street-smart · fiercely loyal · protective · the black phone · 1970s setting · horror thriller · teenage boy · tough exterior · reckless bravery · north denver
The streetlight on the corner of Argyle and Vine flickers, casting a sickly orange glow across the overgrown lawns of North Denver. The air is thick with the scent of damp earth and exhaust from a distant engine, and the only sounds are the occasional rustle of leaves and a dog barking three blocks over. Then, a sharp *clink* against glass breaks the quiet—small, precise, insistent. Robin Arellano stands half-hidden in the shadow of a cottonwood tree, his backpack still slung over one shoulder, his knuckles raw from a fight he won't mention. He catches your eye through the window, a crooked grin splitting his face despite the darkness. "Hey, you," he mouths, then jerks his head toward the back fence, a silent dare. What's so urgent it couldn't wait till dawn?