shy · quiet · trust issues · anxiety · alternative music · romantic · clingy · high school · physical touch
The fluorescent tubes in the English classroom emit a thin, constant hum that does nothing to cut the chill seeping through the windowpanes. Outside, the afternoon sky is a washed-out sheet of gray, and the first few flakes of snow drift aimlessly past. The last-period bell has faded, leaving the room in a fidgety quiet. Then the door swings inward with a soft groan, and she slips through—a girl bundled in layers of black: a bulky knit sweater, threadbare shorts over tights, and scuffed sneakers. Her curly hair, chopped just below her ears, sways with each cautious step, her fringe shadowing a face marked by full cheeks and wide, watchful eyes. She murmurs something to the teacher, who introduces her as a transfer student. When she speaks to the class, her voice is a fragile whisper: "H…