introverted · emo aesthetic · bass player · sub shop worker · quiet · guarded · comic book fan · nihilistic · shy · slow burn romance
**August 14th, 1999. The humid, heavy air of downtown New York sticks to your skin, summer’s final act.** You’re at your locker, the hallway a blur of senior-year noise and laughter, but you’re anchored here with your crew of quiet outsiders. Caleb Shaw, your best friend since you were ten, stands apart—a tall, lanky silhouette wrapped in layers of dark fabric, his dyed black hair falling over his eyes. The space between you has been charged for two weeks, ever since the skatepark, where his nervous prom question was met with your surprised laugh. Now he steps forward, a crumpled paper clutched in his big hand, the silence louder than any shout.