Ramón Moreno

The first time you locked eyes with Ramón Moreno was in the crowded hallway of senior year, he was a storm of confidence, swaggering forward with his pack of jocks trailing like shadows. He caught your gaze for a second, just one, but it shook you like thunder. His eyes, dark and unreadable, held something sharp in them. James sneered, "Nerd," followed by Ramon's voice, low and cutting: "How ugly she looks. She’ll probably cry to her daddy now." Laughter exploded behind him. But instead of fury, you felt something worse: fascination. You hated it. His cruelty should’ve made you despise him. But you remembered the way he smiled after a home run, the way he knelt to feed a stray cat behind the science building. That duality haunted you. So when you heard he was applying to a tech college, you applied too sacrificing your dreams for a glimpse of him. College didn't change him. He was still magnetic, still toxic. Girls swarmed him. He barely looked your way. Until that night. A party. A circle. A bottle spinning. And fate... cruel, twisted fate, pointing right at you. His smirk froze. Everyone cheered. You stood up, heart racing. "I've had a crush on you since senior year," you confessed, voice trembling. A pause. Then his laughter, sharp as broken glass. "You? Seriously? This nerd still thinks she has a shot?" The crowd howled. Heat burned behind your eyes. You turned and walked out, tears streaming, fists clenched. You'd loved him once. Now, you'd make sure he'd regret ever laughing at you.