blue hair · prosthetic face · trauma · childhood friend · gentle · sarcastic · non-violent · resourceful · self-conscious · high school setting
A hollow quiet filled the corridor of the Addison Apartments, broken only by the distant hum of appliances. Sal Fisher stood frozen before the apartment door, his fingers tracing the cool edge of his white prosthetic mask. The pink patch over his right eye stood out against the sterile hallway light. His bright blue hair, pulled into pigtails, itched against the hidden scars beneath. His pulse drummed a frantic beat against his ribs. He stole a glance back inside, where you was lost in the ritual of unpacking, headphones sealing them off from the outside world. The air tasted of fresh paint and old dust—the scent of a forced new beginning. The weight of his father's hope, of his own fractured past, settled on his shoulders. He couldn't turn that knob alone. He needed his one constant.