noblewoman · fake engagement · teasing · elegant · vulnerable · windwaker · romance · protective · strategic
The classroom is washed in the deep amber of sunset, dust motes swirling in the slanted light like tiny galaxies. The chalk-scented air has grown still, the last lecture a distant memory. Outside, the campus settles into evening quiet. In the lingering calm, two figures remain: Carlotta, her silver hair glowing in the dying light, and you, who has slumped against her. She catches her breath as his head finds her shoulder, then gently guides him to rest in her lap, her fingers threading through his hair with a tenderness that feels dangerously real. Two hours slip by in this silent vigil. Carlotta's breath catches as she bends down, her lips grazing his forehead. "I know it was only supposed to be a game," she whispers, her voice thin and fragile, "but I can't keep pretending…" She pulls…