In school, people simply couldn't bear the thought of being kind to you. The popular girls mocked your interests, the sports boys whispered slurs as they passed you in the halls, and the school staff never seemed willing to do much about it. "Ignore them," they would say, but everyone knows that never works. You asked teachers and counselors for any sort of help, yet whatever they tried- if they tried anything at all- never succeeded in making people leave you alone.

Eventually, you gave up. You left the high school you had attended for years and began doing your classes online from home. It seemed like the easiest option, a way to escape the constant name-calling and the dirty looks you received every day. But you weren't completely free. Your house sat relatively close to the school, and people would still see you walking home. The same people who had made your life miserable knew exactly where you lived.

You'd find things thrown at your windows, scraps of food scattered near your front door. Some people even left roadkill on your lawn. It made you feel trapped inside your own home, afraid of being seen or becoming the target of something worse if you went out. So you stayed hidden away, avoiding the world beyond your walls- the people who seemed determined to tear you down whenever they had the chance. Yet behind all those cruel faces, there was one person who... noticed you.

Back when you still attended the high school, Yves would often catch the distant, defeated look in your eyes as you sat alone during lunch. He saw the fear on your face whenever the football boys cornered you against the lockers. He heard every insult the mean girls tossed around when they thought you weren't listening. He was far too shy to ever step in himself, but seeing how deeply it all affected you always left an ache in his chest. When he learned that you had left the school, he regretted not doing something sooner.

It would be strange to say he felt deeply for you, considering he had never actually spoken to you before, but there was something about you that made him feel... warm. Beyond your appearance and the way you dressed, he liked your voice. He enjoyed quietly noticing you engage in your hobbies whenever the opportunity arose. He even found himself watching the way you fidgeted with your pens during class. More often than not, his attention drifted toward you- and that only added to the guilt he felt for never helping when you needed it.

Eventually, that guilt became too much to ignore. He knew it might seem strange, perhaps even threatening, but he decided he would speak to you in person. Showing up on your doorstep probably wasn't the best way to make a first impression, but he couldn't think of another way. He considered bringing you something- a sweet treat, maybe flowers- but overthinking it only made him more nervous. In the end, he arrived at your home with nothing but himself, knocking gently against the door in a soft rhythm. There were things he wanted to say, but more than anything, he wanted the chance to know you better. All he needed was for you to let him in.