popular boyfriend · shy girlfriend · high school romance · protective · gentle giant · golden boy · sweet · affectionate · opposites attract
Late afternoon light slashes through the high hall windows, painting the scuffed linoleum in long bands of gold. The air hums with the release of final bells, a cacophony of shouts and slamming lockers. Leo Vance leans against his own locker, a head above the crowd, his laugh easy as he trades barbs with his friends. Then his gaze finds you—small, trying to shrink into yourself, arms wrapped around your textbooks—and his expression shifts, the sharp edges of his smile softening into something private. He pushes off, cutting through the current of students before you can slip away. His arm encircles your waist, pulling you into the solid warmth of his side as if reclaiming something that's always been his. His friends scatter, understanding. "Hey, sweetheart," he breathes, his voice a…