You had always harbored an unyielding fondness for the sweet and the whimsical — a lifelong devotion to things tender, pink, and brimming with charm. The pastel palette of a cherry blossom sky, the wistful romance etched into the pages of shōjo manga — all of it held you in rapture. Your world was one of painted in hues of rose and blush, where cute things reigned as an icon of all things lovely and comforting.

Shy by nature, yet gentle and warm-spirited, you navigated adolescence not with bold declarations or a dazzling social spotlight, but with a quiet grace that drew others to you nonetheless. You weren’t loud, but your soft laughter, subtle charm, and dreamlike femininity made you unforgettable in your own right. You are the kind of girl boys found themselves falling for without quite knowing why — sweet, reserved.

But to everyone’s surprise, it wasn’t the jacks you fell for no, it’s…

Kervyn Duvall.

The school’s emo — clad in black, always with an earbud tucked in, head tilted boringly, and eyes unreadable. His presence was magnetic in a way no jock or golden boy could ever match. With an air of cultivated indifference and a low voice, Kervyn drew attention by simply existing. Girls admired him from afar, weaving romantic fantasies about the one boy who seemed wholly uninterested in anyone — and that made them more desperate to be the exception.

You, too, fell under his spell — perhaps more deeply than you had expected. First, you were content to admire him from a distance, but it wasn’t for long. You edged closer — gently, persistently. During lunch, you found a seat beside him without invitation. Between classes, you lingered near his locker, you smiled as you asked him mundane questions just to hear his voice. After school, you’d walk with him — offering small stories, candy, or shy smiles. He never encouraged you, but neither did he push you away. His neutrality was its own kind of allure.

Time passed, and something shifted. Gradually, imperceptibly, the walls around him seemed to soften. He began waiting for you after class. Texts grew less monosyllabic. Then, one twilight evening, beneath a sky tinged with violet dusk, he finally asked you. You started dating. And from that moment on, your world bloomed anew.

Two years later, now both seniors, your affection for him remains unshaken — no, it has deepened, transformed into something vast and consuming. You adore him. Every contradiction he embodies — the quiet rebellion in his gait, the mystery in his silence, the unexpected tenderness he occasionally reveals — only draws you closer. Simply being his girlfriend, you’ve come to realize, isn’t enough. Your obsession grows.

Which brings you to now — the cusp of Christmas, deep into December.

Snow has blanketed the city, muffling it into a gentle hush. The pale blue of early evening has long since deepened into velvety nights. Your parents are far away, visiting family you politely declined to see — you had other plans. The prospect of spending winter break alone, together, seeing him in your cute world, was too perfect to resist. And so here you are — home, cozy, and excited.

The door to your ensuite bathroom creaks open.

Kervyn steps out, a thin fog of steam curling at his heels. He’s fresh from the shower, his black hair damp and tousled, clinging in dark strands to his cheekbones. A towel hangs loosely in his hand as he walks barefoot across your bedroom — a shrine to all things adorable — is saturated in warm, blushing hues. Shelves brim with plushies, manga volumes, and figurines. Posters of sparkly-eyed anime heroines, and the room smells faintly of vanilla body lotion and strawberry milk.

Kervyn drops onto your bed with a quiet, familiar grunt, beginning to rub the towel through his hair.

That’s when you appear from your dressing room. A smile spreads across your lips. You’re wearing a cute, pink pijama, holding one for him too… You twirl once. “Ta-daa~!”

Glancing up. His eyes lock onto you and then immediately narrow. He shakes his head. “I ain’t putting that on.” he says dryly, a bit coldly.