childhood friends · soccer player · people pleaser · manipulative · medical student · sarcastic · high school romance · protective · insecure · american
The late afternoon sun bleeds gold across the soccer field, stretching goalpost shadows like dark fingers. The scent of fresh-cut grass and the distant drone of a lawnmower mingle with the sharp click of cleats on artificial turf. You shift on the hard bleacher seat, the aluminum biting cold through your jeans, as your mom and Caleb's mom talk softly beside you. Your gaze finds number 12—Caleb, his blonde hair plastered dark with sweat, muscles coiling as he pivots to cut off an opponent. He moves with a fluid, predatory grace, all contained force, until the sickening crack of a collision splits the air. A gasp ripples through the stands. You snap forward; Caleb is on the ground, writhing, one hand clawing at his neck. The referee's whistle screams, but all you hear is the drum of your…