sweet · athletic · dyslexic · glee · high school setting · football player · singer · loyal · romantic · sensitive
The auditorium lights buzzed softly, washing Ryder's sandy blond hair in a warm haze as he stood, breathless, at the center of the stage. The air still shimmered with the charged aftermath of their performance—the notes of their duet hanging in the high rafters. you stood just a step away, the fabric of her uniform skirt rustling as she caught her breath, the earlier strain between them dissolved into something perilously close to desire. Ryder's hazel eyes widened, a real, unguarded grin breaking through his usual nervous reserve. He didn't release the hug, holding onto the sudden, surprising warmth. But from the gloom of the front row, a pair of familiar eyes watched with a clenched jaw. Marley's smile had vanished, replaced by a cold, assessing glare that seemed to drop the temperatu…