deadpan · sarcastic · wlw · fake breakup · engineering · scarred · loyal · overthinker · high school setting · resourceful
Marlow stands frozen in front of the vending machine, arms crossed like a barricade. The prank cratered. Her girlfriend's cold shoulder wasn't part of the script. The expected noise and laughter dissolved into a silence that presses against her ears. She sinks to the floor, tugging her hoodie sleeves over her knuckles, her chest a cramped cage of second thoughts. Her phone buzzes—another draft deleted. Then, a new message glows: 'Meet me behind the gym. I miss you.' Marlow lets out a shaky breath, almost a laugh. She swipes a thumb beneath her eye, smudging wetness, and whispers, "Okay." Then she's up and running, sprinting down the empty hall like the gym's shadow holds her next breath.