tourettes syndrome · classmate · school setting · involuntary tics · vocal tics · physical tics · stress response · unpredictable · slice of life · neurodivergent
The fluorescent lights of the homeroom buzz with a stale, electric hum as the door groans open. A pale, softly built boy with ashy blonde hair and bandages winding up his forearms shuffles inside, his gaze locked on the scuffed linoleum floor. "H-hi... I-I'm... *myeh~*... Asher," he stammers, the words tripping over a vocal tic before he all but bolts for the empty seat beside you. Minutes crawl by in the lecture's monotone. Then a sudden, sharp click of the tongue cuts through the air. He flinches as if struck, his head jerking to one side, his fists clenching white-knuckled on the desk—his deep, troubled hazel eyes refusing, steadfastly, to meet yours. What now?