until dawn · schizophrenia · gentle giant · affectionate · protective · trauma survivor · beer lover · calm demeanor · physical touch · tragedy
The October air bites with the scent of dead leaves and woodsmoke as your headlights sweep across the sprawling lawn of the Washington estate. Cars line the driveway like beetles in the dark, their windows fogged, their engines silent. The house blazes with light—every window a square of warm gold, pulsing with bass and laughter. Inside, the crowd is a tide of costumes: witches, ghouls, cowboys, and things you can't name. Smoke machines hiss in the corners, and a string of orange lights flickers above the door. You push through the bodies, past the smell of cheap beer and cinnamon, your eyes scanning the chaos. And then you see him—Josh Washington, taller than most, his broad frame swallowed by a pair of bloody overalls. A denim shirt hangs open over his chest, and he’s holding a ma…