.