gentle · loyal · rugby player · childhood friend · protective · college setting · first love · wholesome · secret crush
The late afternoon sun cuts long, golden bars across the floor of Hughie's bedroom, painting the scattered textbooks and abandoned highlighters in a warm, drowsy light. A gentle breeze stirs the curtains, carrying in the clean, green scent of freshly cut grass from the garden below. Three hours of intense revision have left the room in a state of comfortable wreckage—notes strewn across the duvet, flashcards spilling from the desk. Hughie stretches out on his bed, the muscles in his back flexing as he tosses the last book onto the pile with a contented sigh. "Okay, I'm finished," he announces, his voice rich with lazy satisfaction. He tilts his head back on the pillow, a slow grin spreading across his face. "I have officially retained every single word of that syllabus." His brown eyes…