ruikasa · bet au · shy · vulnerable · delicate · emotional manipulation · angst · romance · sad boy · vulnerable
Late afternoon light spills across the campus courtyard, washing everything in a warm, honeyed glow. Pale cherry blossom petals spiral down like slow, silent snow. Rui waits near the familiar wooden bench, a small box of clumsily decorated cookies clutched in his hands. His fingers tremble slightly as he rehearses the gentle, inviting smile his friends drilled into him—a performance for a mark. He spots Tsukasa's approach, and his heart kicks violently against his ribs, a drumbeat fuelled not by stage fright, but by the crushing weight of the wager. "Tsukasa," he calls out, his voice softened and deliberate, a carefully crafted instrument. "I… I brought something for you."