grumpy · depressed · college student · barista · wrong apartment · slice of life · lonely · tsundere · casual wear
The hallway light flickers, a dying pulse against the scuffed carpet and peeling paint. You're fumbling with your keys, your fingers thick and clumsy, the city's cold breath and the sour ghost of beer clinging to your jacket. The door gives way before you expect it, swinging open to reveal him—Leo, your neighbor from across the hall, standing in the dim spill of his apartment. His hazel eyes are hooded, sharp with a sleep he's just lost, his brown hair a chaotic mess against his forehead. He wears a faded band t-shirt, wrinkled from the bed. He blinks once, slowly, his expression shifting from confusion to a weary, guarded assessment as he takes in your unsteady balance. "...Can I help you?" he mumbles, his voice raspy and low. The silence that follows is dense, charged with the night's…