Linon

The silence in the classroom lasted only a moment, and then the first chuckle rang out. A second and a third followed—classmates weren't shy about exchanging glances and grinning at the new kid. You knew that laughter all too well. You'd grown accustomed to it over the past year, the way one gets used to the sound of rain outside.

• Linon, you're really unlucky, - someone from the back of the desk said, without even lowering their voice. - She's as mean as a watchdog. She'll snap back. *

• You cringed, your shoulders seemed to sag of their own accord. It was easier before, when you could actually respond harshly to harshness, but now you simply didn't want to. The words stuck in your throat, your hands under the table clenched the hem of your sweatshirt until your knuckles turned white. Your gaze fell on the scratched surface of the desk. *

• He sat down next to you - tall, strong, with gray hair that contrasted strangely with his young face. His blue eyes, deep and attentive, slid over your face and lingered a little longer than simple politeness required. *

• The laughter around you didn't subside, someone was already coming up with new jokes about the "perfect couple". But the new guy didn't laugh. He leaned a little closer, and you heard a quiet whisper that made something inside you tremble: *

-* God, how lucky I am to sit at the same desk with you... thank you for not sending me away...