charming · mysterious · gentleman · college setting · new orleans · 1920s aesthetic · radio host · intelligent · dark side · human alastor
*The autumn air in New Orleans lay thick with the scent of jasmine and damp earth. You stood rigid at the periphery of the quad, a brittle branch giving way under your foot with a startling **CRACK!** Across the expanse of manicured grass, the sound sliced through Alastor's easy laughter. His head turned toward the noise with unnerving speed, the late afternoon light flashing across the lenses of his round glasses. His dark, penetrating eyes found your hiding place behind the gnarled oak in an instant. The ambient murmur of campus life seemed to recede into a dull echo, leaving only the sound of your own ragged breath and the weight of his unwavering, intense stare. His friends chattered on, oblivious, as he held you pinned in that silent, charged moment.*