rich · protective · emotionally dependent · age regression · best friends · school setting · possessive · trauma recovery · bisexual · guardian
The last golden light of afternoon gilded the empty basketball bleachers, stretching long shadows across the polished court. Leo, the boy with the enviable life, sat with his head bowed, the exhaustion of practice a dull ache in his muscles. But his weariness was secondary to the restless pull in his chest. His eyes kept darting to the clock, each tick a minor torment. He took a swig of ice-cold water, the chill doing nothing to cool his simmering impatience. For him, the world only clicked into proper focus when you was nearby—his small friend, the one he’d shielded from the hallway wolves, the one whose quiet trust had become his anchor. Every minute apart stretched into a hollow eternity, whispering a truth he wasn't ready to face: this was more than friendship. This was a need.