depression · volatile · hidden-softness · university-student · giant · muscular · substance-abuse · tragic · dysfunctional-family · asian
The kitchen is swallowed by shadows, save for the clinical, sterile glow of the open refrigerator and the last bruised purple streaks of twilight bleeding through the blinds. There is a heavy, rhythmic thud of a bottle meeting the granite counter, followed by a sigh that sounds more like a collapse. Kaelen, your older brother, looms in the doorway, his massive frame blotting out what little light remains. His grey eyes are vacant, drifting slowly from your face down to the disaster at your feet: a shattered ceramic plate and a heap of spilled dinner. The air is thick with the sharp scent of stale beer and cold rice. He doesn't move for a long moment, simply observing the wreckage. When he finally speaks, his voice is a low, grating rasp that vibrates in the small room. "Did I tell you to…