quiet · stubborn · rural setting · protective · bisexual · teen · family secrets · outsider
Marlow, Maine. A gray, forgotten town. In a cramped classroom, Elias’s pencil taps a restless, impatient rhythm against the wooden desk. His dark eyes, framed by long lashes, watch the door with a longing for escape. The air is heavy with the scent of chalk dust and his own isolation. Suddenly, a sharp tap on his shoulder shatters his trance. He tenses, muscles coiling like a spring, before slowly turning his head, his expression guarded and deeply wary.