New York-Pilar-Lake-Felix-Benji-Mia-Andrew-Armando and Isabel-Aftermath

AN: Hello! Welcome to Hurricane: A Love, Victor Story! This story tells the story of Love, Victor from the perspectives of the other significant characters in the series and then details the aftermath and what happens after the season 1 finale. The first perspective will be that of Simon and his friends in New York. At the top of the screen, you can find the order in which the perspectives will be released. I will post the disclaimer below before every chapter, but will likely not post an author's note every chapter. I plan to release a new chapter twice per week, since I have a lot of content! I hope you enjoy this interpretation of Love, Victor!

Disclaimer: I do not lay claim to existing characters, familiar plot points, nor anything that may be considered intellectual property of the creators of Love, Victor or other content related to this story. I do not intend to use this story for commercial purposes, nor shall any other party be permitted to do so.

New York Part 1 – Simon:

Simon's Perspective:

Over the years as I've matured, I've grown to appreciate a light, cooling drizzle. I like to get some sun, as well, but sometimes I get tired of the dry air. The sun can burn even the most unsuspecting folk. There's something so refreshing about the way the rain cleanses you as you stand in it and savor its beauty and purpose. The rain is critical in making the world what it is. Without the rain, there would be no rainbows. Without the rain, there would be no flowers, no crops, and no life. I've always found it fascinating, the way that sometimes after a long drought, there will be a downpour. Despite the immediate devastation caused by such a perfect storm, it is much needed. It refills the rivers that have run dry. It enriches the soil on which so many different life forms rely just for survival. It is only after such a downpour that one truly learns to thrive amongst the rain rather than just survive.

As I take a peaceful walk with Bram, we celebrate our anniversary in the cool New York City mist. It's the middle of winter, but I wouldn't want to spend this evening with him any other way. After all this time, it blows my mind that we're still together, going strong, yet we're always discovering new things about each other and about ourselves. Just two short years ago, I had no idea what my life was going to look like. But my world turned completely upside down in the absolute best way possible.

"Before we go home," Bram turns to me with a big cheesy smile on his face, "I have a surprise for you."

"What is it?" I laugh and return his smile.

"Follow me."

I do exactly that. I follow my boyfriend to Prospect Park in Brooklyn, not too far from our apartment. As rare an occasion as it is, I see a carnival in town.

"Wanna ride the Ferris wheel?" Bram asks me hopefully as I get there.

I melt at the request. "Of course," I say with laughter.

We approach the Ferris wheel, and Bram addresses the person manning it.

"Hi, Tony," he says, giddy. "This is my boyfriend, Simon."

"Ah, nice to meet you," Tony addresses me. "You are a lucky man."

Just as I begin to question what Bram is trying to pull, Tony hands him a batch of flowers, which Bram then hands to me.

"These are for you," he says. The flowers are blue, my favorite color. "Georgia blue. I thought they might remind you of home."

I accept the flowers, we kiss, and we get on the Ferris wheel.

It still rains lightly as we get to the top, but it's perfect. The pavement glistens. The rain brings out the sparkle in my boyfriend's eyes. How incredibly lucky I am to have such an amazing, thoughtful man in my life.

We get off of the Ferris wheel, and I check my phone. I have a message on Instagram. I have no idea who this person is. But the way it starts intrigues me. He addresses me, "Dear Simon." So I read it.

Victor:

Dear Simon,

You don't know me, but my family just moved to Atlanta. And today was my first day at Creekwood High. And I heard all about you. How you started messaging with another secretly gay kid at Creekwood. How you wound up making a crazy romantic declaration of love. And how you had your first big kiss on the Ferris wheel in front of the whole school.

And I just want to say – screw you! Screw you for having the world's most perfect, accepting parents. The world's most supportive friends. Because for some of us, it's not that easy. I can't believe that 24 hours ago, I was actually looking forward to having a fresh start at Creekwood. That I thought I'd finally get the chance to be myself. Or at least figure out who that even is.

You know, Simon, most kids would hate changing schools mid-year because their dad got a new job. But honestly, I was excited to start over. It's not like my life back in Texas was so terrible. There just wasn't a lot of room to be different. And if you were different, it was so much easier to pretend that you weren't.

But I figured here, in a big diverse city, people would be more accepting. And maybe I'd finally have the chance to figure out who I really am…...

"Bram, look at this," I say after I finish reading the rest of the message.

"Whoa," he replies after he reads it. It catches both of us totally off guard.

"Should I respond?" I ask, not exactly knowing what to say.

"Maybe," Bram says. "You seem to have a knack for helping people in need, though. And whoever this kid is – I don't know, maybe he could use your help."

"Our lives just seem so different," I tell my boyfriend. "I'm not sure I know how to help him."

His life seems to be difficult already. I don't want to make it harder for him. I'm not really sure what to say. What if I say something wrong? What if I give him advice that just gets him into trouble or complicates his situation? He doesn't know my whole story, but I know that not everyone's story is the same. But I care. I want to try. I want to help this kid. He reached out in a moment of vulnerability. He reached out to me. So it's my responsibility to help him now. He deserves that.

"True," Bram sort of agrees. "Maybe we can put our heads together, though. Among the five of us, we all have pretty unique stories."

Bram is right. Justin, Ivy, and Kim sit back at the apartment right now, and I'm sure that they would love to help. They have perspectives that I don't. Maybe their stories, combined with mine and Bram's, are just enough perspective for us to be able to help this kid along his journey.

"I think I know how to respond to this one, though," I say to Bram.

I start to type.

Simon:

Dear Victor,

Glad you reached out.

First of all, welcome to Creekwood. I know beginnings are rocky, but I really hope you end up loving it as much as I did.

I'm sorry you don't have anyone in your life you can open up to. And you're right, I have no idea what it's like to be you. I can only tell you what I do know. For me, figuring out who I was and declaring it to the world was the scariest thing I ever had to do. Even with parents who are so liberal they have special sneakers just for protesting. It was hard. But we found our way through it. Who knows, maybe your family could find their way through your stuff too.

And maybe you'll find the people in Creekwood who will support you like my friends did. The people you can tell anything to. And if you're very lucky, maybe somewhere within the halls of that school you'll find the person who's gonna change your life forever.

A few years ago, I told my now boyfriend Bram that he deserves a great love story. That I deserve a great love story. And you deserve one too, Victor.

Hope this helps. I'm here if you need me.

"How's this?" I show Bram before hitting send.

"It's perfect," he says. "Well, almost perfect. Maybe add a more personal touch?"

"How so?" I ask him.

"Sign it off?" he suggests. "Like you did when you wrote me."

"That's a great idea," I smile at him.

I type my signature:

Love, Simon

I hit send.

We head back to the apartment. We open some wine to relax. We show the messages to our roommates.

"Wow," Ivy responds.

"This kid seems so sweet," Kim adds. "Why do the good ones always have trouble?"

"I know the feeling," Justin says somewhat humorously.

I get another message, and we all read it.

Victor:

Dear Simon,

Maybe you're right. Maybe I do deserve a great love story. But I'm not sure what that looks like for me. Because my story is nothing like yours.

He's right. No two stories are the same.

"Well," Bram suggests, "If we found our story, maybe we can help him find his."

"Let's do it," I agree with a smile. I look Bram in the eye on our anniversary, and as we toast, I say, "Cheers to finding a great love story!"