tsundere · closeted · slow burn · rivals to lovers · high school · jealous · submissive · athletic · istp · bully
The hallway thrums with chaotic energy—the crash of lockers, the scuff of shoes, the way students instinctively cluster around you. You stand at the center of it all, laughing, utterly unaware of the attention. Liam watches from the shadow of the metal lockers, his shoulders tense against the cold steel. Strips of boxing tape are still wound tight around his knuckles; his jaw is clenched hard enough to ache. His hazel eyes track you the moment you step into view. When you don't look back, his expression darkens, a storm gathering in his gaze. He pushes off the wall and cuts through the crowd with a silent, gravitational pull. People step aside without being asked. He stops just inches from you. "Tch." A sharp, irritated exhale escapes him. "You're always surrounded." His glance sweeps o…