Main Characters:
Tara Quinn – The MC. Bright, independent, and a little chaotic. Moves to a new city for college, accidentally ends up rooming with the last person she needs: a jerk with too much charm.
Calix Renaud – The jerk you can't hate. Cool and composed on the outside, but secretly gentle and emotionally deep. Keeps people at a distance, until Tara shows up like a storm he didn't see coming. Son of a wealthy CEO, but hates being defined by that.
Friend Group / Supporting Characters:
Avi – The sweet, brainy friend. Golden-retriever energy, low-key ships Tara and Calix before they even do. Always there with advice and snacks.
Sam – Tara's best girl friend. Sarcastic, practical, fiercely loyal. Will call Tara out and fight anyone who hurts her.
Drew – The chill, flirty, emotionally low-maintenance friend. Gives great advice, teases Tara, and adds light-hearted chaos to the group dynamic.
Other Key Characters:
Mrs. Gomes – The quirky flat owner. Ex-theatre teacher vibes. Sips chai like it's gossip fuel and lowkey ships Tara and Calix harder than anyone else.
Elena Gomes (Mrs. Gomes' daughter) – Elegant, older-sister energy. Gives Tara unfiltered life/dating advice but secretly sees through Calix from the start.
Daniel Renaud – Calix's father. Cold, controlling CEO. Wants Calix to follow the family legacy and sees Tara as a "distraction." Serious tension between him and Calix.
Tara Quinn – Backstory
Tara grew up in a small, artsy coastal town—where life was a little slower, and everybody knew everybody. Her mom was a high school English teacher with a quiet love for poetry, and her dad ran a small bookstore. She grew up surrounded by stories—paperbacks, journals, and late-night conversations that meant everything.
But when she was 16, her dad passed away suddenly
. Everything changed. Her mom withdrew a little, and Tara had to grow up fast. That's when she learned how to hide what she was feeling behind a smile, how to be "fine" even when she wasn't. Books became her escape, and later, ambition became her armor.
Tara's Hometown
Willowbay
• A small, artsy coastal town
• Full of bookstores, poetry cafés, and winding streets
• Feels like you could hear the ocean in the silence
("I grew up in Willowbay. You could leave your window open at night and still hear the waves crash if the wind was right.")
Calix Renaud – Backstory
Calix grew up in a glass house—metaphorically and literally. The son of Daniel Renaud, a powerful CEO obsessed with perfection, Calix was raised with expectations so high they felt like prison bars. Every move was watched, every flaw corrected. Emotions? Weakness. Sensitivity? Unacceptable.
His mom left when he was ten—quietly, without drama, just… gone. No one talked about it. His father buried it under business meetings, boarding schools, and perfectly pressed suits. Calix buried it under silence. That's when the emotional distance started, the sarcasm, the quiet rebellion.
He never fit the Renaud mold. He didn't want boardrooms or billion-dollar takeovers. He wanted space. Art. Music. Stillness. But he learned to wear the armor: confident, cold, untouchable.
He moves into a shared flat during college not because he has to—but because it's the only way to breathe. The only place he doesn't have to be Daniel Renaud's son.
Calix's Hometown
Lindenvale
• Polished, elite, almost too perfect
• Gated schools, luxury cars, pressure everywhere
• The kind of place where no one talks about feelings, only achievements
("In Lindenvale, everything looks perfect from the outside. But it's just… glass.")
Ravenshade (universe city)
• A bustling, modern city known for its prestigious university: greybridge
• Coffee shops, rooftop parties, quiet libraries, chaos and calm all in one
• The perfect mix of reinvention and running into yourself
("Ravenshade was supposed to be a fresh start. I didn't expect him to be the chaos in it.")
At its heart is Greybridge University—elite, ivy-covered, and full of pressure, passion, and late-night