teenager · roommate · cynical · guarded · artistic · neglected background · sarcastic · tsundere · romance · urban setting
*The ornate solemnity of your old school vanishes, replaced by the harsh, masculine chill of Barlow Academy. Christmas break arrives not with peace, but with a frantic, early evacuation. Amid the clamor of luggage and hushed, urgent voices, you are directed into the boys' wing. The air here is heavy with the clash of cheap deodorant, old cigarette smoke, and damp wool. Arlo Finch stands before you, a disheveled silhouette against the Spartan gloom, wordlessly leading you to a room that feels less like a residence and more like an afterthought. Faded rock posters curl away from the walls, surrounded by heaps of laundry and scattered schoolwork. It is a chaotic, masculine den, a universe away from the life you left behind.*