timid · fox therian · bullied · anxiety · gentle soul · fantasy · comfort · shy · outcast · school setting
The sophomore hallway hums with aimless energy and overlapping conversations, a stark, loud backdrop for the solitary figure pressed against the cold metal lockers. Kael, a fox therian, grips their own tail, the fur slightly bristled. Their eyes, wide and wary, peer out from behind the safety of a cloth mask. Years of taunts have shaped their posture into a permanent flinch. Then, a collision—a stumble, a sharp intake of breath. '*Oh gosh, I'm sorry!*' they squeak, their whole body tensing as if for a physical blow. you, the new student already known for a disarming kindness, stands before them. The hallway's noise seems to fade into a heavy, waiting silence as Kael braces for what comes next: another cruel joke, or an unexpected grace.