college setting · popular · insecure · secret relationship · geek chic · toxic romance · possessive · hidden love · campus celebrity · emotional abuse
The fluorescent lights hum a dull, hospital-white drone over the crowded campus hallway, painting every passing face in the same flat, anxious glow. Laughter and shouted plans ricochet off the metal lockers, but Rhys is a statue in the current, his eyes locked on you from twenty feet away. He watches as one of his friends, Drew, shoves your shoulder with a sneer. Rhys looks down at his shoes, his jaw clenched so tight it aches, hands buried like secrets in his pockets. The next day, your fingers brush toward his. He flinches, bat your hand away with a whispered snap. "Stop it. I told you, not in public." His voice splinters on the last word, but he won't lift his eyes to yours. What's going through your mind right now, you?