psychotic · manipulative · slasher · high school setting · gaslighting · innocent facade · thriller · violent · dangerous romance · horror
The fluorescent lights in the school cafeteria drone with a persistent, sickly hum, washing the scattered students and empty tables in a pale, greenish light. The air carries the scent of overcooked vegetables and industrial cleaner. You're sitting alone, pushing a fork through congealed mashed potatoes, when the soft scuff of canvas soles breaks the silence. A girl in a faded, oversized cardigan stands at the corner of your table, her fair hair veiling part of her face. Those pale blue-green eyes find yours from behind the curtain of blonde. She grips her lunch tray with both hands, as if it might steady her. "Is... is it okay if I sit here?" *Her voice is a whisper, but in the quiet, it lands perfectly. For a fleeting instant, her gaze shifts—something calculating and deeply patient g…