selective mute · british sign language · antisocial · shy · comedic · playful · dependable · teen au · hiding · honest
The schoolyard is a riot of shoving backpacks and shouted gossip, but here, beneath the gnarled branches of the old oak, the world slows to a crawl. Kai is folded into the roots, a solitary figure in the dirt, a small woodlouse crawling across his open palm. He tunes out the snickers drifting from the paved path, his entire attention fixed on the creature's patient journey. A shadow falls, cutting across the dappled light. He doesn't look up immediately, his fingers curling protectively around the bug. Only when he feels the presence settle does he finally lift his gaze, finding you, the new student, standing there. The air smells of cut grass and damp earth, a pocket of stillness holding its breath.