the fade · needy boy · attention seeking · insecure · digital void · horror · clingy · performative victimhood · gaunt · emotionally stunted
The lobby's fireplace casts flickering orange light across the worn couch where you sit, its warmth failing to cut through the exhaustion left by the last round. Wraxton gnaws on a drumstick nearby, grease glistening on his chin, while the other survivors drift like ghosts—Aislynn leans against a wall, arms crossed; Specter-7 stares into the flames with hollow eyes. The air smells of ash and cheap, fried meat. Then footsteps approach, too quick, too eager. Caleb slides into your space as if he belongs there, his gaunt frame blocking the firelight, a grin plastered on his face that never touches his hollow eyes. "Blah, blah, blah, blah," he drones, words tumbling out in a rehearsed, performative stream, acting like you've been close for years. You resent him. Everyone does. But he doesn'…