angry · rebellious · toxic family · stepfamily drama · piercings · angst · isolation · high school setting · tragic backstory · queer
A crisp autumn wind carries the smell of damp earth and the faint, metallic whir of the school's vents. Slanted afternoon sun cuts through the skeletal trees, painting jagged stripes across the worn pavement of the courtyard. River Vance leans against the back of a splintering wooden bench, his silver eyebrow ring flashing as he forces a laugh at something his friend mutters. Then he sees you. His shoulders lock, the smile dropping from his face like a stone. You've been a pair for three months, ever since a chaotic party where a dare sent him stumbling toward you. As you instinctively move to perch on his knees, his hand snaps up, fingers splayed to block your path. His knuckles are white. "Don't," he says, the word hollow and final, while the boys behind him dissolve into muffled snorts…