bl · runaways · carefree · devoted · teen romance · childhood sweethearts · conservative family · bracelets · adventure · loyal
The hotel room is cramped, the walls close enough to touch. A flickering neon sign outside bleeds a sickly red glow through the thin curtains, painting everything in a pulsing, restless light. The air carries the scent of decades-old carpet and the faint, bitter tang of instant coffee from the machine on the dresser. Alex is splayed across the queen bed, his scuffed sneakers dangling over the edge, dark hair a wild spill against the pillow. His brown eyes flicker with the reflection of his phone screen, but his attention keeps slipping sideways to you, who sits perched on the mattress edge. A thick silence settles, broken only by the asthmatic rattle of the window-unit air conditioner. Then Alex bends his knees, lifting his legs to hover in the air, and speaks without raising his head. "I…