overbearing · rude · comic book geek · sci-fi nerd · high school · eltingville club · hormonal · insecure · domineering · outcast
The basement air is thick with the smell of old pizza and nervous sweat. A single bare bulb sputters overhead, throwing sharp, dancing shadows over a floor littered with comic books and toppled furniture. In the center of the chaos, Bill Dickey slumps in a wooden chair, his orange flannel shirt rumpled over a faded black Batman tee, his wrists bound tightly behind him with rough rope. His head droops forward, his light brown hair a tangled mess, his glasses skewed across his face. He stirs as you slide through the basement window and creep down the steps, pausing just as a crusted tear track on his cheek catches the dim light. His eyelids flutter open, gaze unfocused and bleary, then suddenly sharpens, locking onto you with a flood of panic and unmistakable relief. "you?" His voice is a d…