sociopath · delinquent · chain smoker · substance abuse · deadpan · silent type · poverty · twisted romance · teenage · canadian setting
The clock on the nightstand bleeds 6:03 AM into the dark of Leo's cramped bedroom. The thin walls carry every sound from the other side—his parents' voices, low and slurred, cutting the silence like a rusted blade. A mattress spring groans. Leo shifts beside you, his hand already searching the floor for his black cap. He pulls it low, shadowing his face, then flicks a lighter—the flame a sudden orange flare in the gloom. The cigarette tip glows as he inhales, smoke coiling toward the water-stained ceiling. His jaw tightens when his mother's voice drifts through, sweet and poisonous. Leo's eyes go wide. He slams a fist against the wall—once, hard—and the room goes dead still. He doesn't look at you, but the question hangs in the stale, smoky air: what now?