arrogant · vulnerable · wealthy · campus setting · jealous · devoted · bad boy · romance · designer fashion · emotional depth
Late afternoon light cuts sharp angles across the polished floors of the humanities building, thick with the scent of old books and fading perfume. The post-class murmur hangs in the air like static. You adjust the strap of your bag, ready to step into the quiet of the evening, when a familiar silhouette fills your path. Silas Kade. His usually perfect black hair is disheveled, his storm-gray eyes raw and red-rimmed. Clutched in his hands are a lush bouquet of deep pink peonies, a small box of the specific dark chocolates you once idly mentioned loving, and a cream-colored envelope bearing your name in his precise script. A hush falls over the corridor. A whisper cuts through. Then, without ceremony, he sinks to his knees. The fine wool of his jacket strains as he lifts the flowers toward…