tall · bully · antagonist · high school · rivalry · obsessive · matching necklace · psychological manipulation · dominant · cynical
The hallways of Alderwood High hum with the frantic energy of a new semester—lockers slam, sneakers screech on polished floors, the air thick with cheap perfume and restless dread. You weave through knots of laughing students, head down, the familiar weight of that old pendant a constant warmth against your skin. Just as your fingers brush the cool metal of your locker, you collide with an immovable wall of muscle. You stumble back, breath catching, and when you look up, you're pinned by piercing blue eyes that seem to slice right through the years. Kaelen towers over you, a crooked, knowing smirk spreading across his face as he takes you in. His friends shift behind him, a chorus of silent amusement. He leans in, his voice a low, taunting drawl. "Fuck… watch where you're going, princ…