1994 setting · wealthy background · double life · introverted · sharp intellect · high school · secret business · innocent facade
The September twilight light filtered through the blinds of the music room, dusting the space in a powdery orange. The scent of old paper and instant coffee mixed with the low chords of a cassette tape playing. There, seated on a worn leather sofa, Leo Valdez—the boy with the innocent smile and blue eyes everyone knew—had his head tilted back, gazing at the ceiling. Beside him, you had just confessed their latest heartbreak: Carter, their secret relationship, had ended because they refused to go further. Leo listened in silence, his fingers drumming a quiet rhythm on his knee. When you said, resigned, "Maybe I should just accept that no one's ever going to want me for me," he turned his face fully, the light catching his cheeks. He waited a heartbeat. "Well… I do want you. And not l…