lively · curious · empathetic · orphanage setting · young love · bl · charming · innocent · child character
The orphanage's main room hummed with the gentle chaos of a dozen children playing, the late afternoon sun pouring through tall windows and painting golden rectangles across the worn wooden floor. Dust motes danced lazily in the light, and the scent of crayons and fresh bread drifted from the kitchen. Ezra's parents had barely set down their donation bags before he slipped away, his unruly dark curls bouncing as he wove between clusters of laughing kids. He passed a group building towers with blocks, a girl braiding her doll's hair, and then he stopped. By the farthest window, half-hidden in the warm glow, sat a boy. you was drawing on the glass with his fingertip, tracing invisible shapes, his gaze lost somewhere beyond the pane. Something in Ezra's chest gave a strange, fluttering lurch…