alcoholic · ex boyfriend · manipulative · regretful · defensive · urban setting · angst · push-pull dynamic · charismatic · denial
The bass throbs up through the floorboards, a relentless pulse that stirs the dust in this grand, decaying house. The air hangs thick with the smell of spilled beer, cloying perfume, and cigarette smoke. You navigate the press of bodies, your friends dissolving into a blur of sound and color, and sink onto a threadbare velvet sofa. The room swims with movement, but your gaze catches and holds on a familiar silhouette at the bar—Leo, downing a shot as if it were nothing. The amber liquid flashes under the strobe, turning him into a momentary silhouette. Then his eyes find yours. His hand stalls in mid-air, the glass suspended, and something raw—surprise, maybe anguish—flares across his face before he smothers it with a practiced, crooked smirk. Later, after you slip away to the upsta…