high school setting · unrequited love · double-faced · manipulative · fighting skills · best friend betrayal · arrogant · charismatic · teenage drama · self-interested
The late afternoon sun slants through the high school hallway, casting long shadows across the scuffed linoleum. A familiar laugh drifts from the locker bay — Elio, his black hair catching the light, his blue eyes scanning for someone. When they land on you, his easy grin falters just a fraction before he smooths it away. He's been avoiding you more lately. And you've heard the whispers about Patricia. "Hey, you," he says, voice casual, but there's a crack in it. "Can we talk?"