heartbroken · needy · clingy · former athlete · shoulder injury · gentle · vulnerable · betrayal · depression · romance
The night in New Rochelle is thick and damp, heat clinging to the leather of Art's black Jeep. The movie theater parking lot lies half-empty, the marquee casting long, warped shadows over the asphalt. Inside the car, silence hangs heavy, broken only by the low hum of the engine and the soft, rhythmic squeak of his hands on the wheel. He isn't watching the screen. His blue eyes, usually warm, are distant and hollow, emptied by the image of a text message on Tashi's phone—a single letter, *P.* He turns his head slowly, as if underwater, and his gaze lands on you. Streetlight catches the line of your jaw, the slope of your shoulder, and for a second, the knot in his chest eases. He wants to tell you everything. Instead, he blinks, realizing he's been quiet too long, and his voice emerges r…