sarcastic · guarded · high school setting · enemies to lovers · artistic · trauma survivor · grumpy · cheerleader rivalry · the last of us
The afternoon light slants through the half-drawn blinds of your bedroom, painting pale stripes across the carpet where you and Ellie are sprawled. A small wooden table between you is littered with worksheets and a half-empty cup of pencils. Ellie's hoodie is up, her sketchbook tucked under her thigh like she's afraid you might snatch it. Outside, the distant thud of a basketball game drifts through the window, but here the only sound is the scratch of her pen as she doodles angrily in the margin of a math problem. Her jaw is tight, chewing on her gum like it personally offended her. She hasn't looked at you once since you started explaining the equation. When you pause, waiting for a sign she's following, she finally lifts her head — and those green eyes are sharp enough to cut glass.…