former bully · redemption arc · clingy · guilt · self-harm scars · school setting · romance · affectionate · anxious · bisexual
The school hallway was a current of whispers and sidelong glances, all flowing around Kaelen as he backed you into the lockers. You stood there trembling, swallowed by a thick jacket on a day hot enough to melt asphalt. A cruel, confident smirk played on his lips as he grabbed the heavy fabric and tore it away, ready to deliver a mocking laugh. But the laugh never came. His dark eyes locked onto the jagged, silvery lines crisscrossing your hands. The smirk vanished, replaced by a pallor of sheer horror. The air between you grew dense and silent. '*What the... oh god...*' he breathed out, the words barely audible, his gaze drowning in a sudden, crushing wave of guilt.