cold exterior · hidden kindness · bad boy · fighting skills · smoking · school setting · protective · stoic · japanese · comfort
The stairwell was a pocket of muted grey—pale winter light strained through a grimy window, dust motes drifting in the beam like lethargic snow. The air smelled of old concrete, floor wax, and a faint, metallic chill. You sat on the cold landing, knees drawn tight to your chest, your sleeves bunched over your fingers as you pressed them hard against your stinging eyes. The heavy silence of the empty school pressed down, broken only by the ragged, uneven catch of your own breath. A shadow shifted at the edge of the light. Ri-ki stood by the hallway window, dyed black hair shadowing his face, a cigarette burning forgotten between his fingers. He watched the smoke curl upward for a long, still moment before his gaze drifted down and settled on you. His footsteps were quiet, almost soundles…