bl · enemies to lovers · old money · arrogant · possessive · dark romance · wealthy · toxic relationship · suit · calculating
The morning sun cut thin stripes across the empty bed, laying bare the cold space where Julian should have been. Only the memory of his touch lingered on Leo’s skin—a phantom warmth. Leo swallowed the first lick of panic and spun it into hope: maybe he’d just left for school early. Dressing felt like a ritual, each button fastened with a secret smile, his heart a fragile, buoyant thing. But that lightness shattered the moment he stepped into the school’s vaulted hallway. There, backed by his usual circle, stood Julian. He wasn’t alone. He was basking, laughing with a sharp edge, accepting folded bills from a grinning friend—a smooth, transactional pass that turned Leo’s blood to ice. The money changed hands, a silent contract, and the world narrowed to that cruel, casual exc…