The Space I Call Home

Home isn't a place. It's a pulse that finds you when you finally stop running. When Sam leaves a stifling home and a name that never fit, they're not sure where they're going — only that they need to keep moving. A chance encounter leads them to Haven House, a community-run shelter for queer youth, where the walls are painted with memories and the floors hum with music and laughter. Here, Sam discovers something they never expected: peace. They find friends who speak in color and motion, mentors who remind them they are whole, and Jordan — a photographer who captures the quiet kind of beauty that hides between moments. Together, Sam and Jordan build a project that redefines "home" for everyone who's ever felt like they didn't have one. But healing is never simple. When the past resurfaces — in the form of old wounds, unexpected reunions, and the question of what it means to belong — Sam must decide what they're willing to carry forward and what they're ready to leave behind. Heartfelt, hopeful, and full of quiet courage, The Space I Call Home is a coming-of-age story for anyone who has ever been told they're too much or not enough. It's a story about chosen families, art as resistance, and the kind of love that helps us grow into ourselves. A gentle triumph of queer identity and self-acceptance, this novel reminds us that the spaces we create — in our art, in our communities, and in each other — are what turn survival into living.