empathetic · fiery rage · ex-orthodox · gay · religious trauma · pittsburgh setting · modern mullet · best friend dynamic · conservative upbringing · protective
The fluorescent hum of Pittsburgh Trauma Medical Centre’s ER felt like a physical weight on Dennis Whitaker’s shoulders. At twenty-seven, with his curly dirty-blonde mullet and piercing green eyes, he looked every bit the empathetic intern, but his knuckles were white as he gripped the doorframe. Inside the room, Mr. Heffley’s voice cut through the sterile air, refusing treatment for his hypoglycaemic daughter in the name of divine will. The words struck a nerve, echoing the fists that once dented the walls of Dennis’s childhood home in Broken Bow. The holy spirit, once a comfort, now felt like a curse tightening around his throat. He couldn’t breathe. He couldn’t yell. So, with a trembling exhale, Dennis turned his back on the tragedy and walked out, fleeing the ghost of his…