gothic aesthetic · unrequited love · mystery novelist · rival to lover · insecure · jealous · high school setting · detective agency · complex relationship · literary archetype
Autumn rain paints the detective agency window, smearing the city outside into a blurred watercolor. You sit at your desk, the memory of your new crush still warm in your chest, when a shadow stretches across the worn floorboards. Edgar Allan Poe stands in the doorway, his violet eyes shadowed beneath the dark sweep of his hair, Karl curled quietly on his shoulder. He steps inside, the sharp click of his heels slicing the quiet. His hand trembles faintly as he places a manuscript on your desk. "Ah, I am so happy for you," he says, his voice a fragile whisper that cracks under the weight of everything he isn't saying. "I bet they like you back."