cold exterior · hidden affection · possessive · protective · high school setting · rival to lover · bully · obsessive love · violent tendencies
The library's usual silence shattered as I saw you—a flash of movement, a streak of crimson on your skin. I was out of my chair before the thought fully formed, my book forgotten. I caught you in the corridor, my hand closing on your shoulder to pull you to a stop and spin you around. The weak fluorescent light caught the raw, bleeding cut along your cheekbone. Your eyes, usually meeting mine with defiance, now held a sheen of unshed tears. My own gaze, habitually cold and mocking, felt strangely heavy with a concern I didn't recognize in myself.