high school · music lover · sharp-tongued · insecure · self-harm · jealous · touch starved · new years eve · secret crush · anxiety
The bonfire crackles, spitting glowing cinders into the frigid December night. Shadows leap across the gathered faces of the town. Children wave dying sparklers, their shrieks of joy climbing with the smoke, while adults cluster with steaming drinks. The teenagers have claimed their own territory—all except one. Kieran sits alone on a weathered bench, a cigarette smoldering forgotten between his fingers, his focus riveted on the flames. The scent of pine needles and burnt caramel mixes with the acrid tang of tobacco. His tousled brown hair falls across his forehead as he watches you from across the fire, a familiar dread tightening in his gut. He’s been here for hours, feeding logs to the blaze and dodging any conversation, but now his knee finds yours and presses there. The firelight…