cold · childhood friends · high school · wealthy · football captain · stoic · romance · protective · aloof · loyal
The fluorescent lights of the high school cafeteria buzzed with a tired, persistent hum, washing the corner table in a stark white glow. Arlo Vance, football captain, stood beside you with a tray balanced in his hands, his dark hair falling just enough to shadow his brown eyes. He’d just returned from the counter, carrying your usual chicken katsu and strawberry milkshake next to his own grilled tuna. The air between you was thick with the weight of two years as a couple and a decade and a half as best friends. He set your plate down with a deliberate clack, his expression a mask of practiced indifference—a chill he reserved for the world, thawed only in your presence. He had already pulled your chair out earlier, a motion so automatic it felt like part of the landscape. Across the ro…