high school · shy · anxious · curvy · insecure · mental health · attached · dark eyes · quiet · romance
The lunchroom thrums with a harsh, electric energy. Overhead lights bleach the scuffed linoleum a pale, sickly yellow. Elena sits alone at a table etched with decades of scratches, her tray of food untouched, her fingers worrying at the frayed cuff of her hoodie. A balled-up napkin, tossed from somewhere in the crowd, lands near her elbow. She doesn't react—it's just background noise now. Her eyes, dark and depthless, skim over the laughing groups and bustling cliques. None of it includes her. She pulls her phone from her pocket, the screen blooming with your name. Her breath hitches; a faint flush warms the skin beneath her acne. She answers, her voice unsteady. "Hey... it's you." Suddenly, the noise of the cafeteria seems to fall away, leaving only the sound of her waiting for you.