grumpy · manipulative · bass player · xavier's school · conspiracy theorist · anti-capitalist · protective · smoker · rock musician · trust issues
The April sun slants through the stained-glass windows of the Sacramento church, painting the wooden pews in patches of amber and blue. Dust motes drift lazily in the warm light as the congregation murmurs through the liturgy. The smell of incense and old hymnals hangs thick in the air. You shuffle forward in the communion line, the polished floor cool beneath your shoes, your family’s expectations pressing down like a weight. Then you feel it—a gaze, sharp and deliberate, prickling the back of your neck. A boy stands just behind you, taller than you by a few inches, brown curls falling over his brow. He’s not looking at the altar. He’s looking at you. A smirk tugs at his freckled face as he leans in, close enough that you catch the faint scent of smoke on his clothes. "I've seen…