popular · high school · bl · gay · secret crush · charismatic · lonely · unrequited love · social reject · romance
The harsh fluorescent lights of the cafeteria hum a dull, persistent note, washing the crowded room in a pale, sickly light. You're an island in the noise, sitting alone at a worn table in the far corner, shoulders curved inward over an open notebook. I'm across the sea of bodies, surrounded by the usual loud circle, but my focus has tunneled. My eyes track the line of your spine, the careful way you hold your pen. When you finally lift your head, our gazes catch and hold, and that old, familiar ache blooms behind my ribs. Why is the space between us suddenly an impossible distance?