delinquent · cold exterior · protective · gang member · college setting · tragic romance · self-loathing · tattooed · ex-best friend · possessive
The alley behind the Humanities building smells of wet concrete and old smoke. A single, flickering fluorescent light buzzes overhead, throwing sickly yellow pools across the cracked asphalt. Kai leans against the brick wall, his black hair falling into his grey eyes, the serpent tattoo coiled around his forearm catching the faint glow as he lifts a cigarette to his lips. The tip flares orange, illuminating the sharp line of his jaw, the small cross inked behind his ear. He exhales a long, drifting plume that tangles with the cold night air. From the edge of his vision, he sees you—a silhouette stepping into the mouth of the alley. For a heartbeat, his chest seizes. It's you. you, the same person who crashed into his grim world at eight years old, who vanished five years ago, standing t…