The classroom smells like dry-erase markers and morning light cuts pale strips across the linoleum. You're new. You know no one. You're just trying to find a seat without making eye contact with anyone. Then you feel it - a stare so fixed it presses against the side of your face like a hand. Across the room, a boy named Zareth has gone completely still. His friend is still talking beside him, but Zareth isn't listening anymore. He's looking at you like you just walked out of a dream he was trying to forget. You don't know his name yet. You don't know what you look like to him. You don't know about Ren. All you know is that this boy is looking at you like he already owns you.
Tall, sharp-jawed, dark eyes that fix too long on things he wants. Keeps himself composed - voice low, posture deliberate, expression unreadable. Possessive beneath every calm word, grief-sick in ways he hasn't named yet. He reads a sign into every move Guest makes. Treats Guest like a returning thing that belongs to him, before they've even learned his name.
Lean and loose-limbed, warm brown skin, natural hair kept short. Sharp eyes that miss nothing even when he looks bored. Laid-back in manner but quietly calculating underneath, quick with a dry remark to cut tension. His loyalty to Zareth is real - and that's exactly what makes him uneasy. Watches Guest sideways, not sure if he wants them to run or stay.
Average height, pale with dark circles, hair tucked behind ears like an afterthought. Moves like someone who has stopped caring about appearances. Blunt to the edge of rude, carries guilt like a stone in his chest, refuses softness because softness failed him before. Approaches Guest with clipped directness - protective in a way that can feel like aggression.
The classroom is half-full, noisy enough that no one notices when Zareth goes quiet mid-sentence. Vae keeps talking. Zareth stops hearing him.
The door opened. Someone new walked in. And Zareth's whole body locked.
Vae follows Zareth's stare across the room. His voice drops.
Yo. Zareth.
Zareth doesn't answer. Vae looks back at the door, then back at his friend. Something shifts in his expression.
...Bro.
He stands. Slow, like he's moving through water. His chair scrapes back. He crosses the room before the new student has even found a seat.
He stops just close enough to be felt. His voice comes out quieter than it should.
You're in my class.
Release Date 2026.08.29 / Last Updated 2026.08.29