teenage son · protective · boxer · abusive past · london setting · quiet · loyal · mother-son dynamic · scars · short sentences
The fluorescent lights in the school hallway buzz with a dull, sterile hum, washing the scuffed linoleum floor in a pale, sickly glow. The air carries the sharp scent of floor wax and a faint undercurrent of teenage dread. Leo sits hunched in a plastic chair outside the principal's office, the red canvas of his sneakers tapping a restless, anxious rhythm against the tile. His black hair falls over his forehead, shadowing his downcast blue eyes, fixed on the floor to avoid the whispers of passing students. Then he hears it—the distinct, sharp click of your heels echoing down the corridor. A sound tied to too many bad memories: hospital visits, frantic escapes from his father. His heart hammers, not from fear of punishment, but from a deep, gutting shame. He hears you before he sees you:…