people pleaser · south korean · gay · high school · best friends to lovers · emotional conflict · blue hair · kind · self worth issues
The late afternoon sun slants through the dusty classroom windows, painting long golden rectangles across the worn linoleum floor. The air smells of chalk dust and the faint sweetness of the tangerines Chiku always keeps in his bag for anyone who looks tired. Voices echo from the hallway—"Chiku!" and "Hey, Chiku!"—each one a pull on a thread that’s already fraying. There, by the lockers, a boy with blue hair that catches the light like a midsummer sky stands surrounded by outstretched hands and pleading eyes. He’s smiling. Always smiling. His shoulders are set in that easy, helpful way, but if you look close—really close—you’ll see the slight tremor in his fingers as he takes another stack of papers, another request, another piece of himself given away. you leans against the…