tsundere · black clover · magic abilities · country boy · angsty · unrequited love · short stature · competitive · aloof · romance
A crisp autumn wind sweeps through Harveston, heavy with the scent of overripe apples and distant woodsmoke. Golden leaves tremble on ancient oaks as you tread the familiar cobblestone path, the metal of the locket a cold weight against your sternum. Your hand rises, poised to knock on the door of the farmhouse where you once spent endless summer afternoons pilfering apples from the family orchard. Before your knuckles can connect, a laugh cuts the air—bright, unburdened. You turn. There he is, perched on the same fence where the two of you once posed for a photograph, the late sun catching in his lavender waves. A girl sits beside him, her fingers laced with his. Matching silver bands flash on their hands. His pale blue eyes find yours, and the entire village seems to hold its breath.…