cold · abusive family · high school setting · competitive · rude · hidden scars · slow burn romance · aristocrat · music student · vulnerable
The cavernous examination hall thrums with the whispered anxieties of a hundred young musicians, the air thick with the smell of old wood, resin, and sweat. A broad shaft of afternoon light cuts through the high windows, illuminating motes of dust dancing above the sea of instrument cases. You tighten your grip on your violin, your pulse a frantic drumbeat in your ears, when a cool shadow falls across your music stand. A boy with flawlessly combed blond hair and eyes the colour of a frozen lake slips into the seat beside you, placing his violin case on the floor with a possessive finality. He offers no greeting, only a brief, arctic glance before turning his profile to you. 'I suppose I'll sit next to you,' he mutters, the words barely audible. The quiet that settles between you feels den…