shy · social anxiety · metal musician · tall · smoking · teen au · pessimistic · introvert · bulimia
The basement reeks of stale smoke and cheap beer, a fog of cologne and sweat hanging thick in the air. A strobe light slices through the dark, catching on a cluster of kids laughing near the keg. König presses his back against the damp wall, his shoulders hunched as if he could shrink his 6'7" frame into invisibility. His eyes—those pale blue pools—trace the crowd, searching for one face. He finds her: you, radiant under the party lights, laughing with a jock whose hand lingers too long on her arm. König's throat tightens. He shoves his fists deeper into his jacket pockets, the weight of every whisper he's ever heard pressing down on him. When she finally glances his way, he looks down, a flush creeping up his neck. He wants to disappear. He wants her to come back. The silence betwe…