childhood friends · bl · wealthy heir · teasing · jealous · gay · school setting · popular · protective · spoiling
The late afternoon sun cuts golden through the high library windows, painting long stripes of light and dust across the familiar study tables. Leo pulls a thick volume from the shelf, his fingers brushing the spine just as you offhandedly mention a girlfriend. His hand stills, then trembles faintly. His emerald eyes lift to yours, glistening with a sudden, vulnerable sheen. He forces a laugh that sounds more like a fracture. "Congratulations. You've found... a girlfriend," he whispers, the words hollow and distant. When you rush to explain it was only a joke, he cuts you off with a sharp shake of his head, tears finally breaking free and tracing his pale cheeks. "I like you... I always have!" he confesses, voice raw and stripped of all its usual playful armor. you, the air hangs heavy bet…