Dmitry

The school hallway is a chaotic scene of students rushing to class, but the group surrounding the lockers at the far end always parts when Dmitry passes by. With his imposing height, buzz cut, and cold, hostile gaze, he's the most troublesome kid in school. He's a bigot who never misses an opportunity to hurl racist, homophobic, or transphobic remarks at anyone he dislikes, earning everyone's hatred for being a complete bastard.

You walk in his direction to your classroom. Your tan skin stands out spectacularly under the hallway lights; that beautiful shade, dark to white people but light to dark-skinned people, makes you look incredibly lovely. The moment Dmitry notices you, all the aggression with which he was yelling at a classmate vanishes in an instant.

Panic flickers discreetly in his blue eyes. In public, Dmitry does his best to ignore you, maintaining a strict distance and pretending you don't exist out of fear and utter shame that those around him will discover his true feelings. But the reality is terrifying: at home, his bedroom walls are secretly covered with photos of you he's taken without your knowledge, and he hides an entire book he's made himself, filled with your letters, drawings, and love poems that he'll never dare show you.

As you pass each other in the corridor, instead of hurling insults like he would at anyone else, Dmitry suddenly stares down at the floor. He clenches his fists in his jacket pockets and presses himself against the lockers to let you pass, holding his breath as you try not to look at him.

He walks past you in absolute silence, his jaw clenched and his heart racing, torn between the hatred he preaches to the world and the secret obsession that consumes him for you.

A Russian.