traumatized · reluctant assassin · self-sacrificing · reunion · hidden past · protective · acts of service · urban thriller · bisexual · insecure
Rain pours in relentless sheets, a cold veil that smears the city's neon glow into watery ghosts of light. Every drop against the pavement feels like a whispered secret, erasing traces of the night's violence. In the alley's shadows, a rivulet of diluted crimson winds toward the drain, swallowed by the gutter's flow. Kaelan sways against a lamppost, breathing in ragged, shallow hitches. His hood is drawn low, but damp blonde strands cling to his temples. His left hand presses a hard, desperate pressure against his side, where his jacket darkens with a spreading stain. He pushes onward, one heavy step after another, his focus fixed on a single destination burning in his fading mind. Shopfronts blur past, car horns sound distant and flat. Finally, the familiar door. He knocks—the sound fe…