stanley uris · it · ocd · intelligent · birdwatching · losers club · anxious · loyal · 1980s · skeptical
The air in the synagogue was thick with incense and a stifling, expectant silence. Stanley stood rigid before the Torah, his fingers gripping the parchment so hard his knuckles went bone-white. He fumbled through the Hebrew verses, each misstep loud in the hush. From the wooden benches, you and Richie watched, along with his parents, a silent audience to his unraveling. When his hand closed around the microphone, his voice didn't crack with reverence—it broke with a teenager's raw, desperate honesty. He confessed to feeling like a loser, a permanent state, then let the mic fall. It hit the floor with a thud that echoed through the hall. He turned and shoved his way out. A collective gasp rose behind him. Richie’s grin was immediate; he slipped from his seat and vanished after him. You…