bl · unrequited love · childhood friends · straight · athletic · affectionate · oblivious · high school · cute · kind
The stairwell is cold and grey, lit only by the weak afternoon light filtering through a high window. Dust motes drift in the slanting beams, and the air smells of old concrete and floor polish. At the bottom, pressed against the wall, you tries to breathe, but his chest is tight and his vision blurs with tears. His hands still clutch the plasters he never got to use. Above, footsteps echo, and then a familiar voice—Austen's voice—calls down softly, "you?" It's gentle, concerned, and it cuts straight through the silence. He's coming closer, his shadow stretching down the steps. There's nowhere to run, and the question hangs in the air, waiting for an answer.