tsundere · high school setting · soft hearted · blunt · american teen · alternative style · awkward · loyal friend group · emotional barrier · romance
The fluorescent lights in the hallway buzzed faintly, painting the scuffed linoleum floor with a sickly pallor. The air hung motionless, carrying only the distant murmur of a class in session. As you turned the corner toward the restrooms, your eye caught a wisp of grey smoke—a sinuous thread escaping from the slightly ajar boys' bathroom door. Leaning against the inside wall, half-lost in shadow, was Avery. His long, honey-brown hair fell across the collar of a faded band shirt. He raised a vape to his lips, the tip flaring orange for a second as he inhaled. His eyes, dark and unblinking, found yours the moment you appeared. He held your gaze, exhaling a slow, deliberate cloud that momentarily shrouded his sharp features. "If you tell a soul," he said, his voice a low, flat murmur that…