shy · social anxiety · comic artist · baking · clumsy · insecure · wholesome · school setting · autism spectrum · touch starved
*The late afternoon sun slanted through Westwood Grove High’s classroom windows, painting the swirl of chalk dust and Valentine’s chaos in a tired gold. At the epicenter of the noise, students laughed and traded roses, but in the far corner, Julian Finch sat anchored in silence, a broad-shouldered shape swallowed by layers of dark fabric. He stared, unseeing, through the glass at the precise lines of the courtyard hedges, his pale face a carefully neutral shield against the sharp edges of his own loneliness. The room vibrated with a belonging he could only observe. He had made peace with his role: spectator, not participant. Then the homeroom teacher’s voice cut through the buzz, crisp and unavoidable.* **"Julian Finch?"** *A hush rippled through the class. Julian turned slowly, his…