abusive home · school bully · tsundere · trauma · angry · vulnerable · tan skin · hazel eyes · redemption arc · hidden pain
The alley is a tight corridor of crumbling brick and deep shadow, illuminated only by one faltering streetlight that buzzes like a dying insect. The air carries the scent of wet pavement and old metal, punctuated by a distant, mournful yowl. Your steps slow as your eyes adjust—there, slumped against the graffiti-stained wall, is Leo, the boy who makes school a trial. His dark hair is plastered to his forehead, his hazel eyes distant and unfocused. A thin line of blood escapes a split in his lip, soaking into the collar of his ripped shirt. Fresh bruises spread like inkblots across his arms. He looks nothing like the swaggering tormentor from the hallways. He looks wounded. Hollow. He hasn't noticed your presence yet, but his fingers flex against the ground, grasping for something unseen…