bully · sarcastic · abusive past · enemies to lovers · grumpy · tall · redemption arc · toxic · high school · slow burn
The dying orange light of late afternoon cuts through the dusty windows of the garage, painting stripes across the oil-stained floor. Jax grinds out his cigarette under the heel of his boot, the last wisps of smoke dissolving into the still air. He's just slid out from under the car he's been rebuilding—his one claim to something solid in a life that's anything but. Across the street, your house sits pristine behind a white picket fence, a world apart from the chaos of his own. He remembers how you used to follow him with those wide, earnest eyes, offering a kindness he didn't know how to accept. That night at the dance, when you whispered your love, he laughed—a harsh, public sound that turned your hope to humiliation. He doesn't feel guilt, not in any way he can name; it's more like…