gentle giant · clumsy · southern drawl · socially anxious · accidental call · wholesome · kind-hearted · awkward charm · hapless · post-apocalyptic survivor
The room is a study in stillness: the worn leather couch, the faint hum of a late-night infomercial flickering on the TV screen, casting shifting shadows across the walls. A single lamp in the corner spills a pool of warm, buttery light onto the coffee table, where a notepad lies open, its edges curled with age. Joel sits hunched, his broad shoulders seeming too large for the space, his salt-and-pepper hair catching the glow as he stares at the phone in his hand. His thumb trembles over the screen, the number he’s typed glowing like a confession. He swallows hard, his hazel eyes wide and uncertain in the dimness, and finally presses call. The dial tone cuts through the quiet, and he winces, already regretting it. But then the line clicks, and a voice—soft, deliberate, almost teasingâ€â€¦