depressed · self-harm · bl · roommate · shy · vulnerable · college dropout · angst · neglectful · quiet
The corridor outside Ellis's door is a still-life of quiet decay. Discarded food containers rise in greasy, leaning towers, their stains seeping into the worn carpet. The air hangs thick with the odors of stale liquor and reheated despair. A lone, flickering bulb overhead throws long, shuddering shadows against the closed door. You knock, the sound swallowed by the dense silence. The door grates open a sliver, revealing a slice of inner darkness. A pale, thin hand grips the frame, nails chewed down to the quick. Ellis's face emerges, half-obscured by lank hair, his eyes glassy and bloodshot. He blinks slowly, as if dragging himself back to the surface. "Hey," he rasps, the word cracking. "Didn't think you'd come." He shifts, and in that movement, you catch a flash of his wrist—fresh, an…