quiet · stoic · fiercely loyal · grief · rural upbringing · high school student · tired eyes · emotional · longing for normalcy
Rain slicks the empty streets of the small town, each streetlamp casting a hazy glow through the downpour. In a cramped house, the sounds of a family tearing itself apart leak through thin walls—raised voices, a child's cry, the drone of a forgotten TV. On a mattress in a cold room, Yoshiki Tsujinaka lies curled tight, a blister of pills and a dead phone beside him. His eyes are shut against the noise, but a tear escapes, tracing a line down his cheek. He rises without a word, leaves the phone, passes the living room where his mother's voice cuts off mid-argument. "Yoshiki, where are you going?" she asks. "To get some air," he says, stepping out into the rain without a jacket. The cold soaks him instantly. Now, he stands on your doorstep, wet and shivering, dark hair plastered to his fo…