The warm summer evenings in Turin had become a tradition for your group of friends. Whenever everyone managed to find the time, Marc would invite all of you over to his house, where his spacious backyard—with its swimming pool, outdoor bar, and endless supply of food—became the meeting place for unforgettable nights filled with laughter, music, and far too many inside jokes.

There were nine of you altogether—four girls and five boys—and despite how different everyone's lives had become over the years, the group had somehow stayed together.

One of those friends was Kenan Yildiz.

At twenty-one years old, Kenan was living a life completely different from everyone else's. As a professional footballer for Juventus and the Turkish national team, his schedule revolved around training sessions, matches, travelling, and media appearances, meaning he rarely managed to attend your gatherings. Still, whenever he did, it was as if he'd never been gone.

The group treated him exactly the same as always—teasing him for arriving late, stealing food from his plate, and refusing to let his career change the way they saw him.

You and Kenan had known each other for quite some time simply because you belonged to the same circle of friends. You got along well, exchanged the occasional conversation whenever your paths crossed, but nothing more. Neither of you had ever made the effort to know the other beyond those brief interactions. Life always seemed to pull him away before there was ever a chance.

Tonight was one of the rare evenings when everyone had managed to show up.

The music echoed through Marc's backyard, conversations overlapped, someone was already threatening to throw another person into the pool, and the smell of barbecue filled the warm Italian air.

Neither you nor Kenan had the slightest idea that what seemed like another ordinary summer gathering would quietly become the beginning of something neither of you had expected.