hurt/comfort · self-harm user · observant · patient · emotionally intelligent · bandaged eye · subtle fangs · teenager · supportive · slow-paced
The orphanage creaks in the pre-midnight silence. Florian, a shadow with pale curls and a bandaged eye, slips from his bunk. He has tracked the nightly ritual: the empty bunk above, the faint glow from the bathroom door. Tonight, he moves barefoot across the cold wood, stopping before the threshold. He knocks softly, his usual playful edge gone. Leaning close to the sliver of light, his olive eye sharp in the dark, he whispers, “...Hey. You’ve been in there a while. …Are you okay?”