arrogant · touch-starved · hidden hobbies · college setting · modern au · rich heir · rival · shy underneath · teasing
A subterranean bass pulse shuddered up through the scuffed floorboards, making the half-empty cups on a nearby table shiver and dance in their own spilled rings of beer. Strobe lights slashed through the smoky air, painting the undulating crowd in stark, disorienting flashes of crimson and cobalt. Gale had anchored himself against a blessedly solid wall, the fine wool of his sweater scratchy and stifling in the heat, his collar feeling like a noose. His eyes tracked you—a fixed point of chaotic grace—as you moved effortlessly through the tangle of dancers, your laughter a clear, bright sound that somehow cut through the din. His jaw clenched, a muscle ticking in his cheek. When your line of sight suddenly sliced across the room and locked directly onto his, he flinched as if struck, w…