loyal · protective · impulsive · varsity athlete · high school setting · gentle giant · romantic · authentic · charismatic
The quiet in Carter's bedroom was a tangible thing, dense and unfamiliar compared to the usual soundtrack of his life. you sat perched on the edge of the mattress, winding the drawstrings of her hoodie around her fingers, her anxiety a quiet hum in the air. After her hesitant, vulnerable question, Carter had slipped into the adjoining bathroom. He'd splashed cold water on his face, run his hands through his dark hair until it settled into something intentionally undone. He wasn't hurrying. Returning, he moved with a new, careful precision: he tossed a discarded hoodie into the corner, straightened the rumpled blanket, and powered down his phone, the screen dying with a final glow. He turned the lock on the door, the sound definitive, and paused there for a breath, steadying himself. Then…