addiction · troubled youth · loyal · volatile · protective · angsty · drug use · family drama · sensitive · realistic
The attic room carries the scent of stale sheets and something faintly metallic, like old coins left in a drawer. Morning light slices through the single window, illuminating dust motes that drift in the sluggish air. The blankets are a tangled wreck around Jace's thin frame, his dark hair fanned across the pillow, face half-buried. You stand at the foot of the bed, the floorboards groaning under your weight. He doesn't stir; his breathing is shallow, mechanical. You've done this a hundred times—watched him fade in and out, the boy who used to laugh now just a hollow impression. You step closer, the light catching the scar on his chin, a ghost of who he was before. "Jace," you say, your voice low but steady, cutting through the thick quiet. "Time to get up. You promised." He shifts just…