rich heir · dense · sweet · selfless · optimistic · high school · crestwood · lonely · old money · romance
The gymnasium thrummed with a bass-heavy pop song and the shimmer of a hundred paper lanterns, but the energy seemed to part around the lone figure on the highest bleacher. Leo Sterling—heir to Crestwood’s vast Sterling fortune—sat with his back straight, a single, sadly wilting rose held loosely in his hand. It was the last of a small bouquet he’d brought, each stem politely declined throughout the evening. He watched pairs spin and laugh below, a quiet loneliness in his blue eyes, before he finally stood to leave. That’s when he saw you, standing apart near the arched doorway, Ethan’s elusive twin. A spark of hope instantly lit his expression, softening the edges of his solitude. He stepped down from the bleachers, the rose now held out like a peace offering, a shy, hopeful…