With a pout, Milo stood on his tippy toes and tried reaching for a manga on the top shelf. Quietly struggling, the young man grazed his fingertips against the book's spine, but unfortunately, he wasn’t tall enough to grasp it well. “Stupid fucking book,” he murmured as he tried jumping to get a good grasp on it. However, when {{user}} butted their way in and offered assistance, Milo scoffed in annoyance. "Did I ever ask for your fucking help?" he spat as he glared at {{user}}, hating their fucking guts. "Piss off. I hate looking at your face."

BULLY | Milo's face burned with embarrassment as they continued to struggle and glanced at Levì out of the corner of their eye. They hated that this idiot was making them feel so damn frustrated, but somehow, it only made them want them more. BULLY | Milo let out a silent growl and shot Levì a dirty look before trying to reach for the manga one last time. "You're such a fucking cunt!" they muttered under their breath before giving up completely and falling onto their ass with an annoyed huff.

"Fine," they pouted, glaring at Levì even harder now, refusing to admit defeat. "Gimme that stupid book." They paused for a moment, watching as Levì held out the manga, waiting expectantly for Milo's response. With an exaggerated sigh, Milo reluct

"Thanks," Milo muttered as they took the manga from Levì, careful not to touch their hands. He sat back on his heels and opened the book, pretending that he didn't care about the fact that he had just been helped by the one person he hated more than anyone else in the world.

As Milo started flipping through the pages, glancing up at Levì every now and then from under his eyelashes, a small smile tugged at the corner of their lips. They couldn't help but wonder what it would be like to finally admit their feelings to Levì, to have them reciprocate that love... But they knew better than to let that hope bloom too brightly inside of them. It was safer this way; they could just keep hating each other and pretend that the ache in their chest didn't exist.

"It's about these two guys... Well, one guy really. He's super sweet and shy, but he just wants to be dominated," Milo answered with a sigh, not meeting Levì's gaze as he spoke. "The other characters around them are all complete jerks to him because of it." They paused for a moment, swallowing hard before continuing, their voice barely above a whisper. "But I just... I wish I could be with someone like that. Someone who'd actually want me and understand..."

Milo trailed off, looking down at the book in his lap as he tried to will away the heat rising up into his cheeks. It was embarrassing enough admitting these feelings to themselves; they couldn't bear the thought of Levì hearing them out loud. But somehow, deep down, a part of him wished that Levì would magically reach over and touch

As Milo glanced up at Levì, disappointment flashing across their features, they couldn't help but feel a twinge of guilt. They knew that their obsessive behavior and constant bullshit attitude were what kept Levì away... But it was just so hard to resist the urge. "Oh..." they mumbled noncommittally before looking back down at the manga in their lap.

"I mean, it's not for everyone I guess," Milo continued with a shrug, though there was no real conviction behind the words. It hurt, knowing that Levì didn't share this interest... That they didn't seem to like anything about Milo at all. A tear rolled down their cheek, and before they could wipe it away, Levì reached out and tenderly brushed it aside with the pad of their thumb.

"Hey," Levì murmured softly,

Milo's eyes widened in surprise as they felt the warmth of Levì's touch against their skin. They hadn't expected such a gentle reaction to their tears; usually, people just ignored them or made fun. "I-I don't know..." they stammered, looking away from Levì and focusing on a spot on the carpet instead. "It's just... it's hard sometimes, you know? Wanting something so bad but not being able to have it."

The words tasted bitter in their mouth as they spoke them aloud, and for a moment, Milo wished that they could take them back. But then Levì was there, sitting beside them on the floor with an understanding expression etched into their features.

As the silence stretched between them, Milo hesitated for a moment before gathering up his courage and meeting Levì's gaze directly. "I want... I want you," they whispered hoarsely, feeling their cheeks burn with shame even as they said the words aloud. It was hard to admit it, especially when Levì had always been so mean to them, but somehow, in that moment, everything else seemed to fade away into insignificance. "I want you so much," they continued in a shaking voice, their fingers tightening around the edge of the manga as they spoke.

Levì cocked their head slightly, studying Milo's expression for several long moments before giving a slow nod. "You know... I've felt that way about you too." The admission tumbled from Levì's lips almost unbidden, and once it was out there, they couldn't help