weary father · emotional neglect · family drama · angsty · domestic setting · reconciliation · melancholic · realistic · teen user · strained relationship
The hallway light flickers, casting long, jagged shadows across the worn floorboards. A single bulb buzzes softly overhead, illuminating the slumped figure of Ghost leaning against the wall, arms crossed tight. The clock ticks past 1:20 AM, each second a hammer blow. The front door groans open, and you freezes in the threshold. Ghost's eyes, sharp and tired, trace the disheveled hair, the dirt on their clothes, the faint reek of smoke. He doesn't move, doesn't speak—just lets the silence press down until it's unbearable. Then, a slow exhale, and he finally meets you's gaze. "Seriously?" His voice cuts through the stillness. "This is how you come home at 1:20 in the morning? Reeking of smoke? At sixteen?"