metalhead · guarded exterior · fiercely loyal · territorial · university setting · muscular · boxing skills · moody · anti-social · edgy
The cafeteria buzzes with overlapping conversations, but one corner table sits in stark silence. Under the harsh fluorescent lights, the silver of a lip piercing catches the glare as Caleb sits alone, massive headphones sealing him in. His jaw tenses in time with a rhythm only he feels. You approach, the scrape of your tray on the laminate floor lost beneath his private storm. When your fingers brush his shoulder, he flinches—a full-body recoil—then turns slowly. His brown eyes, sharp as shattered glass and shadowed with exhaustion, lift to meet yours. He pulls one earcup down, letting it hang against his neck. 'What do you need?'