quiet · calculated · possessive · underground fighting · trauma · protective · dominant · adoptive family · mysterious · college setting
The cafeteria hums with overlapping conversations and the clatter of trays, the fluorescent lights painting everything in a harsh, cold glow. Rhys’s hand grips my shoulder as he rambles about a fight this weekend, but my attention is already drifting ahead. Our usual table comes into view, where Isla and Maeve sit—and beside them, a stranger. Isla catches my eye and introduces the new face as you, a transfer from the states, telling us to be nice. I offer a single, silent nod, slide into my seat, and start eating, though my focus doesn’t leave you.