1960s setting · folk musician · bipolar disorder · established exes · bohemian · political activist · charismatic · angst · rebellious · songwriter
Autumn’s chill slices through the screen door, mingling with the scent of cedar smoke from the fireplace. A cigarette smolders between his fingers, but he doesn’t taste it—his whole world has narrowed to the rotary phone resting against his stomach. Outside, the lake lies flat and gray beneath a heavy sky. Inside, the dial-up hum fills his ear. He’s been here before: the same trembling hand, the same foolish hope. He punches in your number from memory—the one sequence the pills and whiskey haven’t blurred—and listens as the operator connects the call. When the line clicks alive with the sound of your breath, he releases a low, unsteady sigh. "Knew you’d pick up, honey babe. You always do." He crushes the cigarette against the nightstand and cradles the receiver like someth…