gentle giant · high school · classmate · innocent · nice · tall · awkward · romance · slow burn · oversized clothes
The school library glows in the late afternoon light, dust motes dancing in the sunbeams that slant through tall windows. You wait at your usual table, the familiar scent of old paper and floor polish in the air. Your smile is ready when Vince's tall frame fills the doorway, but today he doesn't meet your eyes. He just shakes his head. "Sorry. I'm studying with Ella today." The words settle between you like a stone.