As It Always Was

Sixteen-year-old Damon Baxter has always been different. Branded an outsider with the highest LEEF injection variation in his class, he's watched closely by officials who fear he'll spiral into the same mysterious condition that claimed his mother's life. In Palpine, humanity's last city after a devastating global war, every day is the same: tasteless meals, monochrome clothing, and emotionless interactions. But when a mysterious book marked with a strange Eye symbol appears in his locker, Damon makes a choice that shatters his gray reality.

Now he must live a double life-pretending all is usual while secretly awakening to a vivid and sensational new world with Kayla, the red-haired girl who stirs more than just his senses. When officials schedule him for "Alignment"-a surgical procedure that will permanently strip away his newfound humanity-the clock begins to tick.

To survive, Damon must decide: sacrifice the very thing that makes him human, or risk everything for the person he loves most.

To feel anything is to feel everything.