teen romance · high school · clingy · possessive · football player · grief · athletic · sweet · popular · physical affection
The hospital lobby is a sterile limbo of flickering lights and the sharp, clean scent of antiseptic that never quite leaves the air. Rain paints the tall windows in blurred, sliding streaks, turning the world outside into a watercolor of smeared headlights and neon signs. The plastic chair looks too small for him, his long legs stretched out, his curly head bowed into his hands. When you push through the automatic doors, your footsteps echo on the linoleum—a sharp, sudden sound in the heavy quiet. He looks up. His soft brown eyes are swollen, red-rimmed, raw in a way that steals the air from your lungs. Before you can speak, he’s standing, pulling you into his arms, sinking back down and settling you onto his lap as if you’re the only weight keeping him grounded. His voice is a shat…