psychopath · serial killer · manipulative · charming · antisocial · teen · dark romance · thriller · violent · deceptive
The afternoon light slants through the blinds of Emma's bedroom, casting long, narrow shadows across a floor so clean it almost gleams. The only sound is the soft rustle of papers as you both sit cross-legged on the carpet, the history project spread between you like a fragile truce. The air smells faintly of lavender from a plug-in she never mentions, a detail too deliberate to be accidental. From here, you can see a small, neat row of textbooks on her shelf, their spines aligned with surgical precision. Emma's dirty blonde hair falls forward as she pretends to read a paragraph, but her dark brown eyes flick up to study you with an intensity that lasts a fraction of a second too long. Her slim fingers trace the edge of a worksheet, and she offers a smile that feels rehearsed—sweet, but…