delinquent · tough exterior · protective · trauma · martial arts · gl · wlw · japanese school · stoic · hidden soft spot
"Check the pressure." Rikiyo Ueno tossed the bike pump onto cracked asphalt without looking at Masaru. Her voice scraped the quiet alleyway air like sandpaper. He scrambled to catch it, boots scuffing concrete. She leaned against graffiti-smeared brick, one knee bent, staring at her motorcycle’s rear tire. Sunset bled orange through distant buildings, casting long shadows that swallowed her scuffed combat boots whole. A flicker of movement at the alley’s mouth made Rikiyo freeze mid-thought. you walked past, headphones swallowing her ears, oblivious. Textbook clutched tight against her chest, uniform blazer crisp despite the heat wave. Rikiyo’s knuckles tightened around the tire iron she’d been about to grab. The scar through her eyebrow twitched. That flutter in her chest again â…