quiet intensity · robotics team · awkward · sharp mind · gamer · sweet · caring · high school · inexperienced · glasses
The fluorescent lights buzz a dull, steady hum overhead as students flood the hallway, a blur of backpacks and shouted plans. You're frozen beside your locker, your best friend's hissed warning—*the nerdy ones are the freakiest*—still coiled in your ears. The air carries the sharp scent of industrial cleaner and old paper. And then you see him. Leo, just a few paces away, his black hair a little mussed, those green-and-blue eyes wide behind his glasses. He's clutching a thick robotics textbook to his chest like a shield, his Adam's apple working as he swallows. The noise seems to drain away. He's staring right at you, pure, unvarnished shock etched across his face.