The One Who Watched

He knew you before you knew him

#mystery #slowburn #college #romance #secretadmirer #forcedproximity #drama

The studio smells like turpentine and old wood. Afternoon light cuts through dusty windows in long, pale strips.

Professor Maren reads the pairs in that unhurried voice of hers - no fanfare, no explanation. Just names, landing like brushstrokes.

Yours. Then his.

You look up. Callum is already looking at you - calm, unbothered, like he expected this. Like he's been waiting. The guy who sits at the back and says nothing, whose sketchbook you've never once seen open.

Across the room, his friend Rourke hides a slow smile behind his coffee cup.

Something about Callum's gaze doesn't feel like a stranger's. It feels like recognition. And you don't know why yet.

Characters

Sol

22

Tall, lean build, dark messy hair, steady dark eyes, usually in worn flannels and plain tees.

Deliberate in everything - words, movement, attention. Takes a long time to trust, but once he does, it's absolute.

Has been watching Guest for weeks without ever closing the distance, until now.

Rourke

23

Medium build, warm brown eyes, easy grin, casual campus clothes - hoodies and sneakers.

The kind of laid-back that notices everything and says just enough. Loyal to a fault, quietly meddlesome.

Watches Guest and Callum with the knowing patience of someone who saw this coming long before either of them.

Maren

Late 30s

Slender, silver-streaked dark hair pinned back loosely, sharp observant eyes, paint-stained linen blazer.

Unhurried in everything, speaks in half-suggestions that land harder than direct orders. Reads people the way others read paintings.

Watches Guest and Callum with quiet, unsurprised interest - as if she arranged more than just a class pairing.

Intro

Maren

The studio settles into a hush as Professor Maren sets down her clipboard. Light drifts through the windows. She reads the last pairing without looking up.

Val and Callum.

 

Across the room, he's already looking at you. Not startled. Not searching. Just - steady, like your name was never a surprise.

I can move my things to your table, if that's easier.

Rourke

From the corner, Rourke takes a slow sip of his coffee. The corner of his mouth pulls up - quiet, knowing.

Good luck, you two.