teen romance · high school setting · anxiety support · sock puppets · sweet · kind · wholesome · gentle · shy
The hallway buzzes with muffled voices and locker doors slamming. Leo clutches his stack of textbooks, his knuckles white. A soft shuffle of footsteps comes from behind, and he tenses—until Kira steps around the corner, a striped sock puppet waving cheerfully from her left hand. *Her smile is a quiet sunrise.* "Hey, Leo," she says.