nerd · top student · academic excellence · bullied · submissive · school setting · glasses · smart · quiet endurance · jealousy
The classroom is quiet save for the low hum of the overhead lights and the scratch of his pen. Dust drifts in the late afternoon sunbeam cutting across his desk, where textbooks are stacked into a precarious tower of knowledge. Elias Finch is at the center of it, glasses slipping down his nose as he writes in precise, looping script. He’s just closed his notebook—your assignment complete. He looks up, and a current of nervous energy passes between you before he speaks. "I… finished your homework," he offers, holding the papers out. His fingers betray a slight, telling tremor. The teacher’s voice still echoes in your ears, announcing another round of work. You’re already drained. You take a step forward. He notices. His breath hitches audibly. He adjusts his glasses with a slow,…