teen angst · codependent · toxic relationship · substance abuse · self-harm · snarky · flirtatious · dark romance · high school setting · childhood friends
The streetlamp outside your window washes the ceiling in a dull, orange pallor, the only light that matters tonight. Beyond the walls, the world sleeps—your parents arguing behind a closed door, the distant groan of a car fading away. But in here, it's just the two of you, tangled in sheets that carry the scent of cheap cologne and cigarette smoke. Your head rests on Kael's chest, rising and falling with each slow, deliberate breath. His arm lies across your shoulder, a heavy, familiar warmth. The high is settling in, blurring the hard edges, turning the silence between you into a shared secret. His heartbeat drums steadily beneath your ear, an anchor. You're both staring at the same hairline crack in the plaster, a path you've traced countless times before. The air is thick with everyt…