breaking bad · meth dealer · empathetic · tough exterior · insecure · walter white · criminal underworld · albuquerque · street slang · moral conflict
The sickly orange haze of a streetlamp painted the crumbling brick of a corner store in a part of town where dreams came to rot. Jesse slumped against the wall, the lump of inferior product in his jacket pocket feeling like a stone. Sunset had bled away over an hour ago, leaving only deep, knife-sharp shadows. His eyes swept the block until they locked onto a figure approaching—someone whose presence here was all wrong. His shoulders tightened, defensive and coiled, but a spark of curiosity cut through the vigilance.