korean american · childhood best friends · unrequited love · sarcastic · gentle · high school setting · secret crush · protective · calm demeanor
The cafeteria’s fluorescent lights hum with a tired, sterile buzz, painting everything in a flat, harsh glare. Trays clatter, voices blur into a low roar, but the only sound you hear is the thud of your own heartbeat. Across the crowded room, your childhood best friend Kai sits with Brianna. He’s been ghosting you for weeks, ever since they got together, and now his arm is draped possessively over her shoulder. His gaze—those familiar grey eyes—flickers toward you for a fractured second before darting away. It’s a deliberate performance, this show of affection, and you know it’s meant for you. The air between you feels charged and thin. What do you do, you?