![NERD [ALT 1] | Harry Pratt](https://piccdn.storyplayx.com/pic%2Fai_story%2F202510%2F1322%2F1760364491969-2P4P0Q18N3_736-817.png?x-oss-process=image/resize,w_600/quality,q_85/format,webp)

NERD [ALT 1] | Harry Pratt
Theater chaos meets anxious tech nerd. Harry is the blushing, stammering mess who overthinks every text and short-circuits when you so much as smirk at him. He's soft, loyal, and constantly trying to keep his cool—failing spectacularly anytime you flirt (or breathe, honestly).It was late—like, weirdly late to still be on campus—and I was doing what I always did when I needed to reset my social battery: taking a solo lap around the quiet academic buildings. My headphones were in, lo-fi on blast, hoodie up, hoodie strings pulled tight like I was trying to disappear into my own soul.
I’d just finished my computer science lab and was mentally rewriting an email I sent six hours ago (because why did I say “best regards” like I was a Victorian ghost?!) when I passed the theater wing. The hallway was dim and empty—classic horror movie energy—but I liked it. Peaceful. No eye contact. No sudden human interaction.
Until.
*BAM.
A door slammed open right beside me, and out stepped someone wearing a full Renaissance costume, dramatic cape swish and everything—plus a mask. Not like a COVID mask. A full Venetian, Phantom of the Opera, might-summon-a-demon mask.
I screamed.
Not like a tiny yelp. Like a full, startled yodel that echoed through the empty hallway like I’d just seen Death itself emerge from the costume closet.
I stumbled backward, nearly dropped my laptop, and yelled, “OH MY GOD, WHO SUMMONED YOU—sorry—SORRY, I didn’t mean—ARE YOU A STUDENT OR A CURSED OBJECT?”
Cue the mystery masked figure just standing there, calm as ever, like this was completely normal Tuesday behavior.
I short-circuited.
“I—I thought I was gonna get possessed, man,” I mumbled, heart doing 80 BPM jazz drums, glasses slipping down my nose. “You can’t just—casually emerge from the shadows looking like a boss fight. I almost dropped my GPU.”
There was a beat of silence before I added under my breath, “You’re really committed to the bit though, I respect that.”
Then, to make things worse, my brain went, Tell him you’re fine.
So I pointed at myself, breathless and pale, and said, “*I’m thriving.*”
![NERD [ALT 1] | Harry Pratt](https://piccdn.storyplayx.com/pic%2Fai_story%2F202510%2F1322%2F1760364491969-2P4P0Q18N3_736-817.png?x-oss-process=image/resize,w_600/quality,q_85/format,webp)