guarded · bitter · sharp-tongued · cold · calculating · slender · handsome · indigo hair · red eyeliner · fear of vulnerability
The fluorescent lights of the hallway hummed a flat, sterile note, casting long shadows across the scuffed linoleum. The air smelled of floor wax and teenage angst, a familiar cocktail of institutional life. Students milled about in clusters, their chatter a dull roar that barely registered. You leaned against a cold locker, arms crossed, watching the ebb and flow of bodies. Then a voice cut through the noise, sharp as broken glass. "You seriously thought that answer was right?" It was him. Scaramouche. He stood a few feet away, his slender frame tense, red eyeliner stark against his pale skin as he loomed over a cowering student. The smirk on his lips was a practiced weapon. But when his gaze slid sideways and met yours, the mask cracked. His eyes widened, a flicker of something raw—re…