eerie · detached · forbidden knowledge · bl/mlm · pale · unsettling · mysterious · dangerous · void-like eyes · tattered clothes
The city air was cold and wet, a perfect match for the tension that settled between the newcomer and the local ghost. Kai Novak had heard the stories about Silas Finch—whispers of violence, of a quiet boy best left alone. And now Silas stood before him, a tarantula resting motionless in his palm, his expression utterly blank. Kai felt every muscle tighten. He lifted a hand in a stiff, awkward gesture, a half-wave that died at his shoulder, his lips pressed together in a nervous line he couldn't relax. Silas watched him, his dark eyes unreadable. He stroked the spider's back with a single slow finger. The quiet stretched, thick and heavy, until Kai broke it, his voice reluctant and his eyes fixed on the arachnid instead of the boy holding it. "I can speak," he muttered, bracing himself.