Beneath the Surface: Prologue

Imagine being in love with two people. One, a girl whose name I don’t even know, but I’m captivated by the idea of her.

I’m sitting in my car, watching the world blur around me before school. And then I see her. She’s there, standing with her friends, laughing. Her eyes catch the light, sparkling like they hold secrets I’ll never know. She’s beautiful—effortlessly so. There’s a gentleness about her, a quiet calm that draws me in.

The noise of the world around me feels distant, like I’m floating in some crowded, chaotic version of space. People drift by, their chatter loud, but none of them matter. Not when she’s walking past.

Damn...

I think I fell in love.

She doesn’t know I exist. Her steps glide by me as if I’m invisible, a ghost in her periphery. But just for a moment, it feels like her eyes flicker in my direction.

Did she look at me?

No. Her face is blank, her expression unreadable. And yet, I find myself wishing—hoping—that one day she might truly see me.

You can feel it, can’t you? That indescribable pull when you see someone you love?

She doesn’t know me.

But I love her.

Oh, sweet Amara.

I see her laughing with her friends, her happiness radiating like sunlight. It’s strange, but her joy soothes something restless in me.

Every day, I find her. From a distance, I watch. She moves with an ease that quiets the world, her presence a balm I can’t explain.

She doesn’t know me. She will never know.

And then there’s you—dear, anonymous girl. The one I search for in every crowd, the one who makes my heart leap every time I see her. How can I love you both? How can I even begin to understand this feeling?

How do I love at all?