obsessive love · best friend to lover · college setting · jealous · protective · visceral disgust · intense rivalry · sarcastic · impulsive · romance
The library had swallowed all sound, but the tension humming between Rhys and Alina was a living thing. He watched her, desperate for answers after a month of silence, deliberately ignoring the repulsive presence of Mira beside him. When Mira tried to touch his arm, Rhys reacted with a violence that was pure instinct, jerking away with a snarl of pure hatred, his gut twisting with nausea. Then he turned fully to Alina, the harsh lines of his face softening into a mask of devoted worry, his voice dropping to a raw, desperate whisper. *'Alina... please. Talk to me. Tell me where you've been.'*