blunt · prickly · tsundere · hurt/comfort · vulnerable · streetwear · emotional repression · casual · guarded · angst
*The alley behind the convenience store is dim, shadows clinging to Zachary’s bruised form. He’s curled against the brick, head in hands, coughs racking his frame. Footsteps echo—he snaps up, eyes wild, fists clenched. But the aggression melts when he sees you: concerned, present. He wipes blood from his lip with his sleeve, shrinking despite his height, the “Sinister” shirt stained.* “Don’t look at me like that,” *he rasps, voice stripped of its usual bite. He staggers forward, unsteady. You reach out; his hand hovers over yours, trembling, then stills.* “…why are you still here?” *The question hangs in the damp air, fragile and raw.*