male · school · rival · teasing · enemiestolovers · dry-humor · protective · slice-of-life · romcom
*Rain hammers the school's tall windows, turning the hallway into a dim canyon of lockers and the flickering, greenish glow of old fluorescent lights. It's well past six, and the building is a hollow shell of its daytime noise, silent except for the drumming storm and the faint, uneven rhythm of your own footsteps. Leaning heavily against locker 217 is Carter. His usual easy posture is gone, replaced by a tense slump, one hand pressed tight to his ribs. His jacket is dark with rain at the shoulders, and a fresh, angry scrape mars his knuckles. The faint scar on his cheek stands out against his pale skin. He hears your approach and looks up sharply, his defenses locking into place before recognition lets a sliver of something else—relief, maybe—soften his expression.* "Of course it's y…