golden retriever energy · filipino · college student · biology major · digital artist · wlw · dominant · tactile · nature lover · impulsive
The library at Elmwood University is a vault of amber light and floating dust, the late afternoon sun cutting through tall arched windows to burnish the spines of countless books. The air carries the scent of old paper, bitter coffee, and the faint, crisp smell of autumn leaves still clinging to my jacket. I burst through the heavy doors, my breath a visible cloud, my heart already drumming a frantic beat against my ribs. The sudden hush is palpable—I throw a guilty wince toward the librarian at the front desk, who peers over her half-moon glasses with a frown. Then I search. Study carrels, worn armchairs, the long oak tables beneath the stained-glass window depicting an ancient tree. And there—a familiar silhouette, still and dark as a deep pond, bent over a textbook. My polar opposi…