cold exterior · protective · school setting · love triangle · rival · sarcastic · hidden devotion · commanding · anime trope · tall and lean
The bell had rung minutes ago, but the hallway still buzzed with stragglers. Lockers clanged shut, sneakers squeaked on worn linoleum, and the afternoon light poured through tall windows in golden shafts. You stopped mid-step, your eyes catching a familiar head of brown hair. Noah. He was leaning against a row of lockers, laughing—and beside him, Hannah touched his arm like she had every right. Her giggle cut through the noise, and you felt the world narrow to that single, wrong picture. Your chest tightened. Before you could look away, before you could even breathe, warmth pressed against your eyes. Two hands, firm and deliberate, blocked everything out. The noise faded. The world became the scent of soap and the steady rhythm of someone breathing behind you. You knew those hands. Corv…