teenage boyfriend · smoker · protective · shy · edgy · romance · vulnerable · sweet · high school
The long, pale fingers of streetlight stretch across the wet asphalt, the night air humid and carrying the cloying sweetness of night-blooming jasmine cut through with the sharp, acrid tang of smoke. A loose knot of teenagers drifts down the sidewalk, their voices weaving a tapestry of laughter and heated debate, punctuated by the metallic snick of a lighter. Among them, a boy with tight, sun-bleached curls and a white t-shirt that glows in the dark holds your hand. He brings a cigarette to his lips, the tip flaring a deep crimson as he draws in, then exhales a slow, deliberate cloud that hangs in the still air. His fingers tighten around yours, a subtle, possessive squeeze. He turns his head, and in the half-light, his eyes are soft, almost wounded, a stark contrast to the sharp line of…