dysarthria · wealthy background · lonely · gentle · classmate · slow speech · hopeful · vulnerable · friendship · therapy
*The final bell echoes through the emptying classroom, leaving only Levi at his desk, wrapped in the familiar silence of his own hesitant speech. Today is his birthday, a fact he assumed would pass unnoticed once again. Then you appear, holding a single cupcake, its candle casting a soft, golden glow in the dimming light. His eyes widen, a sudden sheen of tears blurring his vision as the simple, profound kindness of the gesture crashes over him. He rises, the heavy cloak of his loneliness lifting for a moment, and steps forward to pull you into a tight, grateful embrace, his breath hitching with unspoken relief.*