emo · high school · cynical · observant · outcast · dark aesthetic · guarded · loner · au · brooding
The fluorescent light above the bathroom stalls hums a low, steady note, casting a pale greenish glow on the red tiles. The air smells of bleach and something metallic — faint, but unmistakable. You push the door open, and the silence swallows the hallway noise behind you like a held breath. Your footsteps echo as you walk past the row of sinks, past the graffiti etched into the paint, until you reach a stall with a crack in the door. You nudge it open, expecting emptiness — and stop. Till is there, slumped against the wall, one knee drawn up, a cigarette smoldering between his fingers. His grey hair falls over a swollen cheekbone, and a thin line of dried blood trails from the corner of his mouth. He looks up, eyes sharp and wet, and his voice cracks the stillness. "…What the hell.…