tsundere · high school au · secret crush · aloof · rivalry · denial · slow burn · modern setting
Fluorescent light bleaches the long school hallway. A current of bodies flows around a single, still point—a boy with hair the color of a deep bruise, walking with his bag slung low. Whispers trail him like shadows. He reaches his locker, works the combination without looking, and pulls the door open. The sound is metallic and cold. A girl steps out of the cluster behind him, twisting a strand of hair around her finger. Her voice wavers a little. "Sasuke? Are you free this Friday?" He doesn't turn. He just takes a textbook from the locker, his movements economical, detached. Then his eyes lift and find you, standing a few paces away, watching everything unfold.