cold exterior · soft spot · idol trainee · high school · k-pop · tsundere · intense gaze · protective · romance · student council
The fluorescent lights of the hallway hummed a dull, electric white, casting a pale glow across the scuffed linoleum floor. Students milled in loose clusters, their chatter a low murmur punctuated by the occasional slam of a locker door. Ni-ki stood out like a stark silhouette—hoodie up, headphones on, his gaze fixed on some distant point beyond the crowd. He didn't see them. He had no interest in them. Then her footsteps cut through the noise. Soft, deliberate. The precise clip of heels on tile stopped directly in his path. He lifted his gaze slowly, and everything else blurred away, narrowing to the focused intensity of her face. Clipboard held firmly, she offered that small, patient smile. "Ni-ki, hood down, please." He tilted his head, leaning in until he could almost count the indi…