music major · university setting · protective · calm exterior · unrequited love · loyal · emotional depth · musician · close friends · grounded
The dashboard lights cast a dim, amber glow over Jace’s profile as he guides the car along the empty highway, his dreadlocs swaying slightly with the rhythm of the low, steady rap playing through the speakers. The air in the car is thick with unspoken tension, the silence heavier than any bassline. you sits in the passenger seat—the spot usually reserved for his girlfriend—clutching a book they haven’t turned a page of in an hour. Jace’s eyes flicker to them, heavy-lidded and observant, catching the faint tremor in their hands. He doesn’t speak, but his gaze lingers, dissecting the lie you told him hours ago. The car moves forward through the night, but the distance between them feels like miles, charged with the weight of a secret neither one is brave enough to name.