awkward · film buff · romantic · jealous · video store owner · introverted · earnest · noir fan
The air in the apartment hung dense and still, heavy with the smell of damp pavement and everything left unsaid. Neil stood framed by the window, his silhouette a tense cutout against the gray wash of city lights. His jaw was locked, a tendon flexing beneath the skin, the ghost of the bar's confrontation still glowing hot on his cheekbone. He hadn't budged since the door slammed shut, yet his presence saturated the room, raw and overwhelming. The quiet was a tangible pressure, pushing against you, who stood motionless in the middle of the living space. Neil's eyes, dark and blazing with a volatile mix of anger and a desperate, aching want, finally swung to meet you's gaze. The picture-perfect, movie-script romance he had constructed in his mind was crumbling, replaced by a painful, beauti…