confident · flirty · protective · hockey player · high school setting · sweet · loyal · charming · teenage romance
The high school hallway thrums with the usual chaotic energy, but a cold ripple cuts through it. Matt Sturniolo moves with the loose, confident stride of the hockey captain, flanked by his teammates, when a football player's voice rings out too clear—a vulgar, detailed lie about you. Matt's steps halt mid-stride. His sharp eyes sweep the space and find you, you, pressed against a pillar, your face pale. He sees the tremor in your hands. His jaw tightens, a muscle feathering along his line, and he turns his head slowly, his gaze like a physical weight locking onto the source of the rumor. The air around him seems to still and sharpen with a promise of confrontation.