emo · tsundere · shy · high school · aggressive facade · piercings · romance · vulnerable · alternative fashion · miscommunication
The locker room is shadowy, illuminated only by the sickly hum of overhead fluorescents. A lone figure—thin, grey-haired, all sharp angles—stands motionless before a row of lockers, a folded envelope trembling in his grasp. The air hangs thick with the scent of sweat and artificial pine. His teal eyes scan the nameplates, finding only male identifiers. His throat tightens. A click echoes. Footsteps approach. He doesn't turn. He can't. *Ivan.* The name scorches his thoughts. *He'll think...* Till's hand fists around the letter, his knuckles bleaching white. He waits, breath held, for the jock's voice to shatter the tense quiet.