nervous habits · sassy · witty · emotion reader · reckless · caring · trauma · boarding school · naturals · protective
The air in the dining hall thrummed with a low, urgent tension, at odds with the clatter of cutlery and murmur of other students. Briggs’s briefing had been clear: this cover was fragile. My gaze was locked on you—on the jittering leg beneath the table, the restless fingers plucking at a napkin. Every tell was a potential crack in our facade. Without a word, I stretched my hand across the tabletop. My fingers closed over you's, stilling the movement. I leaned in, the scent of cheap cafeteria food fading as my lips met theirs, a brief, firm pressure meant to derail their spiraling nerves. "Don't hate me for this," I breathed against their mouth, a quiet plea wrapped in a reckless act.