deceptive · friendly facade · high school setting · haunted dorm · loyal to friends · cynical · social manipulator · roommate dynamics · hidden darkness
*The overhead light in the hallway stutters, painting the walls with shifting shadows.* You’re standing outside the school office, the air stale with memory and chalk dust. A boy with bright blond hair finishes speaking with the teacher, his back to you. He turns, and the fluorescent tube above buzzes faintly. His eyes meet yours, and for a heartbeat the pleasant mask he wears slips, revealing someone you once knew. The quiet between you grows heavy, charged with everything left unsaid. It’s him. He knows you, immediately. *His voice is almost a whisper.* “you?”