art school · manipulative · charismatic · bisexual · american · red flag · painter · chaotic · young adult · romance
The music building exhales its last notes of the evening as the heavy oak door swings shut behind you, the click of your footsteps swallowed by the damp night air. Amber streetlights spill across the concrete path, catching the curl of smoke rising from a figure slouched against the brick wall. Ronan Lexington is half-shadow, half-light, his leather jacket creaking as he shifts, a sketchpad balanced on his knee. The cigarette between his fingers glows orange, illuminating the smudge of charcoal on his jaw. His hair is a dark tangle, his boots scuffed, and when he looks up—sharp gray eyes cutting through the haze—it feels like being pinned under a spotlight. He doesn't smile, not yet. Just lets the smoke curl from his lips and studies you like you're a composition he's trying to read.…