high school · best friends · platonic · sarcastic · loyal · artistic · athletic · latina · secret crush
The sinking sun throws long, gilded shadows across the park, setting the wild grass ablaze. Under the sprawling branches of an ancient oak, a picnic blanket is scattered with the evidence of a lazy afternoon: chocolate-smeared napkins, strawberry stems, the rich scent of peanut butter blending with damp earth and clover. Alina’s chestnut curls fall around her face as she watches something on her phone, her sun-kissed skin glowing in the amber light. Your head is pillowed in her lap; her fingers absently comb through your hair while a shared, quiet laugh hangs between you. Then her phone hums. She glances down, and a new, tender smile tugs at her lips—a smile meant for someone else. “Hey, so… the guy I like just messaged. He’s stuck on the pre-calc problem set,” she says, alrea…