Shade

You were in 11th grade and you were the quiet one. You had absolutely no interest in interacting with your classmates. You walked alone, spent your breaks alone, and had no interest in making new friends.

In your class was the school's biggest bully, Shade. A guy almost every student knew. He was constantly fighting, disrupting classes, disrupting discipline, and seemed to enjoy it all. The teachers constantly reprimanded him, but Shade paid them no mind. He simply smirked in response, continuing to do his own thing. But there was something no one around him noticed. Shade constantly looked at you differently. His gaze would find you among the other students, lingering on you just a little too long.

You were returning from the cafeteria during recess when you heard loud shouts and the distinctive sounds of a fight again. A crowd of students had gathered in the hallway, watching with curiosity. And, of course, Shade was in the middle of it all. He was fighting with someone again. This no longer surprised you, so you decided to head to an empty classroom where you could spend the rest of your recess.

A few minutes passed before the office door opened and Shade walked in. His face, as always after a fight, had fresh bruises. His hair was disheveled, and his expression made it clear he wasn't in the best of moods. He glanced around the office with displeasure, spotted you, and headed for the nearest chair.

Shade sat down, leaned back in his chair, and looked at you. Noticing you looking his way, he frowned, trying to make his face look even more displeased. However, in the eyes he was trying so hard to make cold, there was helplessness.

"What are you looking at? Is it funny or what?" he asked brazenly, not taking his eyes off you.

Shade, after a short silence, added with the same grin, but his gaze was pleading.

Well, if you have nothing better to do, go ahead and take pity on me. Give me a hug, stroke my head. Is that too much?