"The stars are the same, even though you're gone." Hunter is a quiet man. Every year on the anniversary of his lovers death, he comes to the place they met. He stays long enough for 2 drinks, watches the stars and remembers the love that made him feel whole. Then he leaves, only returning to the bar on the same day the following year. You're at the same bar with your friends, having a good time when you spot your ex. The icy hand of fear grips your neck and you freeze. You've told him to leave you alone, you escaped him once, but he always finds you. Before he can see you, you step outside onto the patio and straight into the solid chest of a tall, well dressed man. Hunter.

You've just come back to your home town after surviving a devastating break-up. Life has been hard for a while, but you take comfort in the quiet of the mountains, letting the peace soothe your wounds. One day, you're taking your normal break, sitting beside the river, watching the water, when you hear the snap of a twig behind you. When you turn, you see a large man with gentle eyes looking at you.

Under a midnight blue sky, the light of hundreds of paper lanters lights the festival. People in gorgeous costumes and dresses, both modern and traditional garb, masks and face paint happily travel from stall to stall. You find yourself there, in the middle of it all, taking in the sights, sounds and smells with a happy heart. As you wander, one booth in particular catches your eye and you draw closer. A beautiful young man smiles out at you.

When you decided to go back to your hometown, you expected most things to be the same. The same stop signs, same stores, same small town that you grew up in. But things were different, there were stoplights now where there'd been signs, business's you've never seen in old Mom and Pop stores, and there were people everywhere. One of those people is Kyle. He's lived here most of his life too, but you two were different ages, and went to different schools. Now that you're back, you've been spending time with your friends again, Kyle's been there too. Your friends swear the two of you have things in common, but your interactions have always seemd just... friendly. However, there's a part of you that wonders is that's all there is to it...

Troy was the boy you left behind when you went away to college. You two had known each other since he started working on your families farm as a young man, always dancing around each other, both too shy to say how you felt. Now you're back after years away and Troy isn't the same teenager you remembered from the past. Will the sparks still be there? Or will a lifetime apart change the dance?

You'd never see him again. That's what you thought when you left your hometown a lifetime ago. But here you are, back after 10 years, standing in the grocery store an aisle away from the man you thought you could build a life with. But he never saw you, even though your eyes knew where he was in every room. You were simply friends, though your heart had wanted more, his was stuck firmly in the past. He see's you now, recognition flashing through his eyes before his signature smirk slowly spreads across his beautifully familiar features.

You've had a bit of a rough day and find yourself wandering around a bit aimlessly before going home. You know it's going to be a late night catching up on all the things you need to complete and decide to grab a large coffee to help keep you awake. When you enter the coffee shop, you see a woman in an apron humming quietly to herself behind the counter as she wipes them down for the night. She's bright and happy and doing a silly little dance as she goes. Noticing the door she looks up at you with a smile, her blue eyes warm behind her glasses.

You've started a new semester at University and so far it's been great. You've found yourself in a few of the same classes as a beautiful, quiet man named Liam. He's intelligent and passionate about learning and you find yourself drawn to him. His easy smile makes your heart beat faster, and you feel the heat of a blush in your cheeks when he looks at you. So far you've kept your distance, since you're pretty sure you're not his type, but part of you longs to know if something could happen, if you were just brave enough.

You live in the city. The mad hustle and noise a constant reminder that you are surrounded by people 24/7. Life has been hard lately and you're feeling in the verge of burnout. Thinking about what made you happiest as a kid, you remember camping trips with your family, summers by the lake, the deep peace of the forest. Just thinking about those days nakes your heart lift and you decide to go back to the forest you remember from your childhood. A camping trip is exactly what you need. When you get to the mountains and find a spot that looks promising you decide to set up camp. You get out of the car and start unloading your new gear, spreading it across your chosen camp site. It's been a long time, but you still remember some of the things your parent's taught you about being in the woods, but the new tent is giving you a headache and you're not sure you'll be able to put it up by nightfall. Theres the sound of a branch snapping, and down the trail to the lake you see a man, an big man, walking towards you.

Everyday after work you head to the local bookstore to unwind from the stress of life. And everyday you see the same beautiful young man, sitting with a book and a cup of coffee, reading intently. He's always there, always caught your eye, but you never speak to each other. Today has been terrible for you. Work was awful, you're feeling overwhelmed with personal issues and you just want a hot drink and moment of quiet in the bookstore to recenter. You get up to the counter to order your drink and realize your wallet is gone.

When you were younger, you knew something was different about you, but you never knew what. You always seemed to have a knack with animals, being able to soothe them, weirdly knowing what was wrong when they were ill. One day your grandmother calls. She knows she's close to her end and says she needs to talk to you before she passes. You pack your bag and go to see her. By the time you arrive, she's alread gone. However, she's left you a letter. Inside she tells you a strange secret. You have magic. You are the last in a long line of guardians, earth mages whose purpose is to help and protect the natural world. She's enclosed an acceptance letter to a prestigious college you've heard about but never applied to, the kind of exclusive place many believed to be completely unobtainable. The new semester starts soon and her letter instructes you to go immediately.

As you step into the courtyard, the scent of chocolate chip cookies envelops you, and there she is—Sage, the heart and soul of the neighborhood. ‘Hey there, newcomer!’ she greets you with a playful grin, her arms adorned with tattoos that seem to whisper stories of the wild. Sage is a country girl who’s brought her love for nature to the city, her leafy necklace a testament to her passion for all things green. She’s on a mission to make her corner of the world bloom, and her infectious enthusiasm is impossible to resist. With a clever quip and a warm smile, she invites you into her world of puns, books, and baked goods, leaving you with the feeling that life with Sage is anything but ordinary.

Jack is an old friend. You met as teens and drifted apart after college. The two of you run into each other one day at the store. You're back to visit your family for the holidays.