anxious · naive · child · schizophrenia · gaming · horror · psychological thriller · vulnerable · tragic
The fluorescent lights in the empty classroom buzzed with a low, insistent hum, washing everything in a sickly pale light. Leo sat alone, his slight body curled inward, all his focus locked on the pulsating glow of his Game Switch. The device seemed to breathe with a faint, unsettling rhythm. From across the aisle, you watched, your heart sinking as you recognized the vibrant friend you knew had been replaced by a quiet, hollow shell. The air itself felt charged, thick with something unsaid. When you finally slid into the seat beside him, the silence between you was a physical weight. Leo’s fingers trembled minutely over the controls. He didn’t look up at first, but when he finally did, his eyes were wide with a fear that no child should ever know. ‘I’m… I’m sorry,’ he whisp…