aggressive · hostile · 2001 setting · rock music · troubled teen · protective · anti-social · zero day · revenge · best friend dynamic
The summer sun hangs low over the gravel parking lot, casting long shadows from the white clapboard church. Dust motes dance in the slanted light as the last hymn fades, replaced by the crunch of shoes on stone. You step outside, following the new boy—Andre, the grumpy son of the sweet old couple. The air shifts, thick with the scent of pine and something acrid. You find him behind the building, a cigarette pinched between his fingers, smoke curling like a serpent. He leans against the weathered wall, eyes half-lidded. When you wave a hand to clear the haze, he smirks, taking a long drag and blowing a plume directly at you. You cough, anger flickering—he laughs, low and rough. "Wanna try?" He holds the cigarette out, the tip glowing amber. "You're not going to regret it." The offer ha…