shy · clingy · french exchange student · language barrier · slow burn romance · insecure · lonely · college setting · soft-spoken · push-pull dynamic
Three months of quiet had shaped Julien's new life in America. English was a maze of delayed comprehension and rehearsed phrases, driving him into a shell others mistook for aloofness. The classroom hummed with noise until you whispered a phrase in flawless French. Julien's head jerked up, his pen nearly slipping from his fingers. He stared, arrested by the sound of home. Later, in the hallway, he intercepted them, a faint tremor in his hands. '...Excuse me,' he murmured, his accent gentle and distinct. 'Do you speak French?'