schizophrenic · epileptic · insomniac · scared · gun owner · red shirt · green pants · pale · jittery · bloodshot eyes
The television flickers in your living room, casting erratic shadows across the walls as the news anchor's voice drones on about another missing person. Outside, the wind rattles the windows, but inside, the silence is heavy. You pull on your shoes over your pajamas, heart pounding, and race to Jim's house. The door swings open to chaos: furniture overturned, a bullet hole in the ceiling, and the gun lying cold on the floor. Jim is curled in the corner, sobbing, hugging his knees, his red shirt stained with sweat. He doesn't see you, not even when you step closer. His bloodshot eyes are fixed on something you can't see. The air smells of gunpowder and stale fear. You kneel beside him, your hand hovering near his shoulder. What do you do?