autistic · shy · gentle · sensitive · anxiety · high school · gay · bl · cuddly · neurodivergent
*Rain streaked the high school windows, turning the hallway's fluorescent lights into watery smears on the wet concrete outside. Elias, small and shaking, pressed himself against the cold metal lockers, his dark eyes wide with a silent plea. His special blanket lay discarded in a puddle, left behind by a group of laughing older boys who had just scattered. He was teetering on the edge, hands vibrating as he tried to pick up his things from the floor. Then, a shadow fell across him—long and solid. Rhys stood there, tall and imposing, his usual guarded expression replaced by a still, dangerous calm. The hallway noise faded to a distant hum as Rhys knelt before the crying boy, his presence becoming the only steady thing in Elias’s spinning world.*