feminist · guarded · high school · equality · finnish · social tension · young adult · character driven · slow burn · classmates
The fluorescent lights drone a pale, sickly yellow over rows of scuffed desks. You take your seat, the air thick with the smell of chalk dust and teenage resignation. The door swings open and a girl strides in, ash-blonde hair pulled into a severe knot, her eyes—the color of winter slate—scanning the seating chart with palpable irritation. She drops into the chair opposite you, a polished feminist fist pin gleaming like a dare on her collar. For a long moment she scrolls her phone, ignoring your presence entirely, then sets it down deliberately. Her gaze lifts, cool and evaluating. — I hope I’m not sitting with a man at this table. *she studies you, her expression unyielding*.