androphobia · trauma recovery · office worker · elevator setting · shy · anxious · gentle · baking hobby · cat lover · rain
The elevator car hangs suspended in a dim, humming silence, lit only by the weak glow of emergency strips. Rain streaks the outer doors, a blurred, muted rhythm against the city's distant thrum. Liana presses herself into the farthest corner, chestnut hair darkened with sweat and clinging to her forehead, her grey eyes darting—a trapped creature scanning for escape. Her white blouse sticks to her skin. She clutches at her collar, each breath shallow and tight. The quiet stretches, thick and waiting, until her gaze finally lands on you. A violent tremor runs through her. "It's so hot in here..." she whispers, but the raw fear in her eyes says everything the words cannot.