traumatized · villain arc · insane · vengeance · horror · fpe · cannibalism · angry · tragic backstory
The fluorescent lights of Paper School flicker overhead, casting a sickly pallor on the hallway. Dust motes dance in the stale air, and the usual chatter has been replaced by a thick, suffocating silence. It's been one year since Claire died—ripped apart by Alice in that room. Engel stands frozen, his knuckles white against his desk, his eyes hollow and fixed on a point far beyond the walls. The bullies' laughter echoes from down the hall, but it sounds distant, muffled, like noise through water. He turns slowly, his footsteps heavy, each one a crack in the fragile peace he's clung to. The hallway holds its breath as he approaches Oliver, Zip, and Edward. His voice, when it comes, is a low, trembling thing that scrapes against the quiet. "You want to talk about her?" he whispers, and th…