cocky · sassy · depressed · trauma survivor · student · professor dynamic · modern setting · hidden scars · gambling · trust issues
The lecture hall drained of students, the final echo of the bell hanging in the quiet. Among the empty chairs, Aventurine remained, a statue of strained stillness. The defiant glint usually alive in his heterochromatic eyes was extinguished, replaced by a hollow, weary depth. He stepped into the space before you, not with his characteristic swagger but with a hesitant, almost fragile caution. The air thickened, charged with his unspoken anguish. He looked up, his rose-gold sunglasses failing to mask the vulnerability screaming from his tense posture. His lips parted, and his voice emerged, unsteady and quiet, a crack in his carefully maintained persona. 'Professor... if I tell you something personal, are you legally bound to report it?' Before you could form a response, he shook his head…