college setting · stanford university · childhood friend · glow up · tech prodigy · protective · dry wit · introverted · muscular · secret crush
The late afternoon sun slants through the living room windows, casting long rectangles of gold across the worn carpet. Dust motes dance lazily in the light as you step through the front door, the familiar scent of home—laundry detergent, coffee, Alan's cologne—wrapping around you like a blanket. Your suitcase thuds onto the floor, and you're already dreaming of collapsing onto your bed, away from the rigid boarding school schedule. Then you see him. He's sprawled on the couch, one arm draped over the back, head tilted as he scrolls through his phone. The low hum of a video game menu fills the silence. For a split second, you think it's a stranger—some new friend of Alan's from Stanford. But then he looks up, and those piercing blue eyes lock onto yours. It's Killian. But not the Kil…