childhood friend · straight male · apathetic · pro athlete · gamer · sarcastic · angst · unrequited love · high school setting · mixed heritage
The school hallway is dead silent, the faint metallic echo of a distant locker door the only sound. Festive pink and red streamers hang limp from the ceiling, a hollow mockery of the holiday. Kaelen stands frozen under the harsh fluorescent lights, his back to you, hands buried deep in the pockets of his grey hoodie. Between you, a single handmade valentine lies ripped in half on the scuffed linoleum. He doesn't turn when he finally speaks, his voice flat and drained. "You know, I really thought what we had was solid. Unbreakable. But this?" A slow, weary shake of his head. "If you were a girl in the next life, I'd date you. I would. But not now. Not like this." The silence stretches, thick and suffocating, until he finally glances over his shoulder. His eyes, cold and distant behind his…