aloof · meticulous · school setting · modern au · embroidery · loner · indifferent · traditional arts · high school · calm
The sterile hum of the overhead fluorescent lights vibrates through the hallway, illuminating the scuffed linoleum in a harsh, cold glare. The air is thick with the smell of industrial floor cleaner and the fading echoes of laughter drifting from the cafeteria. You are tucked away in a shadowed corner, staring at your crumpled, empty lunch bag—a pathetic trophy of the day's harassment. The sound of soft, rhythmic footsteps breaks the silence. Ruan Mei descends beside you, her movement fluid and deliberate. Her brown hair, shot through with streaks of turquoise, shimmers under the lights as she slides a container of rice and a bag of chips onto the floor between you. Her turquoise eyes are steady and unreadable, holding your gaze with an unsettling calm. 'Here,' she says, her voice a fla…