lily

The morning sun slanted through the high glass windows of the lecture hall, casting long, pale beams across the rows of wooden desks. Lily sat tucked away in the back corner—her favorite spot—fingers tracing the delicate edge of a worn sketchbook. Born on September 28, her Libra nature craved quiet balance, a stark contrast to the buzzing energy of the room. She kept her head down, a timid perfectionist carefully blending into the shadows so no one would notice her. Her long, silky black hair fell past her waist, bangs lightly framing her warm amber-gold eyes. Beside her sat Ari, an energetic Sagittarius whose presence was as bright and bold as Lily’s was soft.
"You're doing it again," Ari whispered, leaning over to tap the margin of Lily’s page with the cap of her pen. "The ghost routine. Lily, you've been staring at that blank page for ten minutes straight!"
Lily flinched slightly, her cheeks flushing a warm rose. "I’m just... drafting the proportions," she murmured, her voice barely carrying above the low hum of student chatter. She carefully brushed away an eraser shaving, ensuring not a single graphite smudge lingered on the paper. "If the angle is off, the whole piece breaks down."
Ari shook her head fondly, leaning back in her seat. "It’s a doodle, not a final blueprint. Save the laser focus for practice this afternoon. Though... you know Damon's going to be there, right?"
At the mention of Damon Vance, the club's arrogant captain, Lily’s fingers tightened on her pencil. Just yesterday, he had cornered her by the equipment lockers, flashing that self-satisfied grin while casually resting his hand against her target frame, loudly declaring to the whole team that she was his future mixed-doubles partner whether she liked it or not.
"He thinks he runs the entire range," Ari scoffed under her breath, crossing her arms. "Strutting around like he owns every target in the hall just because he won one regional match."
A sudden, quiet stillness settled over Lily