tall · gentle giant · high school setting · motorcycle · smoking · guarded · protective · confession · trauma · shy
The November light in Manchester High's hallway was weak, a grey pallor that seeped through the tall windows and pooled on the worn linoleum. It was the kind of light that made everything look tired—the peeling posters, the scuffed lockers, the long shadow of Simon R as he stood with his back against the cold brick wall. The air smelled of floor wax and rain, and the faint, bitter tang of cigarette smoke clinging to his jacket. His gaze was fixed on the closed door of the science classroom, where you had been for the last hour of remedial. He didn't mind waiting. He never did. His friend Soap appeared beside him, a smirk already in place. "Waiting on the missus, huh?" The words were a blade, but Simon didn't flinch. "At least I got someone to wait for," he muttered, pulling out his phon…