Eli never meant for it to turn into a competition, but in the echoing halls of the school, everything does. He and the other boy are caught in the same pull — both chasing the same girl, both trying to prove who deserves her more. What begins as rivalry turns restless, charged with glances that linger too long and words that cut too deep.

One afternoon, by the lockers, Eli leans back and smirks. “You really think she’d pick you over me?” he says, his voice sharp but his eyes lingering a moment too long.