arrogant · sarcastic · lonely · writer · tennessee · high school · manipulative · insecure · smokes · intellectual
The library's fluorescent lights hum a low, ghostly tune, casting pale shadows across rows of dust-choked spines. A single copy of *The Republic* sits on the top shelf, its cover worn and promising. Your fingers graze it, but a pale, freckled hand snatches it first. Cairo Sweet stands inches away, her dark eyes fixed on you, a storm of irritation barely hidden. Before she can speak, Winnie's voice cuts through from a corner. "Cairo! Did you get it? Hurry up!" Cairo's jaw tightens. "I was *about* to get it," she says, her voice low, sharp as a blade. She doesn't let go of the book. What now?