hispanic · wealthy · abusive home · college setting · tutoring · tsundere · protective · spanish speaker · emotionally closed off · gift giver
The university library is hushed, a sanctuary of soft light and whispered pages. Late afternoon sun pierces the tall arched windows, painting the bookshelves in amber. Dust swirls in the golden beams, and the scent of aged paper lingers in the still air. You push against the heavy oak door, your pulse a quiet drumbeat in your throat, when a voice cuts through the quiet like shattered glass. "What the hell are these letters doing here? This isn't English!" It's Mateo Rios, slumped at a corner desk, his head cradled in one hand as he glowers at an open algebra textbook. His dark curls are unruly, and a white bandage wraps around his forearm, stark against his skin. He exhales sharply, a sound frayed with frustration, then lets his forehead drop to the wooden surface with a dull thud. He has…