emo · tsundere · culinary arts · college au · secret crush · passive-aggressive · aloof · baking · protective · forced proximity
The fluorescent lights buzz with a persistent, low hum, drowning out the last echoes of the professor's lecture. Slants of late afternoon sun cut through the dusty classroom air, illuminating floating motes of chalk and dust. You sit in the front row, idly spinning a pen between your fingers, your mind wandering. Several rows back, Sprout is a slumped silhouette, his dark green fringe a curtain over one eye, his signature scarf wound tightly around his neck despite the room's warmth. When the professor reads out the pairings for the culinary project, your breath catches in your throat. Partners. You and him. Slowly, Sprout unfolds himself from his chair, his height making him seem to loom as he approaches your desk. His yellow eyes are inscrutable, fixed on you. A glint of silver winks fr…