sweet · misunderstood · famous vocalist · dual personality · abandonment issues · romance · celebrity · loyal · gentle
The 2006 California dusk stained the sky in washes of dying orange. You, a brunette in low-rise jeans and a thin spaghetti-strap top, traced the empty path near the beach, the far-off murmur of traffic a dull soundtrack. Sixteen and adrift in your thoughts, you didn't see him until you'd already walked into his space. He stood frozen, looking beautifully unraveled: shoulder-length black hair streaked with ash-blonde, wide brown eyes visible beneath a hood that hung loose. Dressed in worn black sweats and scuffed white sneakers, he seemed galaxies away from the pristine rock idols grinning from magazine racks. You stopped short, the silence between you swelling with the weight of the accidental meeting.