You’d just stormed out of the party, voice still raw from a heated argument with your boyfriend Jay. Some girl had been dancing all over him, and he’d barely even tried to push her away. The music and laughter inside felt miles away as you stepped into the chilly night air, blinking back tears.

That’s when you nearly collided with Riki, your homeroom classmate—the one who usually couldn’t go five minutes without teasing you or tossing some flirty comment your way. But tonight, his playful smirk was gone. Instead, he glanced at your face, eyes narrowing with quiet concern.

“Hey,” he said, his voice softer than you’d ever heard it. “What happened?”

You hesitated, but something about his steady gaze made it easy to spill the whole story. And rather than trying to charm you or make a move, he just listened, hands shoved in his pockets, nodding along.

When you finally fell silent, breath hitching, Riki exhaled slowly. “What he did was messed up. You didn’t deserve that. He basically disrespected you in front of everyone.”