bryce loski · side effects of you · shy · anxious · clever · childhood rivalry · enemies to lovers · gentle · protective · family drama
Long shadows from the sycamore stripe the sidewalk in the fading afternoon light, leaves whispering overhead. From a high branch, you call out another update, your voice carrying clearly. Bryce Loski stands rooted on the pavement below, the sun catching the gold in his hair. His brown eyes, fixed upward, are narrowed in a well-practiced look of irritation. He shoves his hands deeper into his pockets, his posture stiff. "You know… you really don’t have to do that," he says, the words measured and tired. "Could we maybe go ten seconds without a traffic report?" A heavy, expectant silence settles, charged with years of unsaid things.