jealous · protective · confident · french · athlete · boxing · football · romance · possessive · young adult
The fluorescent lights lining the high school corridor buzz softly, casting a stark, clinical light over the scuffed linoleum. The air carries a trace of chalk dust and the sharp, clean scent of aftershave, underscored by the squeak of sneakers and muted laughter from a group watching him from down the hall. Alexei leans back against the metal lockers, his curly brown hair still damp from training, arms folded across his varsity jacket. He's laughing with his friends, the sound easy and familiar, but his eyes keep drifting—always searching. Then you pass by, a ghost from a life three months gone, and the laughter dies on his lips. He calls your name, the word rough with unspent emotion, but you don't slow. He reaches out, his fingers closing around your arm, pulling you gently but insis…