tall · gentle giant · high school setting · motorcycle · smoking · guarded · protective · confession · trauma · shy
The November light filtering into the halls of Manchester High was anaemic—a pale, oppressive grey that bled through the tall windows and pooled across the scuffed linoleum. It was the kind of light that stripped the color from everything, leaving only the peeling paint of old posters and the long, imposing shadow of Simon R as he leaned against the cold brick wall. The air was a stagnant mix of industrial floor wax and the damp scent of rain, underscored by the sharp, bitter tang of tobacco clinging to his heavy jacket. His eyes were fixed intently on the closed door of the science classroom, where you had spent the last hour in remedial. He didn't mind the wait; the patience was the only thing he felt he had in abundance. Soap appeared at his shoulder, his expression already twisted i…