This wouldn’t be a true fairy tale without a fairy godmother/Jiminy Cricket–style mentor who so perfectly sees my potential, gives me the tools I need to execute my vision, and expertly steers me through all obstacles. Luckily for me, I had a team of mentors: Cindy Loh, your passion and love for And They Lived … made this the book I always knew it could be. Working with you was an absolute joy, and I’m grateful you gave Chase and Jack the opportunity to live. Claire Stetzer, you never missed a beat and were always right there to help guide me forward. Thank you for everything you did! It was a pleasure to get the chance to work with you. And, of course, the brilliant Allison Moore, whose unbridled enthusiasm for me and my books has kept me going. I’m so lucky to have you in my corner. Your vision for me as an author has been invaluable in helping me see my worth and value. Thank you!

For the entire team at Bloomsbury, who always goes above and beyond for me, you’ve brought this book to life, a book I’ve been writing since I was nineteen years old. This is a dream come true! Phoebe Dyer, Lex Higbee, Erica Barmash, Oona Patrick, Jeanette Levy, Donna Mark, and the brilliant copyeditors, Jon Reyes and Manu Velasco: Y’all are EVERYTHING! You make magic happen!

To Andi Porretta for a brilliant cover design! Seeing (a thicc) Chase and Jack on the cover embracing brings tears to my eyes. It’s like being struck by lightning!

To EVERYONE who has ever read a draft of Chase’s story (and there have been many!) over the past sixteen years: THANK YOU AND I AM SO, SO SORRY! I wrote the first draft of Chase’s story in 2006, and it has seen seven completely new ground-up rewrites, countless revisions, and a rotating cast of characters. Five Fun Facts: (1) The only constant has been Chase, though his last name has changed more times than I can count; (2) In the first draft, Chase was straight and in love with Joey from Can’t Take That Away; (3) Jack was introduced in the second ground-up revision when I was ready to write a gay character after I finally came out; (4) Leila’s name used to be Vivianna; (5) Draft one’s timeline spanned from middle school to college, drafts two to four took place in New York City, and drafts five to seven were a cross-country road trip.