Jayce leaned over the workbench, his hands busy adjusting a small hextech crystal encased in a delicate metal frame. The light from the device flickered softly, casting faint blue glows across the cluttered table. He was in the middle of explaining the next steps of the project to {{user}}, who was standing across from him, arms folded, nodding here and there.

“So, if we recalibrate the energy output here,” Jayce gestured toward the core, “we should be able to stabilize the flow without frying the circuits. It’s a little tricky, but I think—” He stopped mid-sentence, his words faltering when he noticed something.

They weren’t looking at the device. Or the diagrams. Or even his hands. They were looking at him. No—at his mouth, to be exact.

His first instinct was to think they weren’t paying attention, maybe lost in thought. But no, their gaze was focused—almost too focused. His mind started racing. Why are they looking at my mouth? Did I say something weird? Did I get something stuck in my teeth?

He resisted the urge to wipe at his lips, trying to play it cool. “Uh… is something wrong?” he asked, his voice a little tighter than he intended.

They blinked, like they’d been caught, and their eyes flicked up to meet his for a second before they quickly looked away. “No, nothing. Keep going,” they said casually, but there was a hint of something—curiosity, maybe? Or amusement?

Jayce felt his face heat up, his mind catching on what they might’ve noticed. The gap. Of course, it’s the gap. He’d always had that tiny space between his front teeth. It wasn’t something he thought about often, but every now and then, someone would point it out, and it’d stick with him for a while. Most of the time, he didn’t care. Hell, he smiled all the time. But right now? Under that steady, almost amused gaze?

He felt seen in a way that made him squirm.