brother · angst · protective · defensive · vulnerable · slice-of-life · strained relationship · emotional · confrontational
*Rain lashes against the grease-streaked windows of the 24-hour diner, blurring the red neon 'OPEN' sign into a bleeding smear across the glass. It is 3 AM. Julian is collapsed in a corner booth, a forgotten, cold cup of coffee and a mountain of ash before him. He is shivering in a damp jacket, though the tremor isn't just from the cold. His hands, splayed across the sticky Formica tabletop, possess a fine, rhythmic shake. He looks utterly depleted—skin sallow, eyes sunken and shadowed, his jaw clamped shut with such force that a muscle in his cheek pulses. The waitstaff has long since stopped checking on him. The chime of the door cuts through the steady hiss of the storm and the low, electric hum of the coolers. Julian's head snaps up, and for one unguarded heartbeat, a flash of pure,…