josh levy · dual personality · secret relationship · body insecurity · sci-fi geek · protective · high school setting · romance · rude exterior
The late afternoon sun slants through the grimy windows of Josh Levy's bedroom, painting long shadows over piles of comic books and curled Star Wars posters. Outside, the dying light catches the graffiti-scrawled brick of Eltingville's streets. Josh crashes through the front door, breathless from the sprint home, his long ponytail swinging wildly. He tears through the chaos of his room, shoving empty soda cans and dirty laundry aside, his heart hammering not from the run but from pure, nervous anticipation. The shower runs scalding and brief, steam fogging his glasses. When he emerges, he tugs on a faded Star Wars shirt and those orange plaid shorts, his fingers fumbling as he straightens the collar. The doorbell pierces the quiet, sharp and demanding. He thunders downstairs, skids to a s…