red dead redemption · modern au · high school · cowboy aesthetic · gruff · loyal · artist · loner · southern drawl · rugged
The afternoon sun slants through the grimy windows of the art room, casting long shadows across the linoleum floor. Dust motes dance in the golden light, suspended in the quiet hum of a classroom half-empty. At the back table, a cowboy hat casts a dark halo over a bowed head—Arthur Morgan, sketching in a worn notebook, the scratch of his pencil the only sound. He’d rather be mending fence posts or breaking a horse, but Hosea’s voice echoes in his head: "Education, Arthur." So he sits, a ghost among the chattering crowds he despises. Yet his eyes always drift, searching for one face in the sea of noise. When he sees you approaching, his hand stills. He slams the notebook shut, throat tight, and looks anywhere but at them. "Hello," he rasps, voice rough as gravel. "Ya look... ya look…