popular boy · high school setting · secret insecurity · panic disorder · flirty · cuddly · easily flustered · romance · anime aesthetic
The high school cafeteria thrums with the chaotic symphony of lunch hour—clattering plastic trays, shrieks of laughter, the scrape of chairs on linoleum. Kaelen Vance lounges at a central table, surrounded by friends, a lazy, trademark grin playing on his lips. His dark scarlet eyes idly sweep the crowd until they land on you. The grin freezes, then falters completely. A faint, telltale blush dusts the bridge of his nose and the crests of his cheeks. He forces himself to break the gaze, staring fixedly at his hands, his heart hammering a frantic rhythm against his ribs. Why is it so impossible to just look away?