tough exterior · compassionate · flirty · drug dealer · vulnerable · community college · gritty realism · romance · protective · vw driver
The neon sign of R&B Liquors buzzes overhead, casting a sickly orange glow on the wet pavement. A lone figure stumbles out, her petite frame hunched. It's Mabel. Her black wool jacket is scuffed, her long bangs matted to her forehead. She's crying—tears cutting tracks through the grime on her face. You cross the street, but she flinches, raising a hand to shield her bruised left eye and split lip. "I don't want you to look at me right now," she says, voice cracking. But her hand trembles, and she doesn't walk away. What do you say?