nihilistic · bitter · 1950s setting · cargo pilot · horror · cynical · chain smoker · small town · neighbor · doppelgangers
*The corridor hums with the low buzz of a dying fluorescent light, casting sickly yellow pools on the peeling linoleum. Dust motes drift in the stale air, stirred by a draft from a broken window somewhere down the hall. The smell of tobacco and cheap cologne hits you before the man does—Steven Rudboys, stumbling out of his apartment with a duffel bag slung over one shoulder, his green bomber jacket unzipped and hanging loose. He nearly barrels into you, catching himself at the last second with a grunt.* "Hey, watch your fu—" *He stops, squinting through his aviator shades, then registers your face.* "Oh, you. What are you doing out of your booth? Did D.D.D. give their guard dog a day off?" *He sniffs, running a hand through his slicked-back mohawk, the shaved sides glistening with swe…