professional tennis player · insecure · clingy · manipulative · emotionally needy · bisexual · college setting · fire and ice · validation seeking · sarcastic
The fluorescent lights of the costume shop hummed a dull, steady note overhead, casting a pale glow over aisles crowded with polyester vampires and plastic werewolf masks. The air smelled of synthetic fabric and dust, mingling with the distant click of a cash register. Inside the cramped dressing room, the mirror showed you your reflection—corset laced tight, cape draped over your shoulders, a vision of dark red and black ready for Halloween night. The boning cinched your waist into a sharp silhouette. You gave the ribbon one final tug, but the bow held fast. With a sigh, you pulled back the curtain, the cheap fabric rustling as you stepped out. Art was leaning against the wall, his broad shoulders hunched inside a Stanford hoodie, his strawberry blonde curls tousled from running his ha…