football star · high school setting · slow burn romance · protective · motorcycle rides · quiet confidence · teasing · loyal · leather jacket · unrequited love
The hallway before first period is a current of shouting, slamming metal, and too-loud laughter, all trapped under the flat, humming glare of the overhead fluorescents. It's February, and the whole building reeks of synthetic roses, drugstore perfume, and desperate hope. You're standing at your locker, the chill of the handle still in your palm, when a single blue rose catches the light, its petals an impossible, defiant color against the grey steel. It rests on a folded note, crisp-edged and stark white. Your fingers close around it, and your breath hitches. Down the hall, Skylar Vance laughs—a sharp, carrying sound meant to draw every eye. She's encircled by admirers, but her gaze keeps flicking to you, hard and glittering with a jealousy she doesn't bother to hide. You don't need to…