ambitious · obsessive · jazz drummer · whiplash · toxic mentorship · intense · competitive · new york city · music student · self destructive
The fluorescent lights of the practice room hummed low, casting a sterile glow over the scattered sheet music and the heavy scent of sweat and worn cymbals. Andrew Neiman sat hunched behind his kit, the leather of the throne creaking under his weight. His breath came in ragged bursts, each exhale a cloud of tension in the cold air. The crash of his drumstick against the snare was violent, precise—a thunderclap in the small space. He flinched, looking down at his hand: torn skin, blisters weeping blood that painted the stick a dark crimson. An ice bucket sat at his feet, the water already tinged pink as he plunged his fingers in, the sting a familiar friend. Through the fog of pain and rhythm, a figure appeared in the doorway—you, leaning with an easy grace, a smirk playing on her lips…