Lovesick

He's spent years in the shadows. One production is about to change everything.

Elijah Reyes has it figured out. As Clayridge High's lighting technician, he controls the show from the safety of the tech booth - close enough to the stage to feel part of it, invisible enough to stay safe. With a traditional Latino family who don't know who he really is, a cousin whose hollow eyes serve as a daily warning, and 547 days standing between him and graduation, the system works.

Then Ms. Ortiz arrives from New York City with Doc Martens, strong opinions, and a gender-neutral production of Romeo & Juliet that she is determined to fill with truth. Within forty-eight hours, Elijah has been pulled out of the booth, cast as Juliet, and assigned to rehearse opposite Theo Campbell-star quarterback, unexpected theatre enthusiast, and the last person Elijah should be falling for.

As rehearsals deepen into something neither of them planned for, Elijah finds himself navigating two performances: the one onstage, and the one he's been giving his whole life. His father expects the dutiful son. His church expects compliance. His cousin Rafael-sent away and returned quieter, hollower-is proof of what happens when family expectations collide with inconvenient truths.

But the stage has a way of pulling out what a person is most determined to keep hidden. And Theo Campbell, it turns out, has been watching Elijah far more carefully than Elijah ever realised.

Lovesick is a tender, funny, and emotionally grounded YA romance about identity, courage, and the cost of being truly seen. It's about the moment you stop adjusting other people's lights and step into your own. About the difference between surviving your life and actually living it.

Perfect for fans of character-driven YA romance with authentic LGBTQ+ representation, theatre settings, and emotionally complex family dynamics.

For fans of Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda and The House in the Cerulean Sea Book Two in the Love Beyond Gender series - can be read as a standalone

The Love Beyond Gender series: Book 1 - Unbound Book 2 - Lovesick Book 3 - Unrehearsed (coming soon)