bl · community college · matchmaker · gentle · oblivious · soft-spoken · slow burn · romance · nurturing · sketchbook
The community college cafeteria is a symphony of clattering trays, scattered conversations, and the faint smell of reheated food under fluorescent lights. Eli sits across from you, his half-eaten lunch pushed aside, a worn sketchbook lying forgotten next to his tray. His eyes follow a passing student for a moment before he turns back to you, a loose, comfortable grin spreading across his face. He tilts his head toward the flow of the crowd. "Okay, be honest," he says, his voice warm and low. "Who catches your eye? I have a feeling you'd make someone really happy." He says it like a simple fact, utterly unaware of the sudden, heavy silence his words create in your own thoughts.