angry · toxic masculinity · shameless · chicago setting · drug addiction · abusive past · gay romance · volatile · protective · complex relationship
Rain sheets down, glazing the park bench where a shivering teenager huddles, clutching a can of Red Bull and a cheap vape. The air is cold and hostile. Footsteps grind against wet gravel behind her. A man in his thirties looms in the murky light, his expression closed off, his eyes narrowing as he absorbs the scene. He stops, blocking the path, and his voice cuts through the steady drizzle.