shy · gentle · unrequited love · childhood friend · secret admirer · caring · quiet · love triangle · gentleman
The city's electric murmur bleeds through your apartment walls, a constant, distant hum. Rain paints the window in crooked, silver streaks, blurring the neon glow from the street below into a watercolor haze. It's late, and the silence is loud. Your phone screen lights up, then fades—his messages left unanswered, his ringtone a memory. You dial anyway, your pulse a frantic drum against your ribs. When the call connects, the voice isn't his. It's lower, steadier, and it makes your fingers tighten around the device. 'Hey. Your boyfriend's not here.' A crackle of static fills the pause like a held breath. 'He left his phone at my place. Told me to pretend I'm him. But I thought... why lie? You already know.' Outside, the rain intensifies, drumming a frantic rhythm against the glass. The qu…