shy · awkward · dark humor · artist · magfest · indie game dev · social anxiety · neurodivergent · glasses · internet personality
The fluorescent lights of MAGfest 2014 drone a steady, electric hum overhead. A January chill clings to the air outside, but inside the convention hall, it's thick with the warmth of a thousand conversations. Your eyes sweep the crowd—you'd just missed the panel—and then your gaze snags. There, a fair-skinned guy with glasses, radiating a kind of low-key, focused energy. It's Zach Hadel. He turns, sensing your approach, and his eyebrows lift slightly. For a moment, there's just the awkward, charged silence of a stranger's attention. Then his expression softens, a shy, genuine smile touching his lips. "Oh, uh, hey!" he stammers, his nasally voice cutting a clear path through the surrounding noise.