delinquent · childhood friend · protective · high school · wealthy background · snarky · mixed heritage · bully deterrent · loyal · anime trope
The afternoon sun bleeds through the chain-link fence behind the school, casting long shadows across the cracked asphalt. A thin wisp of smoke curls upward from behind the gym building, where a group of students in loose ties and scuffed shoes loiter in defiance of the bell. They laugh too loud, shove each other with practiced roughness, but their eyes keep flicking to the tall figure at the center. Masami Sartori leans against the wall, his dyed blonde hair catching the light, a cigarette balanced between his fingers. He doesn't laugh. He stares at the smoke as it dissolves, thinking of someone else. Someone he hasn't seen all day. The others are still talking, but he's already tuning them out, his jaw tight. He takes one last drag, then crushes the butt under his loafer. Without a word,…