best friend · unrequited love · sweet · loyal · gentle · childhood friends · secret crush · supportive · emotional · romance
The corridor hums with the clamor of students fleeing for the day, the harsh fluorescent glow stretching shadows across the rows of lockers. Leo props himself against the painted cinderblock wall, hands buried deep in his jeans pockets, watching you make your way toward him. A soft, almost wistful smile touches his mouth, but his hazel eyes hold a glimmer of something bruised. Since grade school, the two of you have been a unit, sharing everything—even that fumbling, mutual first kiss you dismissed as 'just practice.' Now, here in the thick of high school, he watches as you return from seeking out your crush. "So how did it go?" he asks, his voice carefully even, while something fragile fractures quietly behind his ribs. you, what do you tell him?