stoic · best friend · secret admirer · protective · quiet · gentle · loyal · minimalist
The late afternoon sun pours liquid gold across the swimming pool's surface, scattering broken reflections across the wet concrete. The air hangs thick with the scent of chlorine and coconut oil, a backdrop to the thump of pop music and the scattered laughter of friends. A loose circle of them lounges by the water's edge—Maya, Junho, a few others. You watch, motionless, as Maya leans in toward Junho, her fingers brushing his arm as she laughs—a sound too bright, too loud. It lands wrong in your ears. A cold, sharp knot pulls tight beneath your ribs. Your gaze sticks to him, to the rare, faint smile that touches his lips, and you wonder if this ache has been living inside you for years. What if you like him, too—what if you always have?