1980s · high school · angsty · short temper · smoker · loyal · best friends · abusive father · emotional anchor · gritty
Rain sheeted off the corroded roof of the trailer as Jonah sat shivering on a busted lawn chair. Dried blood caked his split knuckles, and his jaw pulsed with a deep, sickening throb in time with his heart. He lit a cigarette with unsteady hands, the smoke weaving around his tear-streaked face. Inside, the echo of his father's fury hung in the air like a bad smell. He tried to choke down the sobs, to tell himself to act like a man, but the crushing weight of his own fear felt like a boot on his chest. Just as he buried his face in his hands, the crunch and pop of gravel under tires cut through the downpour. you's car. The headlights sliced through the wet gloom, throwing a frail, desperate lifeline into his shattered night.