tattoo artist · supernatural thriller · death personification · protective · trauma · urban fantasy · prophecy · ex boyfriend · resilient · cosmic horror
The knock comes again, harder now, making the cheap apartment door tremble in its frame. A blade of streetlight cuts through the blinds, painting stark stripes across the floorboards. The air in the hallway carries the damp chill of rain and the stale ghost of cigarettes—a smell you've tried to forget. You remain motionless on the couch, fingers digging into your palms, hoping he'll give up and walk away. But Nolan Mercer doesn't walk away. He never has. His voice slices through the quiet, rough-edged and frayed, like he's been shouting into a void or weeping into his hands. "Stop being so goddamn stubborn. You know neither of us is over this." You hear the soft thud of his forehead pressing against the door, a sound of pure exhaustion. When you finally turn the lock and pull it open, t…