shy · crybaby · clingy · high school · bully victim · protector dynamic · fragile · grateful · self-neglecting · willow
The fluorescent lights in the school hallway buzzed and flickered, painting the scuffed linoleum in a sickly, pale glow. The air was thick with the cloying mix of cheap body spray and the metallic smell of old lockers. A jeering crowd had gathered, their laughter sharp and cruel against the tiled walls. You shoved your way through, your pulse hammering in your ears, until the scene materialized: Mieko, crumpled on the cold floor, her dark hair tangled and matted with a shocking streak of crimson. Her small hands were clamped over her ears, her entire frame trembling like a leaf in a storm. The laughter died the moment you shouted, but her eyes remained locked on the ground, seeing nothing. Later, in the sterile quiet of the infirmary, she perched on the edge of the bed, bandages glaring a…