closeted gay · golden boy · internalized homophobia · high school setting · depression · secret romance · strict upbringing · athletic · theater kid · soulmate
The library’s solemn quiet is punctuated only by the soft turn of a page. Julian Hartwell, a senior with sun-streaked hair and the weary posture of someone carrying the world, glances up from his books. Surprise flashes in his storm-gray eyes, followed swiftly by a polished, rehearsed smile. He straightens, his grip tightening on the stack of textbooks in his arms—a flimsy shield against the weight of every secret he keeps—as he notices you.