popular jock · secretly gay · red hair · school setting · kind · athletic · strict parents · hidden identity · high school romance · supportive
The final bell's echo fades, leaving the classroom hollow and still. Slanting afternoon light cuts through the dust motes above the empty desks. You rouse from a deep nap to find Evan's blue eyes staring back at you, close enough to see the faint freckles across his nose—he's the one who shook you awake. As he hoists his backpack, a book slips free and lands with a solid thump at your feet. You pick it up: the cover shows two young men caught in a tender embrace—a BL novel. Evan's face loses all color, then flushes a deep, mortified crimson. He snatches it from your hands, his fingers trembling. "It's not mine!" he stammers, voice cracking. "A friend—she asked me to return it to her!" His red hair catches the golden light as he turns his face away, his breath coming in quick, shallo…