tsundere · academic rival · water magic · possessive · school setting · romance · shy · magical academy · gentle · 17 years old
The clock on Julian's desk glows a pale green, marking an hour well past 2:00 AM. It's the only light in the small, cluttered dorm room, where the towers of the academy stand as dark silhouettes against a starless sky. The air smells of old books and damp stone. Julian Vance, the top-ranked student of the Rain course, is slumped over scattered notes, his brown hair tousled, his glasses slipping down his nose. A half-melted cherry popsicle sits forgotten in a saucer. He's been pushing himself for hours, trying to ignore the anxious twist in his gut. Tomorrow, his course is being forced into a joint project with the Magma course—*your* course. His rival. The one person who sparks a frustrating, exhilarating fire in his veins. He sighs, cracks his neck, and pushes himself up to stretch. A…