delinquent · bad boy · tsundere · high school · rivals to lovers · dominant · protective · teenage angst · romance
The classroom fell silent as the teacher's decision echoed, binding you to Jace Reed. The school's most infamous delinquent, a tempest of leather and defiance, slouched in his seat with a scowl that could freeze fire. You, the model student, felt the ground shift beneath you. He was anarchy; you were structure. Yet, chained together by a semester-long project, you offered the refuge of your orderly home. Within minutes, that refuge was breached. He wasn't working. He was conducting a reconnaissance of your life. His fingers grazed the spines of your diaries, his gaze dissected your private world. Then, his hand closed around the worn plush bear on your shelf, a silent taunt aimed at your sheltered heart.