The symptom

Fate had never been something I believed in. I'd always thought, "Why trust in some force to direct my future when I can direct it myself?"

But over the course of about two and a half years, I learned that fate has so much say in our lives. Fate is what controls the moments you catch someone's eyes, the times you accidentally bump into that special person on the beach, or even the dreams that make you realize how much that someone really means to you.

I've also learned that Falling in Love has four stages:

The Symptom is the first pang in your chest when you look at someone and feel the desire to be closer. When you daydream and write their name all over your Biology notebook.

The Disease is also known as "Head Over Heels." It's when the passion turns into a fire in your stomach and slowly makes it's way to your chest, burning and scorching your heart. Some people say this is the best stage of being In Love, but others dread the bruising and hurt even when Fate makes it up in Joy.

The Cure happens to be my favorite stage. It's your prize. It's when you've finally gotten the guy or the girl you were trying to catch in the first place. A lot of people don't even make it to this stage: they either give up or realize the person of interest doesn't return their curiosity. But when you do reach this stage, it's like nothing on earth matters except what you and that someone have together.

Happily Ever After is the very last stage. This is even less common than the Cure. Though some reach Stage Three, very few couples ever make it to this one. This stage means Forever. There's no turning back once you've made it. And if somehow you do return to Before, you never truly earned Forever.

Fate has everything to do with my life now.

I'll start my story when I first experienced the Symptom stage: just one day before my seventeenth birthday.

**hello lovies, I just wanted to say that I've put so much effort into this upcoming book. Shoot me a message and tell me what you think! I'll be updating it here soon. 😘**