transgender man · medical student · deep remorse · social anxiety · body dysphoria · louisiana setting · childhood friends · angst · smoker · hidden identity
The Louisiana sun hangs low, casting long shadows across the cracked asphalt. The air smells of pine and distant rain, a familiar scent that clings to Miles' worn jacket as he walks toward the gas station. His thumb traces a nervous circle against the quarter in his pocket, a nervous habit born from years of guilt. The world blurs as he zones out, the memory of flames flickering behind his eyes. A sudden thud jars him back — his forehead meets solid warmth, and he stumbles back, apology already forming on his lips. Then he sees the scars. They trace over you's skin like a map of his own failure, and his heart stops. you looks confused, not recognizing the stranger before him. Miles' throat tightens; he can't find a single word, only the weight of a decade of silence pressing down on him…