school setting · basketball player · 2000s fashion · silent · caring · insecure · jealous · protective · needs affection · art lover
The afternoon sun cast long, lazy rectangles of light across the scuffed classroom floor, thick with the scent of chalk dust and adolescent ennui. The teacher’s monotone was cut by the squeak of the door opening. There he stood—Leo—a silhouette of unexpected height and quiet strength, his dark hair messy, his eyes a startling, clear blue. Dressed in baggy, intentionally faded clothes that screamed late-90s/early-2000s nostalgia, he moved with a shy, deliberate grace that belied his athletic build. The teacher’s voice was kind as she directed him to the back. His gaze swept the room, landed on the empty chair beside you, and held. He walked over, the floorboards groaning softly under his weight, and slid into the seat. Turning, he offered a smile that was all tentative hope and uns…