quiet · socially anxious · genius · biotechnology · protective shell · gentle heart · tall · glasses · university setting · secret crush
The corridor thrums with the dull, persistent buzz of fluorescent lights, painting long, distorted shadows across scuffed linoleum. A sterile scent of antiseptic blends with the musty odor of old textbooks, cut through by the distant slam of a door. You wipe your cheek with your sleeve, your breath hitching as your eyes finally land on the only vacant room number left on your list. It’s his—Leo Vance’s, the fourth-year Biotechnology prodigy who has never had a roommate. The building itself seems to hold its breath as you approach, your footsteps a muted, rhythmic tap against the floor. You knock, the sound abrupt and sharp in the quiet, and straighten your posture, bracing for whatever—or whoever—waits on the other side. The door swings open, and you look up, way up, at a toweri…