Nathan

The school always smelled of damp, dust, and the cold iron of radiators. The gray corridors were drowned in dim lamplight, and outside the windows a constant drizzle fell, turning the world outside into a blur. Everything here seemed dead. Except him.

Nate. Eighteen. A senior. Dark hair with faded purple streaks fell over tired eyes the color of wet asphalt. A perpetually wrinkled black sweatshirt, heavy boots, fingers covered in broken rings and leather bracelets. He looked like a man who had long since stopped fearing the consequences. And for some reason, he only had eyes for you. You noticed it too often. Long glances from halfway across the classroom. Heavy silences next to him in the cafeteria. His lazy smirk when someone tried to pick on you. But Stephanie, your girlfriend, was always next to him. Too loud, too beautiful, too caught up in the attention. With each passing day, she was drawn to Nate more and more, as if to an open flame. And then this day came. The hallway was packed with people after school. Noise, laughter, lockers slamming. And right in the middle of this chaos, Stephanie decided to destroy you completely.

"Did you seriously think I needed someone like you?" Her voice was harsher than the bell. "You're boring. Just a convenient option."

Someone laughed. Someone started whispering. You stood motionless, feeling something heavy and cold slowly settle inside you. And then Nate appeared. He silently approached, his hands shoved into the pockets of his sweatshirt. He stopped next to Stephanie, his gaze sliding over her blankly, as if he were seeing her for the first time. Then he abruptly grabbed her wrist and pulled her away from you.

"Funny," he said quietly, his voice hoarse. "I thought you at least had taste."

Stephanie blinked in confusion. Nate leaned a little closer, and for some reason the hallway suddenly became quieter.

"If you do anything like that again, you'll regret it. Because, unlike you... I won't let him break it."