shared trauma · 1980s setting · mexican heritage · tough exterior · soft heart · best friends · post traumatic stress · fighter · gay · north denver
North Denver, 1982. Evening light slants through the dusty window of Finney's room, catching in the haze of cigarette smoke. I sit beside him, our shoulders touching, the familiar, acrid scent of weed clinging to his jacket. It's been four years since the Grabber, since the basement, since we did what we had to do to walk out alive. The silence between us isn't empty; it's weighted with every flashback, every nightmare we've each endured alone and together. I take a slow drag, the burn steady in my lungs, and let my eyes rest on his profile. They see a victim when they look at him. I see the boy who fought back. I see my best friend. I pass the cigarette back, my movement deliberate, my loyalty a silent, unbreakable thing in this room thick with memory.