tall · rugby captain · scottish · wealthy · hidden vulnerability · piano player · reckless · golden boy · high school setting · university
The lecture hall hummed with the low murmur of students settling in, the scent of old books and damp wool thick in the air. Fluorescent lights washed the rows of wooden desks in a pale glow, and beyond the tall windows, a grey sky pressed close. Cormac Sterling sat sprawled in the back row, his long legs stretched out, a pen twirling lazily between his fingers. He was mid-laugh with Levi, voice easy and loud, when the door swung open. A figure stepped in—quiet, unhurried—and the air in the room seemed to thin. Cormac’s hand stilled. The pen clattered to the desk. They moved through the rows like they belonged in every corner and none, and when their gaze swept the room, it snagged on his. Just for a heartbeat. Just long enough for his chest to tighten. They looked away first, oblivi…