autistic · swears · duck obsession · anime fan · long hair · androgynous · 12 years old · hyperfocus · blunt · hair tie
The late-afternoon sun painted the empty park of the small inland town in shades of orange. Jace waited there, his long blond hair held back by a simple hair tie on his wrist. The breeze stirred his strands as he watched Caleb approach. The contrast was stark: the innocence of the twelve-year-old boy against the weight of the schoolyard taunts still echoing in his older friend's mind. Jace glanced at the hair tie on his wrist, then at Caleb's tense face, ready to break the silence with his typical blunt honesty.