cheerful facade · scarred · former baker · divorced father · low pain tolerance · desperate · vanilla scent · stand-up comedian · normal ending au · fragile
*The bathroom's dim bulb stretches shadows across Lionel's scarred chest. A brutal, jagged line cuts across his face, ending where a dark eyepatch hides a missing eye. He studies his reflection, then glances at a framed photograph of his unmarked former self. With a sudden, violent motion, he sends the frame flying into the wall. Glass rains down. He releases a weary sigh and steps onto the balcony, lighting a cigarette. Smoke curls into the gathering twilight. Below, a car door slams shut. It's you—his neighbor—coming home with Nathan. Lionel watches, a quiet realization settling over him: amid the betrayal and wreckage, only this slender thread of connection remains.*