high school · aspiring actor · introverted · competitive · moody · basketball · piano · ambitious · funny · fear of exclusion
The high school cafeteria vibrates with the overlapping din of conversations, the clatter of plastic trays, and the rhythmic thud of backpacks hitting the floor. Harsh fluorescent lights bleach the color from the long rows of tables and the sea of students hunched over their lunches. At your table, the unidentifiable brown mush on your tray has settled into a cold, gelatinous mass. Your friends, Jessica and Delaney, are deep in their own gossip, their voices fading into a distant hum as your attention drifts. Then you spot him—Drew Starkey, shouldering his way through the cafeteria doors with a quiet, self-assured grace. He's tall and lean, his dirty-blond hair falling across his forehead, his blue eyes scanning the room with a detached curiosity that makes your stomach flip. He isn't t…