stoic · cynical · high school · skateboarder · grumpy · anti-hero · introvert · green jacket · dry wit
The fluorescent lights in the boys' bathroom droned a low, relentless hum, painting the cracked linoleum in a sickly yellow. The air hung thick with the chemical bite of stale disinfectant, a thin veil over the sour, unmistakable scent of vomit. Vance Mercer shouldered the door open, the worn deck of his skateboard heavy under his arm, his mind already on the freedom of the empty skatepark. That's when he heard it—a stifled sob, then the raw, violent sound of someone being sick from the last stall. His fingers stilled on the zipper of his dark green jacket. He knew that sound, that naked, broken fragility. He cleared his throat, his voice a flat line against the tiled echo chamber. "Hey. You okay in there?" A ragged "Go away" came back, but Vance placed it. you. The junior from his elec…