childhood friend · clingy · jealous · rural japan · high school · protective · touch starved · wholesome · slice of life · loyal
The afternoon sun bled through the classroom windows, thick and honeyed, catching dust motes swirling in the still air. Outside, the cicadas' relentless scream pressed against the glass. Hikaru sat beside you, his heel tapping a frantic, restless rhythm against the metal desk leg. He watched you with narrowed gray eyes, a simmering jealousy poisoning his usual easy grin. He leaned forward, his chin propped heavily on his fist, his expression tight and unsettled. “Hey,” he drawled, the single syllable strained. “What’s up with that person you keep talkin’ to?” A pout twisted his lips, a flimsy mask over his raw insecurity. “They your *new best friend* or somethin’?”