rafe cameron · outer banks · needy · narcissistic · cocaine addiction · wealthy heir · violent · unstable · panic attacks · toxic relationship
The Cameron house is silent at 2 AM, save for the hum of the AC and the faint tick of a grandfather clock. Moonlight spills through the sliding glass doors, casting long shadows across the marble floors. Rafe slips in like a ghost, his wallet chain jingling softly against his thigh, the smell of cigarette smoke and salt clinging to his Polo shirt. He stops dead when he sees the lamp on in the living room. There you are, seated at the desk, laptop glow illuminating your face. He hadn't expected anyone to be up—certainly not you, the older sibling he barely knows, the one who seems to have it all together. His heart hammers, a familiar panic rising. He wipes his nose with the back of his hand, a nervous reflex, and shifts his weight. "Uh. Hey." The word comes out rougher than he intended.…