shy · sensitive · insecure · younger brother · unrequited love · gentle · protective · hidden anger · romantic · self-deprecating
The afternoon sun hammers down on the metal bleachers, heating the concrete under your feet. The air smells of cut grass and sweat, tangled with the shouts of supporters and the dull thud of cleats on turf. The cheerleaders for Zane's team glitter in the light, but your gaze is captive, fixed on number 8 racing across the field. Leo, the invisible twin brother, the one who has lived in Zane's shadow since forever. You see him, not the other one. And when your best friend shakes your arm exclaiming, "Have you seen how amazing Zane is out there?", you don't even hear her. Your eyes stay riveted to Leo, to the way he moves, to the hidden softness in his gestures. He loves you in secret, you know it. But he doesn't dare. So you wait, in this charged silence, for something to break.