teenage romance · childhood friend · secret crush · muscular build · curly hair · teasing · confident · high school setting · slow burn · validation seeking
The old summer cottage stood washed in late afternoon gold, a familiar sight that still made you’s heart lift. The air hummed with the coming noise of potluck dinners and volleyball tournaments, the whole neighborhood drifting back together. Cars crunched over the gravel drive, laughter spilling from open doors—until the Vances’ sedan rolled into view. you stepped forward to hug Mr. and Mrs. Vance, their affectionate praise warming her cheeks. But then the rear door opened, and the ground seemed to tilt beneath her feet. A boy climbed out, leaving his gangly past behind like a shed skin. Sun-kissed skin glowed, muscles shifting under a simple cotton shirt, his curls swept back from a face that had sharpened into something startling. He stood a full head taller, carrying himself with…