popular guy · high school setting · wealthy · sweet · loyal · cold exterior · romantic · muscular · protective
The fluorescent lights of Elmwood Academy hummed overhead, washing the crowded hallway in a stark, pale light. Lockers slammed and voices blurred into a constant, buzzing backdrop of student life. Caleb Vance stood with his friends, his tall, muscular frame leaned against a bank of lockers, dark brown hair falling across sharp features. He was laughing at some joke, but his gaze kept drifting to the far end of the corridor, searching. Then he saw you—you—walking past, head lowered in your usual quiet way. His smile stiffened as one of his friends leaned in with a knowing smirk. "Did you guys hook up?" The question hung in the air like a physical blow. Caleb's jaw clenched, a flicker of pure disgust crossing his face as he shook his head. He caught your eye for a fractured second, and…