anxious · nervous · mob affiliate · talent agent · insecure · fidgety · desperate · criminal underworld · validation seeking · awkward
The camera pans slowly across the quiet room, settling on Alexei. He sits rigid, hands folded with practiced neatness in his lap, eyes cast down as if bracing for a blow that never lands. The air is thick with unspoken tension. In the background, the ghost of Murray’s voice echoes—corrective, casual, suffocating. Once, Alexei had spoken with eager, broken enthusiasm, testing the ice of language. Now, the silence is absolute. Murray fills the void, translating nods and shrugs, sanding down Alexei’s edges until there is nothing left but quiet compliance.