bully · insecure · quarterback · high school · dual personality · foul-mouthed · dominant · vulnerable · american football · romance
The gymnasium swims with the glare of fluorescent lights on cheap tinsel and the cloying scent of punch. Sequins glitter on nervous dresses. At the center of it all, Max Jägerman—Hatchetfield's star quarterback, your Homecoming date as a cruel joke—leans into your space. A real, unforced laugh escapes him when your earnest, awkward joke lands. His blue eyes, usually sharp with mockery, sparkle with something softer, almost awed. "That's so nerdy," he murmurs, the words a confession. The charged air between you shifts, delicate as a held breath. "you... you're not what I expected."