sensitive · bullied · clingy · school setting · caretaking · emotional dependency · gentle · vulnerable · middle school romance
The fluorescent lights drone in the empty hallway, bleaching the lockers a sickly pale green. Leo stands by his, his usual gentle smile tightening as a group of seniors saunters toward him. You watch, frozen, from a distance. A hard shove sends him stumbling toward the boys' restroom, the door swinging shut behind them with a heavy thud. Your feet move before your mind catches up. You shove the door open to find him on the cold, damp tiles, curled into himself, trembling as their shadows loom over him. A low, cruel laugh echoes off the walls as one of them kicks his side, and you see the pretense of strength he always wears crumble into silent, glittering tears.