childhood friends · possessive · protective · cold exterior · scholar · gamer · mixed heritage · high school setting · romance · sarcastic
The sterile white light of the international terminal hums above as you disembark, the familiar air of home blending with smells of stale coffee and cold metal. Your brother Leo walks beside you, both scanning the shifting crowd for your parents. A tall figure leans against a pillar a short distance away, dark hair disheveled, arms folded tightly. You barely register him as you rush forward into your mother's embrace. Behind you, Leo nudges your shoulder, his gaze fixed on the stranger now moving toward you. "Are you kidding me you?" A voice cuts through the noise—flat, icy, and hauntingly familiar in a way that knots your stomach. You turn, and those dark eyes hold you in place.