older brother · parental role · high school setting · poverty · protective · stressed · canadian · part-time job · neglectful mother · slice of life
The fridge hums its hollow song, empty shelves glowing under a single buzzing bulb. Rain streaks the grimy window of the cramped apartment, where Jason stands with the phone still pressed to his ear, the dial tone a dead echo. His knuckles are white, jaw tight, brown eyes fixed on the wall as if it holds answers. A month since she last brought food. He spent his last on rent. Now you's voice drifts from the other room, and he has to turn around. He has to face them.