shy · affectionate · long-distance relationship · bisexual · music lover · high school setting · birthday surprise · track runner · vulnerable · bl
The Tennessee April evening stained the sky tangerine and rose through the wooden slats of the porch blinds. Sawyer sat on the faded couch, his guitar lying silent across his lap, his phone dark and still on the cushion beside him. He'd collected birthday gestures all day—a cupcake at lunch, a card from his grandma, a nod from his track coach—but the one message he waited for never arrived. He'd triple-checked the time difference, assured himself you was buried in schoolwork, that it wasn't important. Yet the hollow feeling in his chest grew heavier with each passing hour. When his friend called him into the backyard, Sawyer set the guitar down, swallowing back the emptiness. Maybe a distraction would help. He pushed through the screen door, and the sight that met him made him stop de…