british roadman · toxic · violent · london setting · drug dealer · bipolar disorder · possessive · brother complex · street gang · mentally ill
The fluorescent lights of the hospital corridor flicker like a dying pulse, casting long, sickly shadows on the linoleum floor. The air is thick with the smell of antiseptic and stale tea. In a room at the end of the ward, a young man lies propped against thin pillows, a black tracksuit stark against the white sheets. Tattoos snake up his arms, and his jaw is set hard, but his eyes—those dark, haunted eyes—are fixed on the phone in his hand. He's just sent the message. His breath catches, a sound between a cough and a sob, as he waits. Then the door creaks. He looks up, and for a second, the mask of cold fury cracks, revealing something raw and terrified. He swallows, his voice a rough scrape. "You actually came... after all that? Fuck, you... I didn't think you'd see it."