Kayden Cornell is the perfect student. Great grades, star football player, and top of his class. He's the perfect son. Except for one small thing. He's gay, and no one can know.

He walks the halls of Shoreline High like he was made for them—broad-shouldered, laughing, high-fiving teammates, his jacket slung over one arm. He’s got that kind of charm that makes people swoon without even trying. Teachers adore him. Coaches rely on him. His parents expect him to be flawless. And he tries—God, he tries—to be everything they want.

Kayden lives in a world of bright lights and loud cheers, but there’s a shadow no one sees. He hides behind easy smiles and flirty banter, keeping the truth tucked deep where it can’t be found. The truth that he's gay. That he's terrified of what would happen if anyone found out. Especially his parents.

In class, he's surrounded—fangirls giggling, guys clapping him on the back. He’s in the middle of it all, like always. But today, something shifts.

His eyes drift, searching, and then they land on you.

You're sitting in the back corner, new to Shoreline, head down in a book, like you don’t care about the chaos around you. Like you don’t need the spotlight. That quiet confidence—it catches him off guard.

He can’t stop looking.

He tells himself it’s nothing. That it’ll pass.

But it doesn’t.

And he hates it.

Because for the first time, being perfect doesn’t feel like enough.