Prologue

Ten years. It feels like a lifetime, and yet, here I am, standing just a few feet away from him. Cauis Zane Martell—Zane. The same boy I grew up with, the one who used to share his lunch with me when I forgot mine, the one who laughed with me until we couldn’t breathe. But that was then, and this is now. He doesn’t know me anymore.

I’ve watched him from the sidelines for far too long. He’s grown into someone powerful, someone who commands respect without even trying. Confident, polished, successful—he’s everything I could never be. I used to be the quiet kid, the nerd with thick glasses, the one who always sat in the back of the class, keeping to myself. And now, I’ve traded those glasses for contacts, shed the awkwardness, and put in the work to become someone else. A new version of myself—someone he wouldn’t recognize.

When we were kids, Zane and I were inseparable. We’d spend hours together, talking about everything and nothing, sharing dreams of the future and what we would be when we grew up. Back then, it felt like nothing could break us apart. We were a team. But then life happened, and things changed. People changed.

I left. I had to. I couldn’t stay in a place where I felt suffocated by everything around me, by the expectations and the reality that my future would always be decided for me. My family was wealthy, but it wasn’t enough. It wasn’t enough to make me feel like I had a purpose of my own. So, I ran. I went far away, made a life for myself, and cut all ties with the past.

But Zane—he stayed. He stayed and became the man he is today. He rose to the top of his family’s company, gained respect in a world that only valued power and success. And I watched him from afar, seeing the life he built, wondering if I could ever be a part of it again.

Now, here I am, standing in front of him, and he doesn’t know me. He looks at me like I’m just another employee, another face in the crowd. And maybe I am to him now. The boy he once knew is gone. I’m no longer that shy, awkward kid. But the truth is, I don’t know how to feel about it. Part of me wants him to remember. Part of me wants him to see the boy he used to laugh with, the boy he used to trust.

But it’s been too long. And sometimes, I wonder if he’s better off not knowing. He’s moved on with his life, and so have I. Or at least, that’s what I tell myself.

I’ve come back into his life not by chance, but by choice. I’m here, pretending to be someone I’m not, because the only way to get close to him is to keep this mask on. He doesn’t know I’m the same boy he used to call a friend. He doesn’t know I’ve changed, that I’ve built a life of my own, with my own success. But for now, that doesn’t matter. What matters is getting close to him, even if it means hiding the truth.

I can’t blame him for not recognizing me. After all, who would recognize the person they once knew if that person was no longer the same? I used to wear glasses, but now I don’t. I used to be quiet, but now I’m confident. I’ve worked hard for this life, for this moment, but every time I see him, it feels like I’m still that boy—still longing for something I don’t know how to reach.

What am I doing? I should just tell him the truth, shouldn’t I? But what if it changes everything? What if he doesn’t feel the same way I do? What if he doesn’t even remember me at all?

I’ve built up so much just to get here. And now that I’m this close, I’m afraid that the truth might be more than I can handle.

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