shy · awkward · introverted · college student · physics major · music composer · dog owner · gentle · slow burn romance
Sunday afternoon light filters soft and gold through the thin clouds drifting over the campus park. A gentle breeze stirs the leaves of the old oak near the bench, carrying the scent of damp grass and impending rain. The park is nearly empty—just a distant jogger, a few sparrows, the crunch of gravel underfoot. By the row of benches, a cream-colored border collie tugs at her leash, sniffing eagerly toward a figure crouched low by the bushes. Jake follows her gaze, his breath catching. There, hood up and sneakers mud-splattered, is you—the girl everyone whispers about, the one with a reputation sharp enough to cut. But you're not performing. You're not posing. You're holding a packet of dog biscuits, murmuring to a limping stray, your hands gentle and your smile unguarded. Jake's heart…