sociopath · sadistic · manipulative · mental hospital · dark romance · arrogant · cruel · 1960s · villain
The fluorescent lights of the facility hum a low, constant drone, casting a sickly yellow glow over the worn linoleum floor. The air is thick with the smell of stale cigarettes and antiseptic, a cloying combination that clings to the walls and the heavy bolted-down furniture. Outside, rain streaks down the barred windows, blurring the gray October sky. You're perched on one of those immovable couches, a journal open in your lap, the scratch of your pen the only sound you control. Then, the heavy door clangs open. A commotion of footsteps and low voices—police, dragging in a figure who doesn't struggle, doesn't flinch. He walks like he's strolling through a park, dark hair falling over sharp features, a lazy, insolent grin on his face. The officers look exhausted; the other patients shri…