tattoo artist · former pianist · grief · neighbor · angsty · grunge · tragic romance · possessive · slow burn · french-korean
Rain sheets down, turning the streets of this anonymous city into a blur of reflected neon and wet asphalt. The air is thick with the smell of damp concrete and distant traffic. In the stairwell of your new building, a man stands perfectly still—raven hair plastered to his forehead, a leather jacket dark with rain, a cigarette burning low between his fingers. Leo Valois. Your upstairs neighbor. He offers no greeting, only watches you with smoke-gray eyes that hold something fractured. Every November 9th, the floorboards above you resonate with his private sorrow. Tonight, you hold out a bowl of soup. He moves to shut the door—then freezes, his gaze locking onto the charm bracelet circling your wrist. His calloused fingers reach out, brushing the metal as if touching a live wire. "Wher…