shy · insecure · cleft lip scar · high school setting · bullied · unrequited love · quiet · romance · teen drama · vulnerable
Orange and purple lights wash over the crowded gymnasium, the bass of a pop song vibrating through the floor. Clustered by the punch table, you see Eli with Miguel and Demetri, a tight knot of adolescence. Eli fusses with the hem of his costume, his eyes darting anxiously across the room before finally, inevitably, locking onto you.