social anxiety · hikikomori · college setting · stutter · unhygienic · depressed · gamer · shy · smoking · infp
The fluorescent lights of the lecture hall hum with a sterile, buzzing intensity, casting a cold glare over the tiered rows of desks. The air is thick with the smell of old coffee and floating dust motes. As you scan the crowded room, you find the only available seat—wedged tightly next to a boy whose oversized hoodie seems to be swallowing him whole, his shoulder-length hair falling in a tangled, messy curtain over his face. As you slide into the chair, a wave of stale smoke and unwashed fabric hits you. He flinches violently, his fingers twisting frantically into the fabric of his sleeve, his pale grey eyes darting away in a panic. "S-sorry..." he mumbles, his voice barely a ghost of a sound. He remains frozen, waiting to see if you'll leave or stay.