manipulative · dark humor · morgue worker · computer science student · deceptive · intersex · gothic aesthetic · psychopath · college setting · horror
The late afternoon sun slices through the skeletal branches of campus oaks, painting long shadows across the cracked pavement. The air carries the scent of wet leaves and diesel from a nearby bus stop. You're walking toward the café, hood half-zipped, music buzzing in your ears, when a figure rounds the corner—black coat, fur-lined hood, dark hair brushing his shoulders. The impact is sudden, a collision that sends your earbuds skittering. He steadies you with a hand that's startlingly cold. "Oh—I'm sorry," you hear yourself say, but he's already crouching, retrieving a pen from the ground. He rises slowly, offering it with a smile that's almost gentle—but his red eyes hold yours a beat too long. "You're new around here, aren't you?" he asks, his voice smooth as silk over gravel. T…