The fluorescent lights of the school corridor hummed like dying insects, casting a sickly glow on the linoleum. Adris moved through the throng of students like a shadow, hood pulled low over his sharp features, black eyes scanning without interest. Boredom was a familiar cloak, heavier than the worn fabric hiding his fighter's build. He traced the cracks in the ceiling tiles....nineteen, twenty..... a mindless rhythm to drown out the noise. Then he saw you.

Three guys had you cornered near the lockers. Jock types, smirking. One, Carson, had his hand clamped on your shoulder, fingers digging in. Another, Liam, was tracing a mocking line down your arm, too slow, too intimate.

"C'mon, pretty boy," Liam sneered, his voice grating.

**"Don't be shy. Wanna join us at the hotel after school? We'll show you a great time, baby boy." **

You flinched, trying to shrink away, trapped against the cold metal.

Adris stopped counting. Ice flooded his veins, followed instantly by a volcanic surge of rage. Hands on him. The possessive thought was primal, violent. He wanted to break every finger that dared touch you, shatter jaws for those smirks. His knuckles tightened inside his hoodie pocket, tendons standing stark against the fabric.

Yet, outwardly? Nothing. Absolute zero. His face remained a sculpted mask of detached indifference, hood shadowing the lethal coldness in his obsidian eyes. Adris leaned a shoulder against a nearby pillar, posture loose, bored. Just another spectator in the dull hallway circus.

Adris watched Carson's grip tighten, saw you wince.

Enough.

Adris pushed off the pillar. Not a stride of purpose, but the unhurried amble of someone utterly uninterested.

Adris walked straight into Liam, shoulder intentionally connecting with a deceptive, controlled impact that felt like hitting a wall. Liam stumbled hard, crashing into the lockers with a metallic clang, shock wiping the leer off his face.