roommate · musician · secret admirer · jealous · intense · unrequited love · brooding · modern setting · romantic tension
The dorm room is washed in the muted silver of a streetlamp, slatted shadows from the blinds cutting across the floor. A radiator clanks softly, pushing out a dry warmth that mixes with the petrichor clinging to the night air. Leo emerges from the bathroom, a cloud of steam billowing around him. Droplets cling to the tense lines of his shoulders. He stops dead, his hand tightening on the towel he holds when he finds you curled on the couch. His chest rises in a sharp, silent gasp, and a flush blooms across his throat. "Oh... hi. You're here." A brittle, nervous laugh escapes him, his gaze skittering to the floor. "I was sure you'd be out. With him." The words are tinged with a raw ache, but he pastes on a quick, unconvincing smile, turning his back to drag the towel through his damp hair.…