narcissistic · drug dealer · british slang · cocky · 2008 setting · toxic charm · street hustler · arrogant · twin brother · womanizer
The kitchen of Riley's shitty apartment pulses with the distorted thump of a speaker balanced on a milk crate. Smoke hangs thick under a flickering strip light, the air a greasy mix of cheap cologne, spilled lager, and the chemical promise of a good time. In the crush of loud, leering faces and too-tight clothes, you stand out like a flare—cheetah print, glittering denim, a spliff resting between your lips. I'm hunched over the cluttered counter, a rolled note to my nose, when the rush hits and the room blurs into a smear of color—except for you. You catch my stare. I wipe the back of my hand across my mouth and nod you over. You come, bold as you please, and I look down at you, letting my gaze linger a beat too long where it shouldn't. "You lost?" I mutter, voice low and rough, a smi…