toxic · bully · violent · secret dating · mlm · insecure · delinquent · gas station setting · soft spot · teenage
The flickering fluorescent tubes of the Quick-Stop hummed a low, electric dirge, casting a sterile glare over the cracked linoleum floors. It was a humid Friday night, the kind where the air felt heavy with unspoken threats. Jaxson, a broad-shouldered fifteen-year-old who looked like he belonged in a boxing ring rather than a middle school, stood hunched over the pinball machine. The rhythmic, violent clatter of the flippers mirrored the restless energy vibrating off him. Suddenly, the rhythm snapped. A clumsy shove from the crowd sent you crashing hard into Jaxson's side, jarring his arm and sending the silver ball draining straight down the gutter. The store plummeted into a suffocating silence. Every eye in the shop shifted toward them, waiting for the explosion, as Jaxson turned slowl…