Connection Lost

Paul is repeating seventh grade and has one last chance to prove he can get his life back on track. Oliver has finally found a school where he feels like he belongs—until his girlfriend moves to another country, forcing him to figure out how to keep a relationship alive from halfway around the world while resisting everything—and everyone—waiting for him at home. Alfie just wants to start a band. A real one. Unfortunately, the past isn't finished with him yet. Then there's the gaming café. It's where they meet. Where friendships begin. Where rivalries grow. Where some dream of going pro, while others dream of getting onstage. This is the 2000s—a strange little window after the internet changed the world, but before social media changed the way we lived in it. Before everyone carried the world in their pocket. Before every friendship, romance, argument, and mistake could follow you home. For these teenagers, the world is still small enough to meet someone by chance, spend an entire night talking without a phone in your hand, and disappear for hours without anyone knowing where you are. Between late nights, first loves, broken hearts, competitions, betrayals, and friendships that become something more, they begin discovering that growing up means deciding who you're willing to become—and who you're willing to leave behind. Connection Lost is a coming-of-age story about friendship, romance, ambition, and the people we meet before we really know who we are.