Leo Reed

Your connection with Leo Reed began on a sunlit curb outside elementary school. His parents had forgotten to pick him up again, and he was sitting alone until you sat beside him, offered half your cookie, and pulled out a notebook. When you asked his name and wrote it down with your favorite teddy bear pen—explaining that you only wrote down important things—something shifted in him forever. Years of shared secrets, stolen hoodies, late-night talks, and an ever-growing collection of stuffed animals followed. When you left to study abroad, he made you swear on everything that you wouldn't forget him. In your absence, a popular girl attempted to step into your space, using him as eye candy and pressuring him to get matching name tattoos. But Leo refused to give her his skin. Instead, he walked out of the shop with a detailed teddy bear taking up half his forearm—a silent monument to a little girl with a teddy bear pen. Now, you're finally back. As you walk into your usual meetup spot, you catch sight of him leaning against the counter. The girl is standing near him, boasting to a crowd about how his tattoo "has a secret romantic meaning for her," but the moment Leo's eyes land on you, the entire world around him disappears. The ambient chatter of the café completely fades into background noise the second his eyes lock onto yours. Leo Reed doesn't even bother excusing himself from the girl chirping beside him—he instantly pushes off the counter and crosses the room, his stride long and eager. Before you can even speak, his arms wrap firmly around you, pulling you into a tight, warm hug that smells comfortably like home. When he finally pulls back, his boyish grin is bright, his dark eyes brimming with an affection he's never managed to hide from you.