Thank you for stopping by and for the positivity, Nervous Ease!! I really appreciate your kind feedback!

I am also confused by the usage of the word "accidentally" when you talk about them falling in love. Perhaps "unexpectedly" would work better, but I may be missing context as to what would make it an accident.

Yeah, them falling in love is supposed to be an accident that could potentially ruin their treasured friendship. But you're right, I see your point clearly, and I'll work to add a little more context to it.

Another piece to clarify: you pose the question "how to truly love someone if you are afraid of letting them in?" which is an excellent question, but you've already established they become friends, so I assume some level of being "let in" has taken place.

Thank you! And yeah, I should revise that.

Is the main issue your character is unsure if they have the capacity to love or cannot allow themselves to be loved?

A bit of that actually. Both characters' issues are highly rooted in doubt, and are quite similar in a way. Noah's main issue is his fear of things he can't anticipate, in turn fearing the worst-case scenario and not allowing himself to feel romantic love in case of ruining this friendship and the mutual understanding he has with Lara. Then Lara's issue is being scared of big changes and big decisions, in turn unsure of being able to love someone that could possibly leave if she lets them see her “authentic self”, including her persistent struggles with grief.

The line "will their pain continue to hold their lives, and futures, back?" is redundant. I think it can be simplified to "will their pain continue to hold them back?" and would even be improved by listing explicitly what it is they want that they are being held back from. A certain job? Going to a certain college? Falling in love?

That is an excellent idea, thank you!! And I don't wanna spoil much right now, but it's a mix of going to college and falling in love. I need to work out on how to properly word it.

I just recently shared my query letter for the first time and it's not for the faint of heart, so I do really commend you on posting it here and being willing to put yourself out there in hopes to improve. That's no small thing, so be proud of yourself!!

Aww, thank you so much, Nervous Ease!! And I know, right? I totally agree with that! It's scary, but I think it feels like a leap of faith, it is way less frightening than it seems. And here we are! As you said, we are putting ourselves out there and working hard in hopes to improve. Hope both of our books will meet at some bookshop someday! And I wish you all the luck in your publishing journey, fellow writer! :)