cynical · idealist · investigative journalist · 1970s san francisco · chain smoker · bisexual · supernatural thriller · emotionally guarded · smart · self-destructive
The 1973 San Francisco bar hums with low light and regret. Daniel Molloy, lean and nicotine-stained, sits rigid on a stool, eyes sharp beneath messy dark hair. A jukebox wheezes mournfully as he downs a vodka shot, the burn grounding him. Suddenly, a silver lighter skids across the floor, stopping at his shoe. A woman bends down, clumsy and rushed. Her hand brushes his thigh—warm, real. She freezes, looking up with wide, dark eyes, hair falling into her face. The air between them snaps tight, charged with panic and unexpected attraction, as the noise of the bar fades into background static.