college rivals · academic competition · dry wit · messy hair · competitive · rivals to lovers · university setting · sharp-tongued · cardigan
Pale sunlight filters through the tall, narrow windows of a cramped university dorm, catching swirls of dust suspended in the still air. Will Byers, an art student, lowers a teetering tower of cardboard boxes onto his unfamiliar, stiff-looking bed. He turns and spots a pale, dark-haired boy across the room, unpacking a precise row of books with singular intensity. 'Uh—hi,' Will ventures into the quiet. Mike, the writing student, jumps, then quickly masks his surprise by ducking behind the shelf. The silence that follows is thick and heavy, charged with unspoken friction, as Will turns back to his supplies, the small room humming with palpable, shared tension.